Irish third-level colleges may become more like American institutions, with private-sector funding and intense competition becoming commonplace, a new book has suggested.
Dr Tony White, a barrister and former member of the Higher Education Authority (HEA), says government funding of education could reach a "plateau" shortly and colleges will seek to replace this with private-sector funds.
In his book, Investing in People (Higher Education in Ireland 1960 -2000), Dr White says: "the influence of private industry and business will also be expanded as Irish universities increasingly become research driven. Responsiveness to markets will then become even more important."
Dr White says Irish higher education has traditionally followed a European model, rather than an American one.
"Higher education as a profit-making activity is an anathema in Ireland, not just to many trade unionists , but to academics and to politicians and bureaucrats as well. In that sense Irish higher education is altogether closer to European," he says.
"Over the next decade there is likely to be intense competition among the Irish universities as to which of them becomes most outstanding at research. This process will almost certainly distance them even further from state supervision."
The book is published by the Institute of Public Administration and was launched last night by former Taoiseach Dr Garret FitzGerald, chancellor of the National University of Ireland.
Dr White says the increasing involvement of private interests in third-level education will also have an impact on the Department of Education.
"The Department of Education and Science will increasingly find that it cannot exercise the kind of control of major research universities that is possible with primary or secondary schools," he says.
Dr White also suggests the State will have a "once-off" opportunity during the current economic climate to address inequalities in higher education.
For this to happen the Department of Education will have to develop a "new focus", similar to the drive for higher technical education in the 1960s.