Money still talks for pupils hoping to study at Trinity
Thursday November 27 2008
Grind and fee-paying schools continue to dominate the league of feeder schools to the third level sector, the latest figures reveal.
They confirm that money still talks when it comes to going to university, re-igniting the debate about how wealthier parents can buy advantage by selecting schools with more resources.
The latest figures from the Leaving Certificate class of 2008 show just where Trinity College is getting its latest batch of undergraduates.
Of the top ten feeder schools, which sent more than 400 students to Trinity this year, eight of them were fee-paying. The sector also dominated the top 20 feeder schools with 13 of them sending students to the university.
Only two non-fee paying schools, Holy Faith secondary in Clontarf (30 students) and Colaiste Iosagain in Stillorgan, Dublin (24 students), managed to make it into the top ten.
Topping the league once again was the Dublin-based Institute of Education, which sent 147 of its students to TCD.
Biggest
Last year the school -- the biggest and best-known of the so-called grind schools -- also topped a college entry table covering five of the country's seven universities.
The latest batch of its school leavers to go to TCD was more than four times the number from the next nearest school, the fee-paying St Andrew's College in Blackrock, Dublin, which sent 35 of its students to the university, followed by another fee-paying school, the High School in Rathgar.
As usual, geography plays a big role in student choice with all but one of the top 20 feeder schools based in the Dublin area. The single feeder school from outside the capital to break into the top 20 was Maynooth vocational school which sent 22 students to TCD -- a considerable achievement which ranked it in 14th place.
Similar numbers were also sent from Muckross Park College and Loreto secondary in Balbriggan. Schools with high numbers of disadvantaged students and students with special needs have long complained that there is not a level playing field in education and have argued that league tables like this are unfair.
Amid criticism last year of certain schools for not taking their fair share of students with special needs, the Department of Education conducted an audit to see if cherry-picking of students was going on.
Last night a department spokesman said that the results of its audit did not point to a nationwide problem. However, certain "subtle practices" by individual schools could have the effect of discouraging particular groups from applying for places.
"We have to ensure that all schools are open to students of all backgrounds," he said.
The spokesman said a formal consultation process with the education partners was now under way on a range of issues. This included looking at the effectiveness of the current system of appealing against non-enrolment and the practice of favouring children of past-pupils and its effects on newcomer families.
- Fergus Black
