The mother of a 24 year old student who died from meningitis appealed for information the disease to be sent to all students going to third level colleges in future.
Mrs Mary Jo O'Dea from Athenry, Co Galway, was attending the degree award ceremony in the Cork Regional Technical College, where her daughter's degree was awarded posthumously on Saturday.
Ms Denise O'Dea died on November 2nd last in a Cork hospital a day after she was admitted, having been diagnosed as having flu by a doctor some days before.
She died the day before she was to graduate with a degree in chemical engineering and the RTC postponed the ceremony until this weekend.
Her degree was accepted by her twin sister, Deirdre, who graduated in hotel management in Dublin just days before her sister died.
Mrs O'Dea, who has four other children, said she had been ignorant of the symptoms of meningitis and she believed most other people were also.