RCSI has won the Best Education Outreach award and the Excellence in the Provision of Professional Services award at The Education Awards 2018. The Education Awards celebrate excellence in the third level education sector on the island of Ireland. The awards were presented at a ceremony held at the Ballsbridge Hotel in Dublin last night.

Professor Cathal Kelly, Chief Executive/Registrar, RCSI said: ‘It is a remarkable achievement for RCSI to win two categories at the National Education Awards. I am immensely proud that the College has been recognised at a national level with the Best Education Outreach Award and Excellence in the Provision of Professional Services Award. This achievement is a testament to dedication and commitment to excellence by our staff in the REACH RCSI and Estates teams and I congratulate all involved.’

Best Education Outreach Award was made to REACH RCSI, a community engagement and access programme dedicated to promoting recreation, education and community health. Led by Programme Manager Maria Kelly, REACH RCSI works in partnership with the local community, DEIS primary and post primary schools and community groups to deliver educational initiatives including grinds club, science workshops, sports and health programmes as well as an education advice service. 

In the Provision of Professional Services category, RCSI Estates and Support Services and catering partner Chartwells were recognised for their outstanding performance over the past year. The new partnership was commended for the provision of leading catering services across all College events and for the implementation of a Cultural Food policy to cater for students from more than 60 countries. 

RCSI also had finalists in three other categories which included Best Student Experience Award, Best Erasmus Programme and Best Library Team.

The Education Awards recognise, encourage and celebrate excellence in the third level education sector from both State and privately funded institutions. The Award categories are designed to highlight the key areas that impact upon student performance and provide opportunities for educational institutions, their employees and contributors to have their achievements recognised across the various important facets of their operations.

RCSI is ranked among the top 250 (top 2%) of universities worldwide in the Times Higher Education World University Rankings (2018) and its research is ranked first in Ireland for citations. It is an international not-for-profit health sciences institution, with its headquarters in Dublin, focused on education and research to drive improvements in human health worldwide. RCSI is a signatory of the Athena SWAN Charter.