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Find out how you can access higher education in Ireland

Significant Ongoing Illness

(Including (but not exclusively) Diabetes Type 1, Cystic Fibrosis (CF), Severe Crohn’s Disease, Severe Ulcerative Colitis and Irritable Bowel Disease (IBD), Chronic Fatigue, Cancers(including those in remission from Cancer)).
Note: A standalone confirmation of surgery is not a diagnosis of a Significant Ongoing Illness. Evidence of Disability should detail the ongoing nature of the condition.
Appropriate Professional Relevant Consultant/Specialist appropriate to the disability/ condition. In cases where an applicant is in the care of the relevant Consultant/ Specialist, the evidence of a disability can be provided by a Registrar who is a member of their team.
Type of Documentation Required

Complete the Evidence of Disability Form 2025 OR Submit an existing report completed by the appropriate professional that contains the same detail as the Evidence of Disability Form. The report must be signed and submitted on the headed paper.

*Where an applicant is in Remission from Cancer, such applicants should submit a report (must be less than 3 years old, i.e. must be dated after 1st February 2022) confirming that the applicant had cancer and now is in remission.

Required Age of Report The report must be less than 3 years old, i.e. must be dated after 1st February 2022.
Other Disabilities Submit an Evidence of Disability Form for each disability/ condition to be considered.
Educational Impact Statement (EIS) The Educational Impact Statement allows you and your school to provide detail of how your disability has impacted on your second level experience. The EIS is a requirement for all applicants.
DARE Eligibility The applicant is eligible once an appropriate professional has diagnosed a significant and ongoing illness, (e.g. where the duration of a condition is greater than one year) AND the applicant meets any combination of two educational impact indicators from Indicators 1 to 5 on the EIS.

For more information, contact the Access Office in one of the participating colleges

What is DARE?

 Find out more about DARE and how it might help you.

Still have more questions?

Here you will find the answers to questions we get asked the most about DARE applications.