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NUS-USI expresses concern at student dropout rate
The Student Movement in Northern Ireland has today commented on the report by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) on its 2006/07 student dataset. Key figures from the release show that the dropout rate for Northern Irish students after their first year at university is 11%, up almost a percent on the year previous, and higher than the UK average of 7.1%. Further statistics show that almost a quarter of local students fail to complete their degrees at all. Other data shows that the participation rate amongst those from the most deprived backgrounds is the highest in the UK amongst those from Northern Ireland. The year 2006/07 saw a further rise in this area, to 41.7% from 41% the year previous. This compares favourably with the UK average of 29.8%. Commenting on the figures, Katie Morgan, President of NUS-USI said; “While we welcome the increasing rate of participation in higher education amongst those from economically deprived backgrounds, and applaud the efforts of the Department and the universities to further increase this, the rise in the dropout rate is a cause for much concern. The pressures of being a student, particularly financial, are preventing an ever-increasing number from gaining the long-term benefits that a degree can offer. Until the Executive makes the funding system fairer for local students, fears over mountainous debt and the un-affordability of courses will only exacerbate the problem. Almost a quarter of students across the UK fail to complete their courses. It is now high time that politicians and universities worried less about getting fee paying ‘bums on the seats’ and more about the prospects of those who chose to enter university and those who desire to do so."