University for All Symposium 2025

We're excited to announce that this year's University for All Symposium will be on Wednesday 21 May. The theme of this year's symposium is 'Fit in or lose out? Using Universal Design to address issues of classism & belonging.'

Classism is often overlooked in the Irish context. In this symposium we will explore casual everyday classism and will situate the discussion within the Universal Design for Learning Framework 3.0 with its centring on learner identity. With a thought provoking keynote speaker soon to be announced, we will be shifting mindsets; and moving the discussion away from simply looking at finances and income which is often seen as the remedy to supporting students from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

Schedule of the day (may be subject to change):

• Opening: Professor Colin Scott, UCD Registrar and Deputy President
• Keynote speaker (tbc)
• Student experience & perspective
• Workshop and case studies addressing the unintended consequences of classism affecting the student experience and how we can address this using the UDL framework.
• Close & lunch

Attendees can expect practical advice on addressing class and classism in higher education using the UDL framework which will be informed by the student perspective and experience.