Study details barriers to third-level education

FUNDING difficulties, poor guidance at school and the lure of full-time work have raised barriers to thousands of young people from low-paid families accessing third-level education.

Around one-in-five Irish households come under the “non-manual” heading, the only socio-economic category for which third-level participation rates fell between 1998 and 2004, according to previous research.

An ESRI study published yesterday shows the drop in college take-up is specific to a sub-group of the non-manual category, dominated by those working in services such as shop assistants or care workers.