Leaving Cert students who hope to go on to third level but haven’t applied for a grant may still have the option to do so.

Student Universal Support Ireland (Susi), the grants awarding body, said yesterday it would continue to accept applications, but the sooner students applied the sooner a decision on grant applications would be made. Students do not need to have accepted a college place to apply for a grant, but can check www.susi.ie to see if they are eligible.

Susi has come in for criticism regularly over the past year for the late processing of applications, and many students finished the academic year without knowing whether their grant applications were successful.

Payment
The earliest a grant payment can be made is the end of October, when registered students are confirmed by colleges. Registration fees are paid directly to colleges, so students can attend when they have grant approval, while maintenance grants are paid directly into students' bank accounts.

After application and initial assessment, documents are requested from students – Susi said there would be less red tape this year, with fewer documents needed because of data-sharing between Susi and Government departments.

The grants body claims that if correct documents are sent straightaway, the process could take about 12 weeks; it also said students could expect to hear sooner if their grant had been approved.

More information at www.susi.ie; the helpline number is 0761-087874; email: support@susi.ie.