“Almost 54,500 people have already entered the race for college places this autumn up to last Friday’s early Central Applications Office (CAO) deadline. The figure is 2,730 higher than the 51,761 who did so by the same time last year …” (more)
[Niall Murray, Irish Examiner, 23 January]
“UCC president Dr Michael Murphy has denounced as ‘absurd’ the notion that he could have described socially disadvantaged, disabled and mature students as ‘academically weaker’ …” (more)
[Niall Murray, Irish Examiner, 11 January]
“The points race for entry to third-level colleges is set to intensify this year with record numbers expected to apply for places. As thousands of students submit their CAO choices this month, career experts expect a marked increase in points …” (more)
[Seán Flynn, Irish Times, 9 January]
“Irish third-level colleges could come under even greater pressure this year as fewer students apply to UK universities. There has been a 20% drop in demand from students from the Republic of Ireland for UK colleges compared with this time last year …” (more)
[Katherine Donnelly, Independent, 5 January]
“Rising college fees in Britain look likely to put more pressure on for third-level places here as there has been a drop of almost 20% in Irish students applying to study across the Irish Sea …” (more)
[Niall Murray, Irish Examiner, 5 January]
“Sir, – Given the importance attached to critical thinking by Seán Flynn in his article on Leaving Certificate reform (Opinion, December 23rd), I am astonished at the lack of it in the response to Dr Michael Murphy’s comments in relation to support for academically talented students …” (more)
[Zoë Fannon, Irish Times, 29 December]
“UCC President Michael Murphy was yesterday branded an ‘elitist’ over remarks made during a speech to the Cork Chamber of Commerce …” (more)
[Donal MacHenry, StudentNews.ie, 24 December]
“Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn is hopeful that changes to the Leaving Certificate can be implemented in two to three years’ time. The exam is on course to be radically reformed with grade options almost halved and pupils facing a possible lottery for university places …” (more)
[Irish Times, 23 December]
“The report on the transition from second to third level should herald long-overdue changes to the Leaving Cert and the college entry system …” (more)
[Seán Flynn, Irish Times, 23 December]
“Sir, – Our school conducts our enrolment in November each year for prospective students. We are one of four second-level schools in Letterkenny and we seek students from over 20 primary schools …” (more)
[Anne McHugh, Irish Times, 8 December]
“Sir, – Your Editorial (November 28th) refers to the robust response from the teacher unions regarding the publication of School League Tables. League tables, as published, feed into a mindset which regards a good teacher as one who teaches to the test …” (more)
[Clive Byrne, Irish Times, 30 November]
“In the United Kingdom the Universities and College Admissions Service (UCAS), which handles student applications to higher education institutions, yesterday released the current applications figures for the coming academic year, and the numbers are significantly down on the comparable figures for last year …” (more)
[Ferdinand von Prondzynski, University Blog, 29 November]
“Sir, – I refer to ‘Ireland under pressure to publish official rankings’ (School League Tables, 2011, November 22nd). Given that a significant number of students in the top ranked schools attend grinds, how reliable would these rankings really be? …” (more)
[Caitlin Waters, Irish Times, 26 November]
“It’s fascinating some of the assumptions that underpin the 2011 Irish Times School League Tables published this week in the Irish Times. Not so much the following, though it seems to indicate that talk of access remains fairly rhetorical given the structural aspects of the system …” (more)
[The Cedar Lounge Revolution, 22 November]
“While virtually every student in middle-class areas proceeds to college, the progression rate is less than 40% across huge swathes of working-class areas in Dublin, Cork and Limerick …” (more)
[Seán Flynn, Irish Times, 22 November]
“Fears are growing that Northern Ireland pupils could be disadvantaged in the most radical overhaul of university admissions in half a century …” (more)
[Lindsay Fergus, Belfast Telegraph, 1 November]
“Irish universities have said there is a need to reassess the points system of college entry and its impact on learning at second level.In a document published today in the run up to a major conference on the issue, the Irish Universities Association also warned that no alternative system will be perfect …” (more)
[RTÉ News, 20 September]
[The IUA report is here]
“Only 4% of international students use social media to select a foreign university, according to a worldwide survey of undergraduates. William Archer, director of i-Graduate, said results from a poll of 150,000 international students suggested the importance of interaction via Facebook, Twitter and YouTube was overestimated by universities …” (more)
[Jack Grove, Times Higher Education, 17 September]
“Transition to higher education involves a complex set of decisions by a range of parties to the process: students, parents, higher education institutions, higher education authorities and often a central applications agency. This report focuses on the policies, practices and processes associated with transition to higher education, to particular institutions and to individual courses …” (more)
[Josephine Boland and Madeleine Mulrennan, September 2011 - Conference paper for: Transition or transaction? moving from second to third level education in Ireland]
“As debates continue on this side of the Atlantic about what kind of final school examination most nearly predicts university performance and thus constitutes the best admissions test …” (more)
[Ferdinand von Prondzynski, University Blog, 12 September]
