The Institute of Technology Tralee will announce its one-year add-on Level 8 international degree in agricultural engineering “in the near future”, Irish Country Living has learned.

The college has linked up with the University of Burgundy in France and the University of Bologna in Italy for the course.

The students on this programme will study a trimester (12 weeks) in Ireland, in France and in Italy as part of the course with an International work placement of 12 weeks made available.

The first intake of students for the course will be in September 2019. The news comes on foot of the €28m government investment for the college for a new science and engineering building.

Chris O’Donoghue, lecturer in agricultural engineering in IT Tralee welcomed the news. “This is a great time for agricultural engineering students in IT Tralee with the recent developments,” he said.

Green Cert

Students studying agricultural engineering and agricultural mechanisation will have an opportunity to obtain a Level 6 specific purpose certificate in farm administration, or the green cert, upon graduation.

This will become the specific purpose in farming award in all participating colleges in Ireland after September 2018.

Master in Galway

NUI Galway has announced that applications are now open for 20 places on a new master’s in ag innovation.

The one-year distance education entrepreneurship development programme aims to fill the gap in entrepreneurship/intrapreneurship skills for people working in the agricultural technology and agricultural ecosystem in Ireland.