New ICOS Chairperson - Mr Ben Finnegan
The Irish Council for International Students (ICOS) is pleased to announce the appointment of a new Chairperson. Mr Ben Finnegan, International Relations Executive at Mary Immaculate College, Limerick (MIC), takes over the position from Suzanne Buckley from UCC who had served for the past year.
After his appointment at ICOS' September Board meeting, Ben Finnegan said he hoped his term would see "a genuinely united and coordinated approach to the internationalisation of our education services, one which would bring benefits to higher education institutions through the successful recruitment of international students and which would benefit all students through a greater focus on support services and the quality of the student experience.
Ben added that he is particularly interested in promoting the health and well-being of international students. He is also keen that ICOS support the national effort to find solutions to the student accommodation shortage. "We should also work to minimise any potential negative impact of Brexit on the mobility of students", said Mr Finnegan.
Former president of Maynooth University (MU) students' union for two years, Ben has represented students on a national and international level, and has experience as an international student himself having studied in Salamanca, Spain.