TUV leader Jim Allister has highlighted the under-representation of Protestants at Northern Ireland’s universities. Mr Allister obtained the data by way of a series of written questions to the Employment and Learning Minister. The North Antrim MLA said:

“It is alarming to notice the very pronounced difference between the number of students coming from Protestant and Roman Catholic backgrounds attending both of our universities.

“Of particular concern is the breakdown of students at the Jordanstown and Magee campuses of the University of Ulster. At Jordanstown there are just 3,850 Protestant students compared with 6,640 Roman Catholics while at Magee Protestants make up less than 1/5 of the student population.

“The situation at the University of Ulster is compounded by the fact that there is a total imbalance in terms of the number of students coming from the Irish Republic. While at Queen’s there is essentially equilibrium between the number of students coming from the Republic and GB, at University of Ulster the number of students from the Republic is five times greater than from the UK mainland.

“There are 2,800 students from the Republic studying at the University of Ulster which suggests that pro rata it is being more successful in recruiting young people from the Republic than it is in recruiting local Protestant students.

“It is essential that something is done to address this situation. It seems to me there has been a lamentable failure by the University of Ulster in their recruitment from controlled schools and, thus, I am looking to them to address this. I will be writing to the Vice-Chancellor.

“I would particularly like to see more Protestant boys from working class areas are encouraged to progress to third level education at one of our local universities.

“I have to say that the initial reaction from the University of Ulster is disappointing. As this data is collected people have a right to comment. It is the responsibility of the higher education sector to do all they can to address the situation, not complain about the problem being highlighted.

“It is also interesting to note the data obtained from Northern Ireland’s teacher training colleges. Stranmillis is the only higher education institution in the Province where Protestants outnumber Roman Catholics yet there is a totally unjustified and unjustifiable campaign to do away with  Stranmillis and merge it with Queen’s. Why there are no plans to do away with St Mary’s is not for me to explain. The figures showing the breakdown of students at Queen’s highlight the nonsensical argument that somehow the ethos of Stranmillis can be preserved if a merger is pushed through.”

Note to editors:

Mr Allister’s questions and the replies received are as follows:

To ask the Minister for Employment and Learning to detail the number of students form (i) Great Britain; (ii) the Republic of Ireland; (iii) other EU member states; and (iv) the rest of the world who have enrolled in (a) Queen’s University; and (b) the University of Ulster in each of the last five years.

The number of students from Great Britain, the Republic of Ireland, other EU member states and the rest of  the world who have enrolled in (a) Queen’s University; and (b) the University of Ulster in each of the last  five years is detailed below: 

(a) Queen’s University

Academic year	Great Britain	Republic of Ireland	Other EU	Rest of the world
2005/06	495	965	165	835
2006/07	455	880	195	830
2007/08	560	875	255	900
2008/09	655	930	270	975
2009/10	880	920	260	960

 

(b) University of Ulster

Academic year	Great Britain	Republic of Ireland	Other EU	Rest of the world
2005/06	570	2,650	190	540
2006/07	455	2,220	205	550
2007/08	515	2,340	170	410
2008/09	645	2,250	170	575
2009/10	625	2,810	150	640

                                                              

Source: HESA

Notes: 

(1) Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5. 

(2) The latest available data are for 2009/10.

(3) The figures in the table above are for all years and levels of study.

To ask the Minister for Employment and Learning how many students from (a) a Roman Catholic and (b) a Protestant background have (i) applied for a place at; and (ii) enrolled at (a) Queen's University; (b) the University of Ulster, broken down by each campus; (iii) St Mary's University College; and (iv) Stranmillis University College in each of the last five years.

The Department does not hold information on the religion of applicants to university and nor is it collected by Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS).  The Department does however hold information on the religion of Northern Ireland (NI) domiciled students enrolled at the NI Higher Education Institutions.

Therefore,  the number  of NI  domiciled  students  from  a  Catholic  and  a  Protestant background  enrolled  at Queen's University; the University of Ulster, broken down by each campus;  St Mary's University College; and Stranmillis University College in each of the last five years is detailed in the tables below.

(a)               Catholic background

 

	2005/6	2006/07	2007/08	2008/09	2009/10
The Queen’s University of Belfast	8,565	7,920	8,245	8,265	8,710
University of Ulster, Belfast	525	495	545	540	660
University of Ulster, Coleraine	1,950	1,860	1,760	1,570	1,655
University of Ulster, Jordanstown	6,900	6,405	6,105	5,995	6,640
University of Ulster, Magee	2,395	2,230	2,090	1,905	2,115
Stranmillis University College	195	185	160	195	280
St Mary’s University College	950	965	910	905	935

                                                                                        

(b)              Protestant background

	2005/6	2006/07	2007/08	2008/09	2009/10
The Queen’s University of Belfast	7,360	6,510	6,735	6,600	6,740
University of Ulster, Belfast	500	475	450	465	540
University of Ulster, Coleraine	2,200	2,145	2,100	1,940	2,040
University of Ulster, Jordanstown	4,670	4,000	3,685	3,430	3,850
University of Ulster, Magee	590	530	530	475	590
Stranmillis University College	960	915	680	655	645
St Mary’s University College	20	15	10	10	5

           

Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency

Notes:

     (1)       Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5.

     (2)        The latest available data are for 2009/10.

     (3)       Information on religion is only collected for NI domiciled students studying at NI Higher Education Institutions and therefore the above tables do not include students from outside NI.

     (4)       Religious affiliation is not a mandatory question and therefore can have a high non-response rate.

     (5)       As well as Catholic and Protestant, the religion of students can also be classified as “Other” or “Not known/available”.  These two categories accounted for between 18-21% of Northern Ireland domiciled students enrolled at NI Higher Education Institutions between 2005/06 and 2009/10.