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UL warmly welcomes mature students into its degree programmes and encourages your full participation in university life. UL offers a diverse range of degree programmes, many with a core Cooperative Education component which allows students the opportunity to build industry connections in their new fields. 

UL also offers an attractive and welcoming campus, with state-of-the-art teaching, sports and other facilities.

To be considered a mature student, you must be 23 years of age or older by the 1st January in the year in which you commence your study. You must also qualify as an EU applicant. The Mature Student Office works with mature students studying on full-time degree programmes.

As a mature applicant, you can apply to any undergraduate degree programme offered by UL. You don't need prior qualifications (e.g your full Leaving Certificate) or specific experience to apply. However some programmes in UL may have specific requirements such as minimum language, mathematics or musical levels.

Download our 2025 Mature Student Guide.

three students standing and talking outside

Preparing for third-level study

There are a number of key things which you can do to prepare yourself to make an application to UL as a mature student:

Have a look at the UL Prospectus to see the variety of programmes on offer and think about what area(s) are of most interest to you. Is it engineering, science, health, humanities, business, education - or it may even be a combination of these? Take time to look at the detail of the programmes and not just the titles, as the information the title provides you with can be limited. Look at how a programme is structured, what subjects are taught, when and where work placement (Co-Op) takes place, whether there are specific entry requirements (e.g. Higher Leaving Cert maths for Engineering) and what career options are available afterwards.

If you are interested in where a particular degree may take you, have a look at the Using Your UL Degree page on the Co-Operative Education and Careers website.

Check out the entry routes and application processes for various HEIs across Ireland here - MSI Mature Students Ireland Admissions Summary 2018

See information on Educational Guidance Services.

The final 51±¾É« open day for 2024/5 will be held on January 20th 2024 from 9am to 2pm.

The Mature Student Office will have a stand in the University Concert Hall on this day.

Open Days for 2025/6 will be held on:

October 17th and 18th 2024

January 18th 2025

We also attend a number of off campus events throughout the year. For further information on these, please sign up to our mailing list or follow us on social media.

If it has been a long time since you did your Leaving Cert, or if you didn’t complete your formal schooling when you were younger, it can be a good idea to consider doing some preparatory study before applying for a degree programme. By doing this, you will get an opportunity to build up your confidence, particularly in relation to your learning skills. It can also give you the opportunity to experience the commitment required to undertake study on a full-time basis.

Useful courses to undertake can be third-level ‘access’ courses such as UL's Mature Student Access Certificate,

FETAC programmes (offered by post-leaving cert colleges or adult education centres - see below), or Leaving Certificate subjects which can be studied for either independently or through your local adult education centre or VTOS programme.

UL has developed a number of entry routes to first year of undergraduate degree programmes for students who have achieved a relevant QQI award. These entry routes are to a range of programmes in the Humanities, Nursing and Business disciplines. While mature students are not required to have prior qualifications prior to applying to UL, the information on linked programmes in these disciplines may be useful to mature students who are considering undertaking some preparatory study before starting on a degree programme. Further information on these QQI linked programmes is available from the Admissions Office

Having basic computer skills before you start on a degree programme will make your life so much easier! Computer skills really are a 'life skill' when it comes to studying in third-level. It is highly recommended, if you do not currently have good computer skills, that you undertake some basic computer skills courses before starting your degree programme as these skills will be invaluable to you during your time at UL and will give you much more confidence when starting in first year.

Dates for Information Sessions 2023 will be confirmed shortly

As part of your CAO application as a mature student, you are required to write a statement of interest. This statement of interest is different from the personal statement that you may need to submit as part of your application for undergraduate studies at UL.

The CAO statement of interest is submitted as part of your online application and any personal statement or essay requested by a course you are applying for should be posted to the CAO office in Galway along with your other documents.

To find out if you need to write a personal statement for your chosen course(s) at UL, please see additional considerations on the course page.

There are many great resources online for writing personal statements and statements of interest. Many of the Mature Student Requirement downloads have guidance on what is expected for your course application.

Important to remember:

  1. Include you CAO number on the personal statement/ essay you submit to the CAO.
  2. Check the course requirement for each course you are applying to. For example, if you are applying to 3 UL courses, you may be required to submit 3 individual documents to the CAO.

If you require any further information, please visit our Contact Us page.