Arts and humanities among highest drop-out rates in 2020-21

Of those that 'dropped out', female students were more likely to be in education (46%) after one year compared to with male students (36%).

More than 40% of students who did not progress into the second year of their higher education degree went back to do another course within a year, new data shows.

Arts and humanities and social sciences, journalism, and information had the largest cohort of dropped-out students who were in neither employment nor education after one year.

That’s according to the latest Higher Education Report from the Central Statistics Office (CSO), which for the first time focused on non-completion rates.

It used data from the 2020-21 academic year for the report.

In that year, 5,625 students did not progress from year one of their course to year two in 2021-2022.

Of those that “dropped out”, female students were more likely to be in education (46%) after one year compared with male students (36%).

When it came to those in employment having not progressed in their course, a similar level of male and female students had jobs after one year.

However, male students were more likely to be in employment only (52%) when compared to female students (43%). Female new entrants who did not progress were more likely to be in education (46%) after one year, compared with males (36%).

Around 7% of all non-progressed students were in neither employment nor education after one year.

The health and social work sector is the third largest employer for female new entrants who did not progress after one year.

The data is broken down further when it comes to the industries and sectors that those who opted not to progress in their employment were subsequently involved in.

Most students who do not progress and were in employment after one year were working in the wholesale, retail/accommodation, and food service sectors.

The construction and industry sectors are the third and fourth largest sectors of employment for non-progressed male students after one year.

The health and social work sector is the third largest employer for female new entrants who did not progress after one year.

There are over four times the number of non-progressed female students (195) working in this sector, compared to male students (45).

More than 85% of students who did not progress from courses in engineering, manufacturing, and construction were in employment after one year. Of that, 58% were in employment only.

Natural sciences, mathematics, and statistics had the largest proportion of new entrants who had not progressed re-enrolling in a new course after one year at 54%.