USI worried by future third-level numbers

As students across the country celebrate the 2003 Leaving Cert results, there's a warning that colleges will be struggling to fill places in a decade.

The Union of Students says unless third level institutions recruit from backgrounds besides the leaving certificate, they will face problems in years to come.

It's predicting a fall off in Leaving Cert student numbers from almost 60,000 this year, to 44,000 by 2015.