Scoping Study Final Report.. - Letterkenny Institute of Technology

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North West Gateway Strategic Alliance (NWGSA) Scoping Study4. The population of the linked Letterkenny-Derry Gateway amounted to 125,490persons in 2006. Outside the major urban areas of Dublin, Belfast and Cork, theLetterkenny-Derry Gateway has the largest population base among the 14gateway cities/towns in RoI and is one of the largest inter-urban areas in theisland of Ireland.5. With a population of 17,586 persons in 2006, Letterkenny enjoyed the fastestgrowth in population out of the 11 cities and towns in RoI with a HEI since 2002(15% growth cumulatively or 3.7% per annum on average during 2002-2006).6. The proportion of the population in the 0-14 year age cohort is relatively high inthe NWGSA Region compared with RoI and NI, suggesting a comparatively high‘latent’ demand for HE in the region for the next few years.7. However, during the past decade (1996-2006), there was no growth in thenumber of residents in the NWGSA Region aged 15-24 years and the number ofpeople in this age category fell by 0.6% per annum in Donegal.8. Projections for population developed by Indecon/London Economics (based onofficial population forecasts in NI and RoI) suggest the following outcomes interms of the likely pattern of prospective demand for HE in the NWGSA Regionover the medium- to long-term (until 2021):i. A likely driver of the growth in HE demand in the NWGSA Region willbe from the 25+ age cohort. This relates to ‘non-traditional’ students andlifelong learners, including people seeking to enhance or differentiatetheir skills;ii. Across the NWGSA Region, the absolute and relative population in the‘traditional’ new entrant (15-24 years) cohort is expected to decline andthis may lead to a decline in HE demand among this group (although notnecessarily so in the event that a greater proportion of the persons agedbetween 15 and 24 years enrol on HE courses, which may be likely) –thus, it is not necessarily correct to say that there will be a decline in thetraditional segment of the HE intake in the NWGSA Region over thecoming years.9. Despite the gains in student enrolments achieved by LYIT and Ulster in theNWGSA Region in recent years, the level of higher educational attainment(among residents) is relatively low in the NWGSA Region: in the NI part of theRegion, 17% of the working age population had a primary degree or higher in2006 compared with 23% in NI as a whole; in the Donegal part of the NWGSARegion, 12.5% of persons aged 15+ years had a primary degree or higherqualification in 2006 compared with 18.5% for RoI. These facts are likely toreflect the structure of economic activity and employment in the region.Indecon and London Economics March 2009 Page 7
North West Gateway Strategic Alliance (NWGSA) Scoping Study10. The NWGSA Region has a lower proportion of its employment base in marketservices activities (36% versus 41% across the RoI and 40% across NI). In nonmarketservices – which largely equates to the public sector – 39% of totalemployment in the region is located in this sector. This compares with 40%across NI but is substantially above that across the RoI (28%). Within theNWGSA Region, it is notable that the primary sectors (including agriculture andutilities) are relatively important employers in Donegal, while the constructionsector is also relatively important in that county. Reflecting nationaldevelopments, the region will need to grow high value internationally-tradedmarket services activities.11. Finally in respect of our socio-economic profile, notwithstanding the positivedevelopments in relation to FDI, key shares of foreign-owned activity in the NIpart of the NWGSA Region remain disproportionately low in relation to relativesize of the population of this part of the region. In Donegal, the figures indicate aconcentration of foreign-owned company employment in pharmaceuticals andhealthcare, with companies in this sector accounting for half of all IDA Irelandassistedfirms in the county. The ICT sector is also an important employer inDonegal. These areas of concentration point to the importance of developingskills in STEM subjects.6. Higher Education Operating Environment – Comparative HE Systemsin RoI and NIWe have carried out a detailed review of the respective HE operating environmentsin NI and RoI aimed at assessing whether there might be any systems differences thatwould act to impede the possibility of enhanced strategic collaboration betweenUlster and LYIT in the context of the NWGSA Region. Our review of HE systems ineach jurisdiction has also considered the similarities, which would tend to makepotential co-operation easier.Our overall assessment is that some institutional factors currently in place might limitthe scope to develop full-time, undergraduate courses separately or jointly by LYITand/or Ulster in the NWGSA Region – namely the MaSN Cap in NI and differencesin tuition fees between NI and RoI.However, if these constraints are overcome, we believe there could be significantpotential to develop full-time undergraduate provision jointly in the NWGSARegion. While the MaSN cap is likely to remain a feature of the NI HE system, it maybe possible to review its application in the case of STEM subjects and there is also thepossibility of the cap being differentiated on a regional basis.We consider that there is also likely to be significant scope to develop courses inlifelong learning and at postgraduate level where differences between the two HEoperating systems appear to be less significant and the MaSN Cap does not apply.Lifelong learning in this context is interpreted broadly – including part-time study forpeople hoping to acquire third-level qualifications and part-time postgraduate studyfor people with existing third-level qualifications.Indecon and London Economics March 2009 Page 8
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Scoping Study Final Report.. - Letterkenny Institute of Technology

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