CURRENT FUNDING of higher education is “unsustainable” and the system requires a major injection of up to €500 million per year, to cope with record demand and meet Government targets for the economy, an expert group has concluded.
With colleges facing a 30 per cent increase in student numbers, the expert group – chaired by economist Dr Colin Hunt – says funding must increase from €1.3 billion to €1.8 billion per year by 2020. It says funding should virtually double to €2.25 billion by 2030 “with additional costs for infrastructural investment maintenance and refurbishment”.
Third-level colleges are already grappling with a deepening financial crisis as they struggle to cope with a forecast additional 55,000 students over the next decade. The Government has identified the universities as a key player in reviving the economy, but doubts have been raised about the sector’s capacity to drive growth, given the current strain on resources.
The report says that there has been “persistent underfunding by international standards” of higher education.
It was drawn up by the National Strategy Group for Higher Education, chaired by Dr Hunt, which was established by the Government last year to set a blueprint for the development of third level education over the next two decades. As previously reported, the group is calling for the return of college fees and the urgent introduction of a student loan scheme.
However, the new details of the extent of the funding gap in the third level sector identified in the report emerged yesterday.
The report, which will be presented to Cabinet shortly, backs a new system of student contribution – notably a student loan or deferred payment scheme – saying the continuing dependence of colleges on the exchequer for funding is no longer feasible.
It recommends arrangements for widening the resource base of higher education institutions and this strategy should include a new form of direct student cost contribution.
The report does not accept the case made by some of the institutes of technology (ITs) – notably Dublin, Cork and Waterford – for university designation. Instead, it holds out the prospect of them being designated as “technology universities” – but only if stringent criteria are met.
The report also backs closer collaboration between universities and the ITs “where this will contribute to ensuring maximum returns from public investment in the system as a whole”. It also backs the concept of regional “clusters”, where colleges work together to provide expertise in specific areas.
The expert group is critical of the low level of provision for mature and part-time learners. It wants greater emphasis on “flexible learning opportunities, part-time provision, work-based learning and short intensive upskilling programmes”.
It backs full parity for part-time learning, giving such students the same access to grants and other supports as full-time students.
Other key recommendations of the report include:
- A smaller number of colleges with greater consolidation and collaboration across the system;
- A review of the grading system and the external examiner system;
Dr Hunt is a former adviser to Taoiseach Brian Cowen in the Department of Finance. Other members of the strategy group include Brigid McManus, secretary general of the Department of Education; Michael Kelly, chairman of the Higher Education Authority; Dr John Hegarty, provost Trinity College Dublin; and Paul Rellis, managing director of Microsoft Ireland
Earlier this year, an internal Higher Education Authority report said an investment of more than €4 billion would be required over the next decade to upgrade facilities.
The report conceded that such investment was “highly unlikely” in the current economic climate.
