Open Competition for the Provision of Student Placement Software

AI-generated analysis of the documents. Check the official notice and any amendments for current submission details.

1. At a glance

2. Scope of Work

Maynooth University requires a robust and configurable software solution to manage professional practice placements for its regulated programmes. The software will support a complex, multi-stakeholder process involving approximately 1,750 students annually across Nursing, Applied Social Studies, and Education departments. The system must facilitate the coordination of placement logistics and meet regulatory record-keeping requirements.

Key activities and functionalities include:

• Placement Scheduling & Allocation: Managing the scheduling and assignment of students to placement sites.
• Placement Site Database: Maintaining a database of available placement locations.
• Student Records & Placement Management: Tracking student progress, hours completed, and overall placement status.
• Examiner / External Tutor & Preceptor Management: Managing the involvement of academic tutors and external preceptors in student assessment.
• Assessment & Competency Documentation: Recording and managing student assessments and competency achievements.
• Communication: Facilitating communication between students, university staff, and placement site supervisors.
• Access & Usability: Providing an accessible and user-friendly interface for all users.
• Training & Support: Offering training and ongoing support for the software.
• Reporting & Data Analysis: Generating reports on placement activities, student progress, and compliance.
• Integration & Regulatory Compliance: Ensuring the software integrates with existing systems and meets the record-keeping requirements of professional regulatory bodies.
• Implementation & Roll-out: Managing the deployment and adoption of the new software.
• Cost Management: Providing a clear and transparent cost structure.

The software must manage the full lifecycle of professional practice placements, supporting approximately 500 tutors in Nursing, 150 in Education, and 250 in Applied Social Studies. The university reserves the right to adjust the scope and duration of services.

3. Background & buyer context

Maynooth University is an autonomous public university with a history dating back to its 18th-century roots. It provides higher education to over 17,000 students across science and engineering, humanities, and social sciences. The university is committed to research, teaching, and community engagement, aiming for excellence, opportunity, and impact as outlined in its Strategic Plan 2023-2028. This procurement aligns with the university's strategic trajectory and its commitment to adapting to a changing world. The need for a new software solution arises from the complexity of managing professional practice placements, which involves significant logistical coordination and stringent record-keeping mandated by professional regulatory bodies.

4. Eligibility & selection criteria

Bidders must meet the following minimum requirements to be considered:

• Turnover requirement:
• €200,000 average annual turnover in the relevant financial year.
• €500,000 average annual turnover in the relevant financial year.
• (Note: The specific financial year for these requirements is not explicitly stated but is implied to be a recent period).
• Insurance:
• Employer's Liability: €13m
• Public Liability: €6.5m
• Certifications:
• ISO 27001 certificate for (a) the full application suite and (b) the hosting environment is required.
• Past experience:
• Demonstrated successful delivery of services of a comparable nature within the last three to five years.
• Personnel:
• Nominated contact personnel details (name, title, telephone number, postal address, facsimile number, email address) are required.
• Geographic / facility constraints:
• Not specified for this tender.

Bidders may rely on the resources of connected or related legal entities, subject to proof and potential parent company guarantees.

5. Award criteria & scoring

The award criteria will be used to evaluate tenders once bidders have met the eligibility requirements. The evaluation will follow a Most Economically Advantageous Tender (MEAT) approach, balancing price and quality.

Criterion Weight (%) Sub-criteria