University student village remains unfinished as academic term approaches

A DEVELOPMENT for Graduate Entry Medical School (GEMS) students and researchers at the University of Limerick (UL) will not be ready for occupancy at the start of the new academic term.

Residents are to be housed elsewhere on a temporary basis.

The Rhebogue Student Village is nearing the end of its construction phase.

However, with just one week before a course orientation on September 4 and the academic year beginning on September 11, its future occupiers are concerned about when they will be able to move in.

Visiting students are being met with machinery and rough ground instead of the finished accommodation they were expecting.

In response to a query, the university says it has put forward a temporary accommodation plan for its students until the Rhebogue Student Village is fully completed.

A spokesperson for the university stated: “The development at Rhebogue is completing construction and final fit-out.

“As a number of essential services have not yet been mobilised, residents will be allocated, on a temporary basis, to another of UL’s managed residences, after which it is expected that they will be transferred to Rhebogue.”

The Rhebogue Student Village was designed to cater for postgraduates, researchers, and postdoctoral scholars who require year-round accommodation.

The village boasts A energy-rated homes and private gardens, and promises a high-quality standard of living.

Accommodation offers were extended to the students on August 11, providing a limited time frame until August 14 to accept the Rhebogue accommodations.

Despite the ongoing construction, students are expected to pay €9,500, including a deposit, for a 50-week lease at the unfinished development.

“It's so wrong,” said one incoming medical student.

In addition to the rent, the full-time Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery degree comes with fees of €15,690 per academic year for EU residents.

For non-EU residents, these fees skyrocket to €52,620 per academic year.

On the pricing, the university spokesperson said: “[it] is aligned to reflect similar accommodation located on campus for postgraduates/researchers/postdocs and the high-quality standard of the new Rhebogue development.”