We are the Irish universities’ representation, support and advocacy organisation for matters of shared sectoral concern.
On representation, we are the collective interface between the universities and the state. We support the universities in developing sectoral policies and strategies and we provide some shared services in researcher mobility and internationalisation. We advocate on behalf the universities to maximise the contribution of higher education in all its dimensions to society and the economy. In all these respects we complement the individual, autonomous efforts of our members.
Our core values are: commitment, professionalism, community, pride in and enjoyment of our work.
In terms of legal structure we are a company limited by guarantee, having charitable status. Our board of Directors and Council is comprised of the Presidents and Provost of the Universities (and our Chief Executive, ex officio).
Under the governance of our Council, we operate through a network of standing committees, sub committees and working groups, sharing information, approaches to problems and issues in addition to collaborating on projects designed to maximise the efficiency of resources across the sector.
Our core funding is supplied on an annual subscription basis by our members, with the individual subscriptions being varied by the scale of enrolments in each institution. We are also in receipt of project funding from the European Commission, the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and the Higher Education Authority. You can find details of our funding here.