MTU's first strategic plan was launched today.

MTU planning for the future

A historic milestone was reached today with the launch of MTU’s 1st strategic plan.

Developed to ensure the ongoing success of the university, ‘Our Shared Vision’ places a strong emphasis on delivering outstanding learner education and experience to produce work-ready graduates.

The plan also aims to increase investment in MTU’s staff, while achieving significant growth and impact across the university’s research, innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem.

MTU President Maggie Cusack said the new plan will allow the university to build on past successes to become a truly great, internationally competitive technological university.

Prof. Cusack said: “To achieve these strategic outcomes, MTU has identified key strategic enablers. These are the proactive pursuit of equality, diversity and inclusion principles across all of MTU’s activities; continuous focus on sustainability and alignment with UN sustainable development goals; collective commitment to a multi-campus technological university; investment in enhanced digital infrastructure and capabilities; and development of state-of-the art physical infrastructure and capabilities across MTU’s campuses.”

According to Prof. Cusack, the development of MTU has been an “unqualified success” to date with strong demand from CAO applicants since its establishment. MTU’s total research expenditure continues to feature at the upper end of the scale across Ireland’s Technological Universities.

She said: “With a further huge increase to come in the number of students seeking higher education opportunities across the south west, the launch of MTU’s new strategic plan could not have come at a better time.

“MTU will continue to play a leadership role in the strategic development of the south west region, and in so doing, will adopt a global outlook and inclusive value system.”

Prof. Cusack also said MTU will play a central and strategic role in ensuring that there are fantastic opportunities for all to achieve their full potential in education, in life and in their careers.

MTU has a student enrolment of more than 18,000 across 6 campuses and offers more than 140 programmes of study. It is the 1st new university to be established in the south west of Ireland since 1845.

Speaking at the launch of the strategic plan, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, Simon Harris TD, said the importance of higher education has never been greater.

“We will need to maximise our ability to produce talented and responsible graduates who can lead, innovate, create, inspire and transform. We will need these graduates in every village, town, city and region in Ireland if we are to achieve the ground-up community engagement required to succeed in a sustainable manner,” said the minister.

He added: “The development of MTU will prove to be transformative for the south west region. We now have the vision for the next 5 years.”