I moved your question to the Game Industry Job Advice forum. There is an extensive list of articles in this forum's FAQ (http://www.gamedev.net/page/reference/faq.php/_/breaking-into-the-industry-r16). You need to check it out.

Some of the answers you get might lead you into deeper confusion, since your initial post provided incomplete information.
You say you're 24 and you want to study game design.
1. When you say game design, you don't mean game programming, do you? It's not clear that you understand the difference between game design and game development as a whole.
2. Do you already have a degree?
3. Why Ireland rather than Great Britain?
4. Have you engaged in any form of game development yet?

Again: I strongly urge you to check out the FAQ before continuing the discussion. http://www.gamedev.net/page/reference/faq.php/_/breaking-into-the-industry-r16

In the UK you have certificate level (usually 1 year study) you then have HNC (usually one year also but more difficult than a certificate) then HND (usually 2 years) that's for full time study, I think in Ireland an HNC = FETAC and HND = HETAC roughly speaking. So if you did an HNC you would get into 2nd year of an HND etc.

So unless you do a graduate degree(Hons or just a 3 year ordinary degree) the highest you can get is an HND/HETAC. An HND will take you into either 2nd year or 3rd year of a university degree depending on the course and university.

I don't know about funding but assume as you are a foreign student you will have to pay your own fees(that's obvious though).

As for courses I have no idea what is available have you made a list of all possible courses if so post them here and we can have a look.

Hi,

thank you for answer me, i'll give you more information about me:

- unfortunately i'm totally in confusion, the videogame's developing area is larger than i expected,

But i can tell you that i want to improve my graphical skills and become part of a game developing team, so i have got a keen interest in graphic design.

I know that game designer has an important role in game production and must have a lot of competences, not only artistical, fortunately i've got a lot of interest

I have an High school diploma in IT, i haven't got a University degree.

I choose Ireland just because it's my own preference, i love Ireland and Scotland

I tried to start my own game project many times, but i don't really have a lot of competences and always leave it.

In the web i found a lot of courses in Ireland. Can i post the links?

I read some of these articles, very interesting thanks...

Sincerly i'm a little discouraged, i have got 24 years old and I live in a Country where Game Dev is still something "mysterious"...

Maybe i'm just a little late...

I read some of these articles, very interesting thanks...

Sincerly i'm a little discouraged, i have got 24 years old and I live in a Country where Game Dev is still something "mysterious"...

Maybe i'm just a little late...

No way. I know some musicians who didn't start coding until they were in their 30s and 40s.

i have got 24 years old and I live in a Country where Game Dev is still something "mysterious"...
Maybe i'm just a little late...

You are not too late or too old. Stop poisoning your mind. http://www.sloperama.com/advice/m71.htm
Living in Italy is not the death of your aspirations, either. If you want to be a game artist, maybe Ireland isn't the place to go to university - or maybe it is. Ireland can come later. For now you need an art degree. If you want to choose an art school, use a decision grid (check it out in the FAQs).

In X-Plane for ex. I was surprised that the best plugin c++ programmers did learn all that on their own.-

Probably it would be ok to just show to employers some stuff you've worked on and not needing any certificate?

You are not too late or too old. Stop poisoning your mind. http://www.sloperama.com/advice/m71.htm

Thanks, it's encouraging, i'll keep it in mind.

I was surprised that the best plugin c++ programmers did learn all that on their own

I tried, but maybe i haven't got enough self-discipline, everytime i try to study hard something i reach a deadlock

Probably it would be ok to just show to employers some stuff you've worked on and not needing any certificate?

I hope so :D

Sincerly i'm a little discouraged, i have got 24 years old and I live in a Country where Game Dev is still something "mysterious"...

When i started, Game Dev was something "mysterious" all over the world, and i live in the US.

"computer game developer? whats that? you play games all day! that's not a real job!"

its sounds like you're more interested in the graphics artist side of game development, as opposed to the programming side.

you might want to approach this by starting with your goal, and working backwards to where you are now, to determine the correct steps to take.

you've targeted ireland, so the first step would be to research the game job prospects there, and what they want to see in a new hire. find out what game companies you might work for in ireland. ireland has a very high per-captia education level, so i wouldn't be surprised if a couple of the publishers have a studio there, or might open one there by the time you're ready to enter the workforce. but in the long run, you have to live where the jobs are, so you might find yourself, leaving ireland for a job in frisco, tokyo, prague, etc.

then research the education options there (in irealnd), and see how they fit with what the irish game companies want to see in a new hire. and game companies in general - the requirements will be similar for all - and as i said, you may need to look outside ireland for jobs. so its probably best to prepare yourself for a job with any company anywhere on the planet. that actually makes things a bit easier, as info on what game companies worldwide in general want is probably easier to find than info about irish game companies.

so figure out what skills game companies want, then see what irish schools have to offer.

while you're pursuing your professional career track, it might also be a good idea to do some independent projects of your own to hone your skills and build up a portfolio of work done to show to potential employers. that's where gamedev.net comes in. folks here can help point you in the right direction no matter what your trying to do (design, code, graphics, audio, etc). they can even help with the really tough questions like "why don't i ever finish any of the games i start?" you can do a project of your own, which is a great way to learn all aspects of game development (design, coding, artwork, audio, etc), or perhaps join a team so you can concentrate on one aspect of game development (such as graphic arts, coding, etc).

everyone on the planet has the potential to the be like the guy who made minecraft. its never too late. and location is largely irrelevant - all you really need is internet access.

don't be hesitant to post here with questions.

gamedev.net is about the only real support group we gamedev types have.