What is a technological university?

As Ireland’s technological university project comes to fruition with the announcement of the fifth such institution in the country, higher-education stakeholders ought to ask this question once again. It’s only three years since there were no technological universities in this country, when the term befuddled many in the sector. What would it mean for multiple institutes of technology (ITs) to come together to form this new kind of university? Would it bring about tangible change for the institutions?

It’s hard to ignore the political aspect of the project. For Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris, pushing ahead with the project at lightning speed is an easy win: few will argue that regional development is a bad thing. But there must be a phase two to the project – if converting ITs to technological universities is little more than a rebranding exercise, the project has failed. The standard of education and research in technological universities should rival that of traditional universities, providing a university-standard education to its students – many of whom are disenfranchised from mainstream university education for a multitude of reasons.

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But technological universities shouldn’t forget their roots: institutes of technology were born out of the trades, and should continue to deliver a more practical, industry-focused education than their counterparts in traditional universities. Ireland’s knowledge economy is exceptionally strong, but there is a snobbery surrounding higher education – something Harris has been at pains to point out with his re-imagining of the CAO application process.

It’s now time for technological universities to carve out their own style of education – the TU project is far from over.