The gap between State schools and fee-charging schools has closed significantly, according to the data revealed in this year’s Irish Times Feeder Schools list.
This is the third year in a row where the dominance of fee-paying schools has shrunk.
In 2022 five of the 10 schools with the highest third-level progression rate were fee-paying. Last year, that fell to three in 10 and, this year, only two are fee-paying.
There is no strong evidence to indicate that students in fee-paying schools get higher Leaving Cert results because their school is fee-paying. Instead, research by economists at Maynooth University shows that students in these schools may achieve better results because of their family background and the education level of their parents, particularly their mother.
Meanwhile, children who attend fee-paying schools are, on average, less likely to interact with students from different backgrounds, social classes or ethnicities – arguably, this may leave them less prepared for the world than students who attended a more diverse school.
Parents and guardians who are in a position to choose their child’s secondary school – and a fee-paying school is generally a very considered choice – are already highly engaged with their child’s education, which can help to explain why many non-fee paying schools in wealthier areas, on average, send relatively large numbers to third level.
These include the all-girls, Irish-medium Coláiste Iosagain in Stillorgan, south County Dublin, which has the highest third-level progression rate of any school in Ireland; Coláiste Eoin, an all-boys Irish-medium school on the same campus; and, nearby, Jesus and Mary College in Goatstown.
This year, the “top” fee-paying school in the country is Presentation College in Mardyke, Cork City, while the fee-paying schools with the highest progression rates in Dublin include CBC Monkstown, Mount Anville in Goatstown and Wesley College in Ballinteer – all of which are clustered around relatively wealthy areas of south County Dublin.
Irish-medium schools generally tend to have high third-level progression rates, and the picture is no different this year.
Besides the established benefits of a bilingual education, however, one big factor in their success is that parents who choose to send their child to an Irish-medium school also tend to be very engaged in their son or daughter’s education.
While no parent or guardian should base their decisions on the feeder schools lists, which are a limited metric that cannot provide any information on how inclusive the school is, what extracurricular or pastoral care they have, or how many students progress on to other options, it is also worth pointing out that many schools in more (relatively) disadvantaged areas or rural areas are, year on year, sending growing numbers to college.
The Pobal Deprivation Index is a free, interactive geographical information system produced and developed by Pobal, an agency that works on behalf of the Government to support communities and local agencies that are working towards social inclusion and community development. The index provides a valuable overview of how different communities across Ireland compare in terms of affluence or disadvantage.
We know, from both extensive evidence and anecdote, that children from disadvantaged backgrounds are, on average, less likely to attend third level – not because they’re not as smart as any other child, but often because there may be no tradition of college-going in their family, or because they could not afford the additional grinds and tuition available to wealthier families, or because the rising cost of living and the ongoing housing crisis can put college out of financial reach. They may also be likely to have experienced some of the trauma that can accompany low income or poverty, including homelessness, grief, and witnessing or experiencing abuse.
Information from the Central Statistics Office (provided by Social Justice Ireland), as well as the information published in this year’s Feeder School lists, show that where a child is born and raised can significantly impact their life and career trajectory, with people living in the midlands of Ireland being less likely to go to college.
That said, the opening of the TUS Midlands-Midwest technological university (formed from a merger of Athlone IT and Limerick IT) – as well as four other technological universities serving Ireland’s more regional areas such as Donegal, Kerry and Carlow – are creating new opportunities.
Sacred Heart Secondary School in Clonakilty, Co Cork, sent 125 per cent of their students to third level this year (figures over 100 per cent indicate that students who left the school before 2024 may have deferred a college place and started only this year, or perhaps returned to education as a mature student). According to our figures, this school sends the second-highest number of students to third level in Ireland.
But Clonakilty, like many towns and villages in Ireland, has pockets of “very affluent” areas alongside areas categorised by Pobal as “marginally below average” and “disadvantaged”. Sacred Heart itself is located in an area classified as “disadvantaged”.
Likewise, Coláiste Pobal Osraí in Kilkenny consistently appears in a “high” position on these tables, despite the Pobal Deprivation Index marking some of the surrounding catchment area as “affluent” and other parts of it as “marginally below average” or “disadvantaged.”
All this shows that the full picture is, unsurprisingly, more complex than fee-paying or non-fee paying, advantaged or disadvantaged, because there are multiple factors and variables that can affect a school’s third-level progression rate.
Other variables that can impact school progression
- A quick glance at three charts published this year – progression from boys’ schools, girls’ schools and mixed schools – suggests that mixed and girls’ schools send a slightly higher proportion of students to third level. About two-thirds of the country’s second-level schools are coeducational, and the Department of Education generally does not sanction the opening of new, single-sex schools. But, frustratingly for many parents, particularly those in southeast Dublin, there are very few coeducational options at second level in their local area.
- School leadership and management: For some schools in disadvantaged areas, the progression rates published in The Irish Times can feel disheartening, and there is often considerable resentment among teachers who point out – fairly – that the data captures only one aspect of school life, and one aspect of where they might progress after college. Parents and guardians know their child best, and there’s no particular reason that a more academic child won’t thrive in a school that doesn’t send huge numbers to third level; again, what matters most in terms of a child’s academic performance is family support and guidance. Parents and guardians shouldn’t base their decision on these lists alone; they should also consider the school’s inclusiveness, extracurricular and pastoral policies, the value of their child being educated in their own community, and the school’s teaching and learning policies.
How missing data means we can’t give the full story
It is worth bearing in mind that the published data refers only to the students who progressed on to higher education.
Unfortunately, progression data for the number of students from any given school who progressed on to further education and training (FET), such as a Post-Leaving Cert course or an apprenticeship, is not yet available.
Despite continued efforts on the part of this newspaper to access it, systemic data about progression to further education from schools is not yet collated.
FET provides excellent options for school-leavers who may want a work-ready, vocational route and, indeed, many of these courses can lead on to a higher education course.
For the time being, and in spite of the reality that FET has never been a better career option, we cannot credit a student or school who did their Leaving Cert in a school and then went on to further education. We are very aware that this is a significant limitation of the data published.
In the meantime, there’s more information about apprenticeships on Apprenticeship.ie, and you’ll find a wide selection of FET courses on FetchCourses.ie.
Click here to see all Feeder Schools related articles.
- Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Listen to our Inside Politics podcast for the best political chat and analysis
