The Minister for Education and Skills, Ruairí Quinn T.D., published the Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) Bill, 2011, which provides for the amalgamation of bodies dealing with qualifications and quality assurance in education and training.

The Bill provides for the amalgamation of the National Qualifications Authority of Ireland (NQAI), the Higher Education and Training Awards Council (HETAC) and the Further Education and Training Awards Council (FETAC). The amalgamation is a key commitment in the Programme for Government and an important part of the Minister's reform agenda in the education sector. The new body will have the official title of the Qualifications and Quality Assurance Authority of Ireland (QQAAI) but may have a different operational title.

The new organisation will also take responsibility for the external quality assurance review of the universities, a function which is currently performed by the Irish Universities Quality Board. This means that QQAAI's quality assurance role spans all areas of further and higher education and training.

A new scholarship fund has been made available for post-graduate study at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick. The Stepping Stones Scholarships target international post-graduate students with a demonstrable record in a performance and/or academic specialisation relevant to a programme of study at the Academy.

Priority will be given to:

• applicants experiencing demonstrable financial challenge
• applicants from parts of the world underrepresented at the Academy
• applicants with projects that resonate with the spirit of the Stepping Stones initiative: equality of arts practices, an interdisciplinary vision, and desire to build bridges between arts practices
• applicants for programmes with a higher number of available places