For Leaving Certificate students seeking a college place it is the best and the worst of years. It is a good year for the majority of students, with almost 80 per cent of college applicants securing a place offer and entry points falling substantially for the majority of courses. It is nonetheless a difficult year for students seeking places in highly competitive courses such as veterinary science, medicine and actuarial studies where points have remained high or increased.
The college offers show that very considerable strides have been made in increasing the number of places available and making higher education accessible to more students. A system which can offer a college place to almost 80 per cent of applicants is clearly coming close to satisfying demand. Indeed, among the ranks of the 13,000 students left without an offer are many who actually failed the examination. With 70 per cent of applicants being offered one of their first three preferences, it is also clear that the system is satisfying students' choices to a very considerable extent.
It would be wrong to be complacent, however. This is an exceptional year with a lower number of applicants due to expansion of the Transition Year in schools. Next year, applications will almost certainly climb again and will probably push college entry points up once more. Some 6,000 additional university places have been promised by the colleges and the Minister for Education; few of them have come on stream so far, but it is vital that they should be available from next year. The Higher Education Authority's committee on the provision of places also recommended that more degree places should be made available in regional technical colleges.
It is clear from the applications that more students would like to take degree courses; in so far as a problem exists in the provision of places, it is that students do not find the certificate/diploma courses in the RTCs as attractive as degree courses, despite the fact that many of those do lead to a degree by stages. Obviously, standards need to be maintained; it is clear that additional places on degree courses are required. The provision of higher education places must also, to a considerable extent, reflect manpower needs. The jobs market for those with computer software, electronics and foreign language skills is very buoyant at the moment, with manpower shortages being widely reported. It would be absurd not to provide additional college places in such areas. Although many school leavers would like to see additional places in medicine, law, paramedical professions, media and social studies, the job opportunities in these careers do not justify any great increase in places.
With such a high level of college place offers in the CAO/CAS system, there should be much less incentive for Irish students to travel to the UK to seek a college place. The extension of maintenance grants from the Irish authorities to students studying in the UK will undoubtedly make this option accessible to more students. The dilemma for some of those receiving diploma/certificate offers from RTCs this week may be whether to accept or pursue a degree place in the UK system, in which the doubling of the number of colleges designated as universities in the past few years has led to much confusion over the status of some degrees. The RTC route with its follow on options to degree level may well prove more reliable.
For the students agonising about their choices over the next few days, it is a trying time. As they make decisions which will fundamentally affect the rest of their lives they deserve every support and encouragement.