Vol. 518 No. 4
65 Mr. Enright asked the Minister for Education and Science if his attention has been drawn to the fact that one in five students fail to finish their first year in third level college; the statistics being collected by his Department in relation to third level dropouts; the plans, if any, he has to rectify this situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11762/00]
The study of attrition rates is a complex one and figures on attrition across higher education have not yet been established on a common and comparable basis. There is no simple explanation and no one simple initiative that will address the issue. Factors such as motivation, capabilities and suitability are all involved. There must also, of course, be a balance between completion rates on programmes and maintaining the necessary, objective standards. The challenge of maximising completion rates, consistent with maintaining appropriate standards is a matter, in the first instance, for individual universities, institutes of technology and the National Council for Educational Awards.
In relation to the overall retention rate in the university sector, the Higher Education Authority carried out a study in 1994, which indicated a completion rate of 81%, which is high by international standards, for those entering in 1989-90. The authority has commissioned the educational research centre, Drumcondra to undertake a further detailed study in this area and a report is expected shortly. The study will consider a range of factors as to their effect on completion rates such as socio-economic factors, entry requirements, time of enrolment, availability of repeat examinations and the transition from second to third level education.
The Council of Directors of Institutes of Technology has also commissioned the educational research centre, Drumcondra to undertake a comprehensive study on the issue of non-completion in the institutes and the research project team is in the process of collating the necessary data.
The Dublin Institute of Technology is also conducting a two-year quantitative and qualitative investigation of student withdrawal within the Institute which is a similar and comparable study to that commissioned by the Council of Directors of Institutes of Technology.
The above studies are being funded by my Department.
In addition to this, I am supporting and promoting a number of initiatives in the technological sector to assist the compilation of a database on attrition/drop-out rates and to develop appropriate strategies to address the issues. The Council of Directors of the Institutes of Technology has established a national committee on retention with representatives from each institute to focus on "maximising success rates" for institutes' students. The committee has assembled a profile of current good practice in relation to retention across the sector. The profile has been made available to all institutes of technology.
Institutes of technology continue to introduce a range of initiatives and support services seeking to improve completion rates. These include induction/orientation programmes, course information services, tutor services and systems designed for the early identification of "at risk" first year students.
