Due to a significant reduction in the youth population, third level colleges will have to develop "new niche markets" including recruiting students from overseas, a conference will be told today.
Dr Don Thornhill, chairman of the Higher Education Authority (HEA), in a speech to be delivered in Cork says population changes will also mean "increased competition" between universities and Institutes of Technology (ITs)
He also warns that Irish third level colleges are facing competition from overseas institutions. He says all types of colleges will face these "daunting" challenges, but ITs are well equipped to meet them. The speech will be delivered today at the 5th Annual Colloquium of Technological Sector Institutions in Cork.
Dr Thornhill says third level education is facing a "paradigm shift" because of a 15 per cent fall in the number of school-leavers over the next 15 years.
"The challenge of the next decade and beyond will be to make sure we get smarter and smarter - meaning our ability to generate and use new knowledge," says Dr Thornhill. As head of the HEA, he will soon have responsibility for the channel of funds to the ITs, as well as the universities.
With the population fall, the profile of third level colleges will change, he predicts.
He says there will be "a growing diversity in the student body, including more part-time students and students doing conversion, upskilling and professional development courses".
He says no one type of college will be able to meet all the challenges. "No single institution or type of institution will be able to meet the multiplicity of needs. Diversity will strengthen the system.
"Greater emphasis will also be placed on postgraduate programmes," he says.
"We must continue to move up the value chain," he adds.
He says with the economy entering a fraught period, there might be a temptation to cut back on Government funding for research." It would be unwise to see public spending on research as a soft target for reductions in the light of current and prospective economic difficulties.
"When Finland suffered a serious loss of traditional markets following the collapse of the Soviet Union, it invested heavily in research and in seeking new markets.
"Today, Finland is a world leader in some high technology sectors and the strong performance of the Finnish economy is technology based," he says.
Speaking about the new relationship between the ITs and the HEA, Dr Thornhill will tell the delegates the HEA administers "with a light touch".