The retention of the points system as a method of allocating college places is to be broadly welcomed. Frequently described as "brutally fair", the system possesses the considerable advantages of being transparent, impartial and efficient. A different system, open to influence in the shape of wealth, or political and personal connections, should have no role at the Central Applications Office or in college admissions offices.
The publication of the final report and recommendations of the Commission on the Points System brings to a close a long process of consultation and deliberation. Set up in October 1997, the commission initiated some four pieces of research as well as soliciting submissions from the public and the education partners.
It found against the introduction of selection procedures such as interviews or aptitude tests, stating that performance throughout a student's second-level schooling is the most reliable predictor of subsequent success. It recognised the need to broaden the scope of the Leaving Certificate while acknowledging the difficulties in a system where teachers remain resistant to the idea of assessing their own students.
The report makes a number of recommendations which should help improve the third-level colleges' admission rates for socio-economically disadvantaged students, mature students and those who are disabled. These measures are long overdue: about 16 per cent of the population belongs to the lower socio-economic groups but students from this background account for only two per cent of college admissions. It is recommended that five per cent of places on all courses be set aside for these students.
Equally, mature students make up only about five per cent of those entering higher education, while in many other OECD countries mature students account for up to 40 per cent of third-level intake. The commission recommends that by the year 2005 each third-level college in the Republic should set aside a quota of at least 15 per cent of places for students entering at age 23 or above. This quota would increase to 25 per cent by 2015. A co-ordinated system of assessment of mature applications should also be put in place.
The commission recommends putting an end to the practice of allocating bonus points to candidates who do the Leaving Certificate examination through the medium of Irish. This is likely to be a bone of contention with Irish-language lobbyists for some time to come. And the pressure for high-points courses in the healthcare area could be alleviated if a proposal by Dr Martin Newell of the CAO is adopted; in a submission to the commission, he suggests offering medicine as a postgraduate course.
The commission's terms of reference require it to "draw up an implementation strategy for all recommendations which will require details of the cost, timing and other practical considerations." While some time-scales have been provided, the commission has not offered costings. However, it states: "Reform of the system should be seen as an investment rather than a cost." Indeed, this view fits well with Education Minister, Micheal Martin's, wider emphasis on meeting the skills shortages in the labour market by attracting a broader range of students into third-level education.