Any Irish academics on here?

[KittyBurrito]

Was trying to find out comparable salaries across Europe and can't find a central database anywhere. But Irish salaries (unless I'm much mistaken) look...really good? Any Irish folks here who can fill me in on what Irish HE is like?

Don't forget that Ireland and Dublin in particular are exceptionally expensive places to live. Salaries might sound high but they won't go very far. We have had professors join from abroad on top salaries and leave within a year as they can't afford the lifestyle they expect.

That's interesting @Dox9 . How does the cost of living in Dublin compare with the likes of London, Cardiff, Edinburgh?

I would say in Dublin cost of living is similar to London and much higher than Edinburgh and Cardiff. Keep in mind that public transport is not great so you can't live too far out and rent anywhere close to universities will be €€€€€.
There's a website numbeo (?) where you can pop in two cities and compare cost of living. Rents in Edinburgh and Cardiff are nearly 50% cheaper than Dublin for example.

The main issue is accommodation in Dublin is very hard to find and when you do find it, very expensive. Maybe close to London costs but much smaller than London so less available.
Difficult to get a mortgage if moving to Ireland.
You need to allow for paying for health insurance as this is not free when your annual income is above a certain level.

Great info guys, thanks for putting it into context.

@Dox9 Thanks for the link to that site. I can't be the only UK academic appalled at the cost of living rises here and the v poor salary lifts offered by unis (3% here and inflation at 11%). It's miserable to have 2 ft working parents and not be able to turn the heating on when it's -5 outside! Plus, as a Scot, I really, really didn't want to be dragged out of the EU. So, am going to be keeping an eye on Irish HE!

I'm in NI where things are much cheaper so I can't really comment, but there are lots of threads on Craicnet about moving to Ireland and the cost of living, in particular accommodation. Worth a browse if you're seriously considering it.

(NI is fab, two academic salaries give us a lovely life, so come here instead!)

Agree with PP that cost of living is similar to that of London when it comes to accommodation, however having lived in both places for long periods, it is easier to manage in London than in Ireland - food shopping is much more expensive, transport expensive and infrequent, dining out and socialising etc

Do they seem really good?

I work in a university in a teaching role, but I'm not an academic. A starting salary for an Assistant Lecturer is c€37,000 (top of scale being around €64,000).

The Assistant Professor scale starts at €58,000 or so.

Obviously a senior lecturer / professor / head of school will be paid more so it depends where your starting point is.

In my role I am on a similar scale to the AP role, in Dublin. I don't regard my salary as high. I'm a single parent & it's a struggle (thanks to my ex). I would consider it 'fine' all other things being equal, and it's what I expect for the kind of work I do.

Housing, cost of living & childcare are very high in Dublin / Greater Dublin area.

If I moved into the next level in my area, so a more senior administrative role, less teaching, my salary scale would be about €70 - €85, which I would consider good.

€70 - €85 k, I meant!

And in listing the Irish salaries (which are correct for NUI institutions, the TUs have a different scale), I was asking if they compare so favourably with UK salaries for equivalent roles?

I'm fortunate enough to be higher up the scale. I will take a look at this more closely - thanks for all your feedback. And @JenniferBarkley will check out NI!