Around 700 students gathered in Galway city to protest against proposed increases in third-level fees and cuts to maintenance grants.
Students from NUI Galway and the Galway Mayo Institute of Technology marched to the Spanish Arch to hear speeches from union leaders in both colleges.
The graduate unemployment situation and the growing emigration numbers were amongst the issues highlighted.
President of NUI Galway Students' Union Peter Mannion said that any further increase in fees would have a devastating effect on education and Ireland's knowledge economy.
