New figures indicate that professional courses like medicine, law, dentistry and architecture continue to be dominated by people from middle and upper income backgrounds.
The figures from a forthcoming Higher Education Authority (HEA) report show that few students on these courses qualify for a grant or other assistance because their parents' incomes are too high.
The figures obtained by The Irish Times will be published shortly in the annual report of the HEA, which funds and advises the State's universities.
They show that only 17 per cent of dentistry students and less than a quarter of medical and law students - all high-points subjects - have a grant or scholarship.
The Union of Students in Ireland, commenting on the figures, said that "a concentration of students from more wealthy backgrounds in the higher professions is a sign that inequality persists in our universities and colleges."
"Students from families earning earning around the average industrial wage are concentrated in the humanities, social sciences, agricultural studies and business studies", the president of USI, Mr Philip Madden, said.
Students doing courses like medicine and dentistry often have different ways of funding their studies from other students. For example, some banks offer preferential loans to these students because their future earning power makes them attractive future customers.
Students who did not receive grants (and scholarships remain a tiny portion of the assistance paid to students) either did not qualify or had the means to provide for their education themselves or through their parents.
The USI education officer, Mr Ian Russell, said the grants were inadequate. "Over the last three years, rent costs have increased significantly, while grant levels have increased by a mere 6 per cent. Such a situation is untenable." * Meanwhile, the National Youth Council of Ireland (NYCI) has said reports that the numbers taking the Leaving Certificate this year were dropping, "should be welcome news" for candidates. As reported in The Irish Times, about 2,500 fewer people will sit the exam this year.
"It will hopefully have a knock-on effect on the points system and alleviate some pressure on students," said director of the NYCI Mr Peter Byrne. "There is never an easy time to sit exams, but today's news, along with the expanding range of further education options and the strong job market, probably make it the best time in a generation to sit the Leaving Certificate," he added.
The Central Applications Office has already announced that applications for third-level courses are down by 1,600. While this will not relieve pressure on the top courses, it may have some effect on courses less in demand, sources said.