The Irish Feminist Network and Dublin University’s Gender Equality Society are holding a debate to discuss whether Trinity should hold its first Slut Walk.
Constitutional changes to the USI have been proposed at an Emergency Special Congress on Wednesday 18 January.
By Ciara Anderson
A new report issued by the HEA outlines a direct correlation between Leaving Certificate scores and students continuing third-level education.
The findings show that a student’s prior education attainments are the main influence on whether the student remains enrolled in their course. Students who achieve points in the 350-400 range have the highest drop-out rate, whilst those with the highest Leaving Certificate points are most likely to progress to second year.
Students in profession courses such as Medicine and Law were the least likely to drop out, with just two of every 100 dropping out of Medicine.
The connection between Leaving Certificate results and continued study is most pronounced between Mathematics scores and scientific or technical courses. Three out of every five students who received a D1 in Higher Level Maths dropped out after first year. One in four students would drop out after first year if they did not receive a pass in Higher Level English.
Points in specific subjects are the best indicators of course progression. The study found that points achieved in Maths are the strongest indicator of third level progression. Those who achieve 60 percent and above are most likely to continue their studies. High achievement in English was another significant indicator.
Overall presence at courses offered by both institutes of technology and universities was studied, and it emerged that Irish universities have a drop out rate of nine percent. Female students were seen to be marginally more likely to progress than males, and students from families of professionals were twice as likely to graduate as those students from lower socio-economic backgrounds.
There was also a clear difference in drop-out rates across the different kinds of third-level education. While just under one in ten enrollees dropped out of Level 8 courses, a quarter of students studying Higher Certificate and Ordinary Degree courses at institutes of technology drop out.
Of all students in ITs, one in five left before second year. This compares to the UK dropout rate of 7.4 percent in 2007 and in the US, where one in three students fails to obtain a degree.
Computer science had the highest non-attendance rate at 29 percent. The report comments: “The prior attainment in Mathematics of new entrants to Computer Science is low considering that similar mental skills are required across both disciplines”.
In response to this statistic, the HEA said, “There is a serious mismatch between the skills required to successfully undertake a higher education course in science and technology with the competencies of students enrolling on such courses.”
The Union of Students in Ireland has reacted to these statistics by renewing emphasis on student maintenance grants and the effect of State cuts on the ability of students’ to continue in third-level education.
The USI comments, “High drop-out rates in third-level education are inherently reflective of an inefficient system, but compounding this issue is the millions that are spent on students who will never graduate. These statistics also serve as a threat to colleges that are facing penalties of reduced funding if they do not meet specified targets”.
Now the country waits for the finding of the Hunt Report chaired by economist Dr Colin Hunt. So far, the group has stated that increased funding is necessary as well as the possible introduction of third-level fees.
By Evan Musgrave
The publication of the 2010 Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings sees the decade-long progression by Trinity and UCD halted. This year’s rankings, in which Trinity has fallen out of the top 50 and UCD out of the top 100, come as an OECD report highlighted low levels of investment in Irish education. Ireland lies 30th out of 33 OECD countries, with just the Czech Republic, Italy and the Slovak Republic spending less on education as a percentage of GDP.
The downward movement of Ireland’s two highest-ranked universities has ignited discussion concerning the sustainability of the country’s educational funding base. Furthermore, the publication worryingly calls into question the stability of Ireland’s prestige as a knowledge-driven economy.
Academics can tend to treat International university rankings disdainfully, considering the possibility of relating the many factors involved to be problematic. The QS Rankings must be carefully considered, however, being globally regarded as the truest reflection of quality among universities by employers.
Under the QS system, universities are ranked on the basis of data gathered on aspects such as the number of academic citations per faculty to employment possibilities to staff-student ratios. The Provost, Dr John Hegarty, believes that Trinity’s staff-student ratio is leading the drop in the rankings, and warned that the university’s ratio would “deteriorate further unless there is a meaningful change in the level of national investment”.
By the end of this year staffing levels across universities in Ireland will be down by six percent. This will feed into next year’s world university rankings, cutting into our staff-student ratios. A fall in the QS rankings will also affect Trinity’s ability to attract top academics. Many of the top universities are able to build and sustain their rankings by competing for academics who will bulk up the university’s number of citations. Thus, a fall in the rankings has the potential to begin a downward spiral if not rectified.
The president of UCD, Dr Hugh Brady, stated the movement in the QS rankings was not unexpected, pointing to the fact that “while Irish universities are cash-starved, other countries are investing solidly in their third- and fourth-level sectors”.
In Ireland, the fall in the world rankings for both Trinity and UCD has raised awkward questions about a sustainable form of appropriating funding for higher education. In an interview on RTE’s Morning Ireland, Hegarty was candid in admitting a shift down the rankings had been expected, but expressed his concern that further decreases in resources could exacerbate Trinity’s fall. This week’s rankings for Irish universities are based on data supplied in late 2009, just as cuts across the sector were taking effect. The drop also comes at a time when college tuition fees are on the rise. The question of efficiency and value for money must be raised in light of these rankings.
Good news for Trinity students however is that the university charges one of the lowest registration fees in the nation, while being ranked the highest for quality. Hegarty was quick to point out the recent investment in Arts and Humanities in the college, additionally highlighting this faculty as the university’s highest ranked sector.
Despite this, a matter of concern must be noted in the consistent fall of Trinity’s Arts and Humanities, from being ranked 32nd best in the world in 2008 to 52nd this year. The Provost believes increased investment, such as the new €6 million Arts and Humanities Research Institute, known as the Trinity Long Room Hub, will help buck the trend and increase Trinity’s profile.
Interestingly, while TCD’s Arts and Humanities ranking has been falling, the status of Engineering and IT and of Life Sciences and Biomedicine has been improving. The result is a much more balanced break down of Trinity’s ranking. Celtic-Tiger era investment and a more levelled base means Trinity is not badly set up to recover ground. Funding must arrive sooner rather than later, if the slip is to be rectified.
By Shona McDonald
Waterford Institute of Technology’s dreams of attaining university status are set to be shattered with the publication of the long-awaited Hunt Report. The delay of its publication has not stopped the revelation of many important elements that it is to contain. Its significance for the future of Irish third-level education cannot be underestimated. It is said to map out a course for third-level education until 2030.
Among the key points to be outlined in the report is the recommendation of increased specialisation by the institutes of technology in this country. Even though the report will call for a form of increased recognition of institutes (renaming them Technological Universities) it is not going to be in support of WIT’s appeal to be recognised as worthy of University status. This ends a four-year appeal, backed by the then transport minister and former student of Waterford, Martin Cullen. He argued that the title “university” would make WIT more appealing for prospective students.
Mary Hanafin, the then minister for education, was not shy in showing her objection to the proposal and to the statements made by Cullen in a clash with Cullen at a Fianna Fáil parliamentary party meeting in February 2008. She argued that WIT’s attainment of university status would have a knock-on effect for the other universities in the country. She also stated that the institute had not suffered in terms of either staff or student number.
That seemingly is the case, with student numbers showing a distinctive rise in popularity of the institute in the past five years, according to the Irish Examiner. Local Labour Party councillor Seamus Ryan was a member of the Governing Body of WIT at the time the proposal for university status was announced. He believes that WIT is completely deserving of this status and he highlights the fact that it is the only gateway city in the country without a university.
He urges WIT to refuse the title of “Technological University” as he believes it is unacceptable and merely a way to try to keep the Governing Body of the college quiet. Students discussing the news on boards.ie had mixed reactions on the news, with many describing it as unfair, but some do suggest that the institute’s poor facilities may be one of the factors inhibiting their goal. Clearly, there are many more pressing, more immediate matters for the current government to deal with first and this issue has been put on the back burner.
Supporters of the campaign point to WIT’s location in the cultural and commercial capital of the southeast; the wide variety of courses it offers, including courses unique to WIT such as Airline Transport Operations, and its introduction of new courses such as Architecture. It remains to be seen how WIT will respond to the publication of the report.
