UCD, WHICH has an accumulated debt of over €12 million, is set to change its student profile, with greater emphasis on post-graduate and foreign students.
The university’s strategic plan up to 2014 envisages a significant increase in both of these groups, which generate considerably more income than regular undergraduate students.
The college says post-graduate students should account for 33 per cent of all students by 2014, an increase of 9 per cent.
Similarly, international students will make up 25 per cent of the student body, an increase of 9 per cent. The percentage of non-EU students will nearly double to 15 per cent.
UCD, which has 24,500 students, has seen remarkable growth and transformation in recent years under its president, Dr Hugh Brady.
Last year, it secured a place in an annual study showing the world’s top 100 universities for the first time. But the college has been wrestling with accumulated debts – and the difficulty of achieving the 6 per cent cut in operational costs demanded by the Higher Education Authority.
In a signal of further cuts at UCD, the strategic plan refers to the “aggressive management of non-pay costs’’ over the coming years.
The college has already embarked on a vigorous cost-cutting programme amid fears its accumulated debt could reach €20 million. UCD says the debt is now being stabilised; there appears to be no immediate risk of job cuts among its 2,500 staff.
In a recognition of the “brain drain” among graduates, the new plan also details how the college will help “prepare graduates for life and work across international borders”.
Other key targets include;
- Non-traditional students (mature, part-time, disadvantaged and those with a disability) will account for 25 per cent of all students by 2014; up from 17 per cent at present.
- A new focus on stimulating creativity, innovation, entrepreneurship and active citizenship among students;
- Introduce a university-wide teaching quality assessment and internationally benchmarked student feedback survey;
- Expand revenue from academic (graduate and international) commercial and philanthropic areas thereby reducing reliance on State funding.
On research, the plan lists four priority themes; earth sciences, energy environment; health healthcare delivery; information, computation and communications and cultural activities with a global reach.
It promises to support key national recovery priorities through initiatives in biopharmaceutics, ICT, renewable energy and agrifood, and development of the cultural heritage.
UCD says it has 31 per cent of all PhD students in Ireland; it says it has already exceeded the Government target of doubling PhD numbers by 2013.
The plan also commits UCD to further development of the innovation alliance on research with TCD. This will see the rolling out of joint access graduate and PhD programmes through the Innovation Academy.
