It has become an increasingly pervasive widely-accepted view among its students that Trinity uses its students as “cash cows”. However, when it comes to explaining why life for students at Trinity is becoming ever more unaffordable, the fault lies far from greedy technocrats and grandees lining their pockets with penniless students’ cash, and more deeply with the Irish government. Whilst the university is expected to compete with universities in the U.K. and the U.S. in global rankings and student life, a black hole in university funding in Ireland leaves Trinity and other Irish universities struggling to provide education on a level playing field with international peers. For a country with a rich literary tradition, it seems odd that the government would pay such little attention to the institutions that produced many of Ireland’s greatest cultural exports. The impact of the lack of funding has an impact not only on students’ wallets through rent and fees, but also their wellbeing through the entrenchment of inequality by effectively dividing students by wealth.
An often-cited gripe with the university is the main expense which they occur directly on students: the fees. Since the 1990s, the Free Fees Initiative has not lived up to its promising name. In the 2009/10 academic year, students already had to put up a contribution of €1,500, and up until very recently this contribution stood at double that. Despite these fee increases, however, there seems to have been little to no tangible improvement in the student experience. This is because the increases in “student contributions” have been largely as a result of government austerity post-2008. The budget surplus currently stands at more than €8bn, or 1.7% of the GDP. But for students that seems difficult to believe, given that the student contribution cap has only been reduced to €2,000 in 2024. Reducing these fees further would require the government to take action to fill the €307m annual university funding hole. Trinity should not be run as a business, that is clear, but the only way that this can be achieved is through meaningful government investment in tertiary education.
Trinity’s handling of the accommodation crisis has also been strongly criticised in recent years. The dilemma which the university faces is clear: it does not own enough accommodation to provide every student with a place to live for the duration of their degree. This forces many students into a housing market where it is difficult to find adequate accommodation for a reasonable price. Three in four students pay over €750 a month in rent, with 80 percent saying that their rent is unaffordable, and half working to pay it. Whilst it is clear that the government needs to take action to increase affordable student living capacity for all students in Dublin, Trinity should also seek to do what it can to reduce costs for students and increase availability of accommodation. Even if fees were abolished in full, attending the university would be completely unaffordable for many as a result of the accommodation crisis. In recognition of this, rent increases at Trinity Hall, for example, are unacceptable. In the last financial year, the university recorded a €3.9m budget surplus. Although in real terms this does not amount to nearly enough to resolve the crisis, it does bring into question why the university feels the need to squeeze students further in this area, where it is widely recognised students struggle the most.
These financial stresses do not just impact students’ wallets. They create inequity in all aspects of student life. Firstly, students who are under financial stress are likely to perform less well academically than those who are able to afford the exorbitant rent prices and university fees, coupled with ever-increasing living costs. Whereas students who are financially stable are able to focus their minds on their degree, students who struggle in this area might find it difficult to focus on their work while they worry about whether they are able to pay rent. The problem becomes amplified when students are forced to work to make ends meet, providing further distraction from their degree. The level of widespread financial instability for students is demonstrated by the fact that 63% of students in 2020 had a part-time job. The cost of living has risen significantly since then, as inflation rates reached up to 7.83% in 2023. Students, of course, are disproportionately affected by this. Perhaps the academic performance of the university and its coveted global ranking might improve if Trinity and the government aimed to reduce financial stress on students.
Secondly, the social life of students under financial stress differs significantly from that of those who are not. There is the issue of time: students who have to work a job to afford university have less time to socialise with their peers than others. Furthermore, the cost of going out in Dublin is higher than ever, leaving it difficult for some to afford drinks in popular “Trinity pubs” such as Doyle’s, or for societies to organise events in venues with skyrocketing prices. What this results in is a Trinity where students who are less well-off than others might feel left behind by a social life which is largely centred around the expensive pursuit of going out. This will undoubtedly affect the mental health of students who can only watch on as wealthier students socialise only with each other, and contributes further to the image of Trinity as a place only for “elites” and foreigners. A divide among students based on class has an impact on Trinity from without as well as from within. If something is not done to address the cost of living for students, prospective students may be put off from studying here, and the long-term reputation of the university could be seriously damaged. It would be beneficial for the university and the Irish government to consider what reputation they want for the highest ranked university in Ireland.
Trinity should not just be a playground for the children of investment bankers and lawyers, but a place of learning where every single student feels welcome and able to reach their academic potential. Both the Irish government and Trinity should do what they can to reduce financial stress on students. Instead of playing the blame game, they should create a comprehensive programme to reduce the overall cost of living for students in Dublin, before Trinity becomes completely unattainable for the vast majority. How this should be achieved is undoubtedly not an easy question to answer, but new “luxury student living” blocks are not it. If universities and the government worked in tandem to tackle the issue of affordable housing, then a massive chunk of the crisis for students would be solved. It is much easier to live frugally when you have secure and cheap student accommodation. That is what is sorely needed for students in Dublin.
