The Government will be concerned at the fall-off in interest in computer courses at third level, writes Sean Flynn, Education Editor
The sharp fall-off in students opting to take computer studies at third level is a source of dismay to many observers in education and industry. One said yesterday: "It is as if the mothers of Ireland saw the closure of Gateway as the death knell for our computer industry. But we still have a hugely vibrant high-tech sector, and we have to service it with good-quality graduates."
It appears that the closure of Gateway and the lay-offs at other computer plants have chipped away at the "buzz" which once surrounded computer courses. The sudden collapse of so many fashionable Internet companies in the so-called "dot.bomb" era has also undermined student confidence in these courses.
On the basis of the first-preference applications, students are taking flight from computer courses into more traditional areas of employment. The numbers opting for social studies and healthcare in both universities and the institutes of technology have increased dramatically. The perception is that these areas offer more secure employment.
But as one official noted last night, the decline in figures is based on all sorts of mistaken assumptions. The problems experienced by Gateway and some other computer companies which have seen lay-offs are untypical of the sectors. In general, those who have been laid off were low-skill workers; the companies have relocated to other areas with much lower wages.
But there is still an abundance of multinational companies who provide high-skilled and secure employment. Intel, which is investing more than €1 billion in the new Fab plant in Leixlip estimates it will need at least 1,500 additional graduates.
The multinationals will be more encouraged however, by the apparent resurgence of interest in science courses at third level. The new Minister for Education, Mr Dempsey, has been briefed in recent weeks about the apparent crisis in science which has seen a dramatic fall-off in Leaving Cert students taking the subject. This year only 9,000 students took physics and only 6,600 chemistry. The recent Task Force on the Physical Sciences called for dramatic action to reverse the trend.
On the basis of the CAO figures, it appears that the publicity campaign they have run to rekindle interest in science is already reaping some dividend. The Institute of Engineers in Ireland and the Government group examining the skills shortage in key sectors have also been active in promoting science.
The increase in students opting for science as their first preference for degree courses in the institutes of technology is particularly impressive. The figure has increased from around 470 to 870.
Those like Dr Danny O'Hare, chairman of the science task force, are now entitled to ask: what might be achieved if the Government embraced some of its key recommendations? In the first instance, the task force will want an end to a situation where the Republic is one of the few modern states which has no practical element in its science exams at school-leaving age. The task force wants to see practicals in Leaving Cert biology, physics and chemistry sooner rather than later.