Colleges expand under pressure

IN RESPONSE to the growing demand for spaces at RTCs, new third level centres of learning are currently being developed in Kilkenny, Wexford and Castlebar, Co Mayo. There are over 300 full time students attending Galway RTC's regional campus in Castlebar. The first intake of students was in September 1994. Last autumn it took in a further 200 students.

According to Michelle Kerins, student counsellor and careers officer at Castlebar, the plan is to have 1,000 full time students attending courses in Castlebar by the year 2000. The Castlebar campus is located in the heart of the town, in elegant Georgian buildings on about 30 acres of mature land.

With seven national certificate courses on offer in Castlebar at the moment, as well as a range of part time evening courses, the regional campus is well on its way to becoming a vibrant satellite campus for Galway RTC. Kerins says other courses in the science area and in media and communications are expected to be developed over the next couple of years also.

There are further regional centres for Carlow RTC in Wexford and in Kilkenny. These two centres started earlier this year with courses in business studies and computing. Next year the CAO handbook will for the first time specifically list Wexford and Kilkenny as course options for students.

Chris Fingleton, co ordinator at both centres, says that Wexford is the biggest county in the south east, with 6,000 secondary school students. The centre in Wexford, located at St Peter's College, a former seminary, was set up as an attempt to service their needs. Computer facilities have been installed and staff from the local area and from Carlow RTC are currently working there.

Fingleton is currently visiting schools within a relatively short distance of the two centres in order to tell them about the new locations of the regional centres. He says that demand among second level students in Wexford has been particularly strong.

There is a possibility, Fingleton says, that courses specific to the individual areas will be developed in the future. Kilkenny, with its history of craft design and the presence of the Heritage Council, could well influence the development of courses in this area of study. Similarly the presence in Wexford of the Environmental Protection Agency may result in the development of a course in environmental science.