College Background
HSI Limerick Business School has the distinction of being one of Ireland’s longest established third-level educational institutions and provides a comprehensive range of undergraduate, postgraduate, professional development and corporate training programmes in the Mid-West. The College has operated from its original Georgian premises on Limerick’s O’Connell Avenue since 1951. Originally named The High School, the College was then founded by Mrs Nora McNamara to provide high quality, employment-focused training and education in the secretarial field. At that time just two subjects, shorthand and typing, featured on the curriculum, and the College quickly gained an enviable reputation, not just in Limerick but throughout Munster and beyond, for the quality of its education and the calibre of its graduates. This reputation, and consequent enhanced employment opportunities for College students, was won through consistent commitment to achieving high academic standards together with advanced practical skill development. These two ideals continued to underpin the development of the College as it continued its secretarial skills programmes while simultaneously expanding into other fields of academic enterprise. In 1976, Mr Michael McNamara assumed the management of this family-run College. In 1989, the College was re-named HSI College to reflect its expansion to the wider field of business and management studies. To reflect its continued success and growth in this area, the name was amended to HSI Limerick Business School in 1998.

HSI Limerick Business School was first recognised by the Minister of Education and became a designated institute of the Higher Education and Awards Council (HETAC, formerly the National Council for Educational Awards) in 1994. In 1997, the School was approved for tax relief purposes by the Department of Education. As it moved to the higher-education sphere, the School initially offered a number of programmes leading to awards at National Certificate level.

As a further mark of quality education provision, HSI Limerick Business School agreed its quality assurance procedures with the Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC) in 2005. This has allowed the School to offer recognised awards, with clear progression paths, to both Irish and international learners at Levels 4 and 5 on the National Framework of Qualifications. Also in 2005, the HSI Group launched a corporate training division, called Open Learning Solutions, which offers bootcamp programmes and programmes tailored specifically to the needs of the local and national corporate network. In 2007, HSI Limerick Business School attained Gold approval from ACCA (the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants), one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing professional international accountancy bodies, in recognition of its continuous commitment to the delivery of high-quality educational support to ACCA students. This exciting spirit of enterprise and development that has distinguished the College continued in 2008, which saw the launch of the HSI English Language School, already fully recognised by the Department of Education and approved by ACELS. Having run our first postgraduate programme, the Edinburgh Business School Master of Business Administration, in 2010, the School is looking forward to expanding its course offering at postgraduate level in fields such as Public Relations and Computing.

BECOME A HSI LEARNING PARTNER
Join The Clarion Hotel, Dell, O2 and other companies by becoming a Learning Partner of HSI Limerick Business School where your employees will be entitled to a 10% discount on all tuition fees provided a minimum of 5 employees enrol on any part-time course. Contact Aileen Cherry for further details on 061 – 317822.

APPLICATION PROCEDURES:
With the exception of a small number of courses (e.g. HETAC, FETAC, ACCA), there is generally no selection procedure for continuing education. To ensure a place on the course of your choice we strongly recommend that you enrol early by completing an application form and returning it with a booking deposit of €250. Application forms will be accepted at the College Reception, by fax or by post. Applicants can also enrol online at www.hsi.ie. Upon receipt of a successful application, formal notification of acceptance and of course commencement dates and fees will be sent to you by post, e-mail or fax. The College makes every effort to avoid altering course commencement and conclusion dates. However, should any changes be necessary, you will be notified at the earliest possible opportunity. Exemptions: In order to apply for an exemption, an applicant must furnish the College with a transcript of course subject results and a syllabus when submitting the application form. The College will then submit this information to the relevant examining body and the applicant will be informed of the outcome. This process may incur a fee from the examining body.

STUDENT SERVICES:
A comprehensive induction programme is held for all students before course commencement. The aim of this induction programme is to familiarise learners with the College, the range of programmes and student services offered and to introduce students to key staff members. Course participants will also receive a student handbook which acts as an invaluable guide to studying at HSI Limerick Business School. Upon course commencement, a Course Leader is available to discuss course-related issues. Study and library facilities are available outside of the class timetable to help learners consolidate and refine course knowledge and skills. The College intranet (Moodle) offers students the choice to access material such as lecture notes and other academic resources either from home or whilst at the College. HSI Limerick Business School also offers a fully wireless hotspot internet connection for all course participants. Photocopying and printing facilities are also available in the College. In addition, Learners will be able to avail of seminars focusing on areas such as study techniques, essay writing skills and examination preparation. Learners will also be able to attend special seminars on issues such as employment law. All students of HSI Limerick Business School are invited to register with the College’s recruitment service. Interested students should e-mail a copy of their curriculum vitae to recruit@hsi.ie. A recruitment fair will be held in the College in March 2010 and all students are welcome to attend.

FÁS APPROVAL / FÁS FUNDING:
HSI Limerick Business School’s training programmes and trainers have been placed on the FÁS / EI National Register of Trainers. The registration number of HSI Limerick Business School is 901541.

EQUALITY:
HSI Limerick Business School is fully committed to equality of educational access and attainment among students. Management will actively seek to develop and implement policies and procedures which promote equality and which avoid unfair discrimination on the grounds of age, disability, membership of the Traveller community, marital status, family status, gender, religion, social class, sexual orientation, race, colour, nationality or ethnic or national origins. HSI Limerick Business School regards equality as an essential component of quality assurance which is aimed at improving the quality of education and related services, while also ensuring the maintenance of proper academic standards.

LEARNER PROTECTION:
HSI Limerick Business School is an asset-backed institution and has arrangements in place which provide protection for all of its students in accordance with the Qualifications (Education and Training) Act 1999. Under Section 43 of the Act, learner protection arrangements (which provide that a learner may transfer to a similar programme should the provider cease to provide the programme) have been put in place for HETAC and FETAC courses of three months duration or more.

EXAMINATIONS / EXAMINATION AND REGISTRATION FEES / COURSEWARE:
Prospective students should note that all final examinations are scheduled during the day. Prospective students should also note that examination, registration and courseware fees are determined by external professional and awarding bodies and are therefore subject to change without prior notice.