It has been announced as of Friday 27 January, that International House Galway, an affiliate of the 150-strong International House group of schools offering English language courses and short stay programmes, has gone into liquidation. Strangely thought, its website is still up and running, and apparently touting for business.
The major concern at the moment is that up to 200 foreign students could feel the repercussions.
A press release from the Irish Council for International Students (ICOS) states that all the currently enrolled students at International House Galway will be relocated to complete their studies in February. The big question mark, though, hangs over those who have paid fees but have not yet arrived in Ireland.
As reported in the Connacht Tribune, a letter from International House Galway explained the closure as being down to debts accrued during Covid that had proved too large to pay back.
“The closure of the International House in Galway is a cause for concern,” says Laura Harmon, executive director of ICOS, “particularly, when the school was still advertising courses on their social media as late as two weeks ago. While ICOS welcomes the assurances that enrolled students will be re-located to a new school, we are concerned that learners who have paid money to the International House, and have yet to arrive, will lose out financially. ICOS is calling on the government to urgently implement the International Education Mark (IEM) and ensure that all measures are taken to safeguard international students’ investment in their education, including mandatory use of escrow accounts.”
