Plan unveiled to progress school leavers from poorer areas into higher education

Most school leavers from disadvantaged backgrounds will progress to university under targets set out in a new seven-year Government plan aimed at driving equality of access to higher education.

At present about 42 per cent of school leavers from disadvantaged areas progress to higher education, well below the average rate of 66 per cent nationally and 90 per cent in affluent areas.

The new plan aims to increase the proportion of new entrants to college from poorer backgrounds to 54 per cent by 2028.

Minister for Further and Higher Education Simon Harris said the target forms part of the “most ambitious” plan yet for access to higher education.

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“The statistics don’t lie. It is clear those from disadvantaged areas have a lesser chance of accessing higher education than those from more affluent areas,” he said.

The national access plan for 2022-2028, to be funded with €35 million for bursaries and student supports, also aims to increase third-level participation among Travellers, intellectually disabled, care leavers and those with experiences of homelessness or domestic violence.

Mr Harris said it is the first time students from the care system or those with intellectual disabilities have featured in such an access plan.

“We want a truly inclusive third-level system where neither your background nor experience has a bearing on your ability to attend or succeed in higher education,” he said.

For the first time, the plan will also place an emphasis on participation and successful conclusion of higher education.

This will include monitoring student dropout rates and graduate outcomes among priority groups in order to measure their success in higher education.

Overall, the plan aims to ensure the student body entering, participating in and completing higher education, at all levels and across all programmes, reflects the diversity and social mix of Ireland’s population.

It also sets goals across the whole of institution, education and Government in key student-centred areas including flexibility of learning and sustainability.

“Every year, we will hold ourselves to account on the targets we set,” Mr Harris said.

The plan will be supported by significant Government investment, with an additional €35 million ring-fenced for the plan in the forthcoming budget. Over the seven-year period, it is estimated that additional investment will come close to €100 million.

A review of the last access plan, which ran from 2015-2021, found that while the proportion of students from poorer backgrounds improved, they still faced additional barriers accessing university, especially more prestigious college courses.

There were also positive trends in boosting the number of students with disabilities, but the number of Travellers remained “disappointingly low”.

Under the new plan, the target for the proportion of mature students from poorer backgrounds at third level will rise from 11 per cent to 20 per cent.

In addition, the proportion of students with disabilities will climb from 12 per cent to 16 per cent, while the number of new entrants from Traveller backgrounds is targeted to jump from 33 per year to 150, a fourfold increase.

The extra public funding will go towards strengthening universal design for students with disabilities and autism in higher education. A further 50 bursaries of €5,000 each will be added to the 1916 bursary fund targeted to the most disadvantaged students. In addition, money will go towards boosting links between universities and Deis schools.