Students need more information on courses, says report

STUDENTS entering college must be made better aware in advance of what courses involve to prevent them dropping out early, according to the author of a major report on third level education.

The report highlights the expected sharp drop in full-time students in 10 years’ time because of the falling young population. For every 100 people aged between 16 and 19 in 2000, there will only be 81 in 2010.

Department of Education’s Skills Initiative Unit director Sean McDonagh said one of the key issues in meeting the economy’s demand for skilled graduates is to ensure people see their chosen courses through.

Only 60% of students beginning certificate programmes in 1998 progressed to complete the course.

“The main difficulty is in the first year of college courses, some people are dropping out simply because they didn’t know what the course was about starting off,” said Dr McDonagh.

He compiled the report for the Council of Directors of the Institutes of Technology, who are at risk of being worst hit by the fall in student numbers. It suggests using common first terms which provide subsequent entry to a number of courses.

“For example, instead of beginning civil, mechanical or construction engineering, students could learn about the fundamentals of each sector in the first semester and make wiser choices,” said Dr McDonagh.

His report found the conflict between study and part-time work can result in poor college attendance and difficulty completing courses. Two-thirds of first year students at Institutes of Technology questioned in a recent survey were also working, with the average working week being 16 hours.

“Perhaps there should be a contract between students and the institution, obliging the student to attend and do the assessments, or else not be allowed complete the course,” said Dr McDonagh.

“The privilege of getting free fees should be dependent on attendance and participation.”

Dr McDonagh said initiatives must also be devised to attract young adults and mature student to fill the college vacancies left by the smaller number of school leavers. These should include apprenticeships and other schemes that allow people work and study at the same time.

Council of Directors chairman Ciarán Ó Catháin said the Institutes were seeking, in changing circumstances, to continue to make a key contribution to national skills provision and to regional development.