Serious funding is required if the State is to produce the kind of education needed for a... dynamic economy, writes Michael Clifford

A Government decision on how to boost funding for third level is unlikely for at least another year as an economic analysis of options put forward two years ago will not now begin until 2019.

The €600m funding shortage predicted in third-level colleges by 2021 could be even higher due to an unexpected rises in student numbers, universities have warned.

Decisions and action are needed before a stalemate on higher education funding leads to further impact on students, the author of a key 2016 report to Government has warned.

Ireland has held its position in an international ranking of higher education systems despite public investment failing to match expanding third-level enrolments.

A debate about more than just student loans is needed to advance decisions about funding third level, says a university president.

Funding for education budget documents contain more than their fair share of fine print. Buried deep in the announcements last week was the detail of a 0.1 percentage point change in employers PRSI contributions.

After years of cuts, consultation, reports and deliberations, politics has done nothing to stem the third-level funding crisis, writes Education Correspondent Niall Murray 

The country’s largest university is to look at cutting places for Leaving Certificate students in the coming years unless funding problems are urgently addressed.

Employers and unions agree that ringfencing a portion of corporate tax or business profits could be a better way to bolster higher education funding than a government proposal to increase employers’ PRSI.

Student loans which can be repaid after entering the workforce are “entirely feasible” and would lead to a “substantial increase” in higher education funding.

A decision on which funding model to recommend for third-level education is unlikely to issue, from an all-party committee of TDs and senators, until late summer at the earliest.

The money that could be raised for further and higher education from a proposed hike in employers’ contributions is €30m less than what two Government ministers have suggested.

Employers could see the amount they contribute to a national training fund almost double by 2020 in a Government plan to raise an extra €200m a year for third-level education.

Laws may have to be introduced to force graduates, who emigrate, to pay a minimum amount off any deferred fees, the authors of a report into possible new funding models for third-level education have said.

Education Minister Richard Bruton wants the Oireachtas Education Committee to urgently consider the question of how to find the €600m extra a year needed to fund third-level colleges.

The wisdom of pushing up student participation rates must be questioned, says Education Correspondent Niall Murray

A record 80,887 students applied to the nation’s third-level institutions this year and the majority will ultimately join the growing number of workers — presently over 50% — who boast a third-level education.

Significant increases in the grants paid to students and restoring supports for postgraduate students have been recommended by the expert group on third-level funding.

The introduction of a student fees loan scheme looks increasingly possible as Fianna Fáil has indicated its willingness to consider the option.

Education Minister Richard Bruton faces pressure from all sides as he prepares to push for more efficiencies from cash-strapped colleges in return for more funding from students, taxpayers and employers.

€500m a year less is being spent on universities and colleges, though there are more students, and nobody wants to foot the bill, says Niall Murray

A solution to the third-level education funding crisis is more likely to be reached in the long term than one the Government can find quickly, Education Minister Richard Bruton has admitted.

Another international ranking shows Irish higher education losing ground as political considerations over how it is funded look set to drag on. 

Ireland’s third-level system has fallen again in comparison with other countries — despite expanding access to university places.

An extra €1.5m is being given to colleges to help students struggling financially to stick with their studies, but uncertainty remains over any new third-level fees system.

College fees seem an inevitable solution to the country’s third-level funding crisis, an international education expert has said.

“Study now, pay later” models for higher education fees would lead to an “astronomical increase” in costs for students, the president of the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) has said.

The continued lack of a government decision on third-level funding and ongoing cuts to public investment will have a detrimental effect on graduates and on the economy, the chairman of a state body has warned.

The Government should begin removing financial barriers to part-time study by increasing the amount of tax relief available for fees, says a leading academic.

Significant increases in the cut-off points for entry to dozens of engineering programmes this year may reflect the rising demand for degrees in a category of such courses, along with those with a technology leaning.

Tax breaks are needed on the construction of student accommodation to help attract more overseas students, a university president has told the Government.

Schools with higher numbers of disadvantaged students should be prioritised if guidance counselling provision is restored, says the Royal Irish Academy.

Third-level colleges will have to cater for more than 45,000 additional students every year in just over a decade if current participation rates are maintained, experts have advised.