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Education

4.1 Ireland: Real current public expenditure on education, 2006-2015
 € per student at 2015 prices€m at 2015 prices
YearLevelReal current public expenditure
 PrimarySecond1Third
20065,4717,73110,0547,327
20076,0648,82010,8067,644
20086,7539,77411,6767,878
20096,9929,85211,0528,153
20106,3388,7949,7788,105
20116,4188,8609,2238,017
20126,4178,9398,7217,823
20136,3268,3208,1947,804
20146,0058,1157,5917,827
20156,2958,2577,5768,019
 Source: Department of Education and Skills, CSO
1 Second level includes further education, e.g. post-Leaving Certificate programmes.

 

  • Real expenditure per student, (i.e., expenditure adjusted for inflation), increased by 15.1% at primary level between 2006 and 2015, rising from €5,471 per student in 2006 to €6,295 by 2015.
  • Real expenditure per student at second level rose from €7,731 in 2006 to €8,257 in 2015, an increase of 6.8%.
  • At third level there was a decrease of 24.6% in real expenditure per student over the same time period, falling from €10,054 per student in 2006 to €7,576 by 2015.
  • Current public expenditure on education in real prices rose by nearly a tenth (9.4%) between 2006 and 2015, from €7,327 million to €8,019 million.
PrimarySecondThird
20065470.703441496267731.2847953442610053.7511969158
20076063.957983968328819.6254501347610806.0026679237
20086752.893074021529773.7935835885411675.5128895297
20096992.241483151939852.0835249981111052.2454897561
20106337.92573205898794.302676009079778.02573186349
20116418.1259600068859.72413274489222.56833092017
20126417.394491721858938.517059531618720.86750516162
20136326.317054615198320.030054566748193.6582930958
20146004.842208829098114.769181067187591.20372835087
20156294.717912120638256.655208463487576.22249839425
4.2 Ireland: Numbers of students1 by level, 2008-2017
   number
YearLevel
 PrimarySecondThird - full-timeThird - part-time
2007/2008486,444335,123139,13433,883
2008/2009498,914341,312146,06833,027
2009/2010505,998350,687156,97332,806
2010/2011509,652356,107161,64732,622
2011/2012516,458359,047163,06833,778
2012/2013526,422362,847164,86335,778
2013/2014536,317367,178169,25436,153
2014/2015544,696372,296173,64936,975
2015/2016553,380378,003179,85039,632
2016/2017558,314384,226181,03939,625
 Source: Department of Education and Skills
1 Only students in institutions which are aided by the Department of Education and Skills are included in this table.

 

  • The number of primary level students increased by 14.8% between 2007/2008 and 2016/2017, rising from 486,444 to 558,314.
  • Over this same time period the number of second level students rose by 14.7%, from 335,123 to 384,226.
  • The number of full-time third level students increased strongly by 30.1% between 2007/2008 and 2016/2017, from 139,134 to 181,039 while the numbers of part-time third level students rose by 16.9%.
PrimarySecondThird full-timeThird part-time
2007/200848644433512313913433883
2008/200949891434131214606833027
2009/201050599835068715697332806
2010/201150965235610716164732622
2011/201251645835904716306833778
2012/201352642236284716486335778
2013/201453631736717816925436153
2014/201554469637229617364936975
2015/201655338037800317985039632
2016/201755831438422618103939625
4.3 EU: Public expenditure on education, 2012-2014
   % of GDP
Country201220132014
Sweden7.47.27.1
Finland::6.8
Belgium6.66.56.5
Ireland (% of GNI*)8.16.76.2
Cyprus6.76.46.1
Malta6.86.66.1
United Kingdom:5.95.9
France5.55.55.5
Netherlands5.95.65.5
Austria5.65.55.4
Latvia6.64.95.3
EU28:5.15.1
Portugal:5.25.0
Slovenia5.45.15.0
Ireland (% of GDP)6.25.34.9
Poland4.94.94.9
Germany4.84.74.6
Lithuania4.8:4.4
Bulgaria3.74.14.2
Spain4.34.24.2
Slovakia3.14.04.1
Italy:4.24.1
Luxembourg4.4:4.0
Czech Republic4.34.03.8
Romania2.62.72.8
Denmark:::
Estonia4.84.9:
Greece:::
Croatia:::
Hungary4.14.0:
    
Iceland7.26.87.0
Norway:6.56.7
Switzerland5.2:5.0
Source: Eurostat

 

  • Public expenditure on education in Ireland was 4.9% of GDP in 2014, below the EU average of 5.1%.
  • However, when calculated as a percentage of modified GNI, Ireland had the fourth highest expenditure on education in the EU in 2014.
4.4 EU: Ratio of students to teachers1, 2015
ratio
CountryPrimaryLower secondaryUpper secondary
Greece9.47.88.1
Lithuania10.37.38.1
Luxembourg10.711.010.8
Poland11.19.710.3
Hungary11.210.611.5
Latvia11.67.79.7
Austria11.88.710.1
Denmark11.911.013.1
Cyprus12.210.310.1
Italy12.411.512.5
Belgium12.89.59.9
Sweden12.812.314.4
Estonia13.39.515.2
Malta13.66.98.9
Finland13.69.016.5
Spain13.711.911.1
Portugal13.710.09.7
Croatia14.39.09.7
EU 2815.112.612.9
Germany15.413.313.0
Slovenia15.98.513.4
Ireland16.4:13.9
Netherlands16.616.018.0
Slovakia17.211.613.5
Bulgaria17.812.812.2
United Kingdom18.414.326.1
Czech Republic19.011.811.1
France19.015.110.4
Romania19.111.914.3
    
Norway10.39.510.3
Iceland10.710.5:
Switzerland13.810.8:
Macedonia14.79.112.1
Serbia15.810.910.4
Turkey19.318.414.8
Source: Eurostat
1 2014 data used for Denmark, Switzerland and Turkey. 2014 data used for Greece for primary and lower secondary and 2013 data used for upper secondary. 2013 data used for Ireland.

 

  • Ireland had a student to teacher ratio of 16.4 in primary education in 2013. This was the eighth highest ratio in the EU and was above the EU average of 15.1 for 2015.
  • The lowest student to teacher ratio in primary education was in Greece at 9.4 while the highest was in the Romania at 19.1.
  • Ireland had the seventh highest student to teacher ratio for upper secondary education at 13.9 for those EU countries for which data was available.
  • The lowest ratios in upper secondary education were in Greece and Lithuania at 8.1 while the highest was in the United Kingdom at 26.1. However, note that upper secondary in the UK. 
4.5 EU: Persons aged 25-34 with third level education by sex, 2016
% of population aged 25-34
CountryMalesFemalesPersonsPercentage points differential
Cyprus45.065.355.49.9
Lithuania44.266.154.911.2
Sweden40.156.147.98.2
United Kingdom44.549.146.82.3
Ireland41.052.046.75.3
Luxembourg43.448.646.02.7
Netherlands39.449.444.45.0
Belgium37.350.744.06.7
France37.747.442.74.7
Denmark35.648.441.96.5
Slovenia30.953.541.711.8
Greece35.048.341.66.7
Latvia29.253.641.212.5
Estonia32.050.841.09.8
Finland33.148.940.88.1
Spain33.946.040.06.0
Poland31.248.939.99.0
Austria36.043.139.53.7
EU 2832.642.537.55.0
Portugal26.642.234.57.7
Malta30.137.533.83.7
Slovakia25.741.433.48.1
Bulgaria25.839.632.57.2
Czech Republic26.438.832.46.4
Croatia24.440.532.38.2
Germany29.631.530.51.0
Hungary23.836.029.86.2
Italy19.431.625.46.1
Romania22.627.324.92.4
     
Norway41.758.149.78.4
Switzerland48.647.948.3-0.4
Iceland32.348.240.47.8
Macedonia26.538.132.25.9
Turkey29.228.328.7-0.5
Source: Eurostat

 

  • Just under half (46.7%) of 25-34 year olds in Ireland had third level education in 2016. This was the fifth highest rate in the EU and compares with 37.5% across the EU as a whole.
  • In Cyprus and Lithuania about 55% of the population aged 25-34 had a third level qualification in 2016.
  • Females are better educated than males in all EU countries, with Latvia having the highest percentage points differential of 12.5.
  • In Ireland 52% of females aged 25-34 had a third level qualification compared to 41% of males.
  • The proportion of the population aged 25-34 in Ireland with third level education has risen in recent years, from 42.3% in 2007 to 46.7% in 2016, an increase of 4.4 percentage points. Over the same time period, the proportion with third level education in the EU rose from 29.5% to 37.5%, an increase of 8 percentage points.
EU28Ireland
200729.464669919427442.322537383134
200830.51251398033442.8279369529319
200931.896922019895745.0859418525473
201032.524205223507945.5669664916565
201133.614820283466445.0293923654593
201234.68482591555446.925812973861
201335.591461110264948.5200138069625
201436.407473496026347.6306914118622
201537.042088233189948.6239790849042
201637.493110680738446.6823928447393
4.6 EU: Student performance on the mathematical, reading and scientific literacy scales, 2015
Mean score of 15 year old students
CountryMathematical literacyReading literacyScientific literacy
Estonia520519534
Netherlands512503509
Denmark511500502
Finland511526531
Slovenia510505513
Belgium507499502
Germany506509509
Poland504506501
Ireland504521503
Austria497485495
Sweden494500493
France493499495
United Kingdom492498509
Czech Republic492487493
Portugal492498501
OECD average490493493 
Italy490485481
Spain486496493
Luxembourg486481483
Latvia482488490
Malta479447465
Lithuania478472475 
Hungary477470477
Slovak Republic475453461
Croatia464487475
Greece454467455
Romania444434435
Bulgaria441432446
Cyprus437443433
    
Switzerland521492506
Norway502513498
Iceland488482473
Turkey420428425
Source: OECD, Educational Research Centre

 

  • Ireland had the ninth highest mathematical literacy for 15 year old students among EU countries in 2015, with a score of 504, above the OCED average of 490. The highest scores in the EU were in Estonia, the Netherlands and Denmark.
  • In reading literacy, Ireland had the second highest score in 2015 among EU countries with a score of 521 and was well above the OECD average of 493. The highest score in the EU was in Finland at 526.
  • Ireland ranked seventh highest for scientific literacy with a score of 503, compared to OCED average of 493. Estonia, Finland and Slovenia had the highest scores in the EU.
4.7 EU: Young people aged 18-24 neither in employment nor in education and training by sex (NEET rates), 2016
% of population aged 18-24
CountryPersonsMalesFemalesGender differential
Netherlands6.16.26.00.2
Denmark7.78.46.91.5
Luxembourg8.07.48.6-1.2
Malta8.36.710.0-3.3
Sweden8.79.28.11.1
Czech Republic9.17.111.3-4.2
Germany9.28.410.1-1.7
Austria9.49.88.90.9
Slovenia10.511.79.22.5
Estonia11.48.714.1-5.4
Lithuania12.613.411.81.6
Belgium13.113.312.80.5
Finland13.714.812.72.1
United Kingdom14.013.114.9-1.8
Poland14.113.414.9-1.5
Hungary14.211.217.3-6.1
Latvia14.916.912.94.0
Portugal14.915.414.50.9
EU 2815.214.715.7-1.0
Slovakia15.513.517.6-4.1
Ireland15.916.315.50.8
France16.116.315.90.4
Spain19.119.618.61.0
Croatia21.724.119.05.1
Greece21.921.722.1-0.4
Romania21.917.226.8-9.6
Bulgaria22.321.323.5-2.2
Cyprus22.321.623.1-1.5
Italy26.026.225.80.4
     
Iceland4.54.74.20.5
Norway7.48.26.51.7
Switzerland8.39.07.61.4
Turkey30.718.043.3-25.3
Macedonia32.131.333.1-1.8
Source: Eurostat
 

 

  • Just under one in six of those aged 18-24 in Ireland in 2016 was neither in employment nor in education and training  (the NEET rate).
  • The EU average NEET rate was 15.2% and varied from a low of 6.1% in the Netherlands to 26% in Italy.
  • The NEET rate in Ireland for males aged 18-24 was 16.3%, above the rate for females of 15.5%.
This map is © Ordnance Survey Ireland. All rights reserved. License number 01/05/001.
4.8 EU: Mathematics, Science and Technology graduates, 20151
per 1,000 population aged 20-29
CountryMalesFemalesTotal
Ireland45.417.931.5
Finland33.613.423.7
Spain31.413.322.4
Austria32.611.422.1
United Kingdom27.217.022.1
France28.714.221.4
Poland23.619.021.4
Germany29.211.320.5
Denmark26.913.220.2
EU 2824.913.119.1
Portugal22.714.618.6
Lithuania24.911.718.5
Czech Republic22.012.217.2
Slovenia21.312.817.2
Croatia21.412.116.8
Slovakia20.912.016.6
Greece20.012.416.2
Malta21.710.016.1
Sweden19.810.615.3
Romania16.713.014.9
Bulgaria17.711.314.6
Italy15.811.213.5
Belgium19.47.113.3
Latvia17.28.412.9
Estonia14.111.412.8
Hungary16.28.012.2
Netherlands14.65.09.9
Cyprus9.57.08.3
Luxembourg3.61.42.5
    
Switzerland30.59.220.0
Serbia17.711.914.9
Norway20.18.614.5
Turkey15.68.312.0
Macedonia7.56.57.0
Source: Eurostat
1 2014 data used for Greece, the Netherlands and Serbia.

 

  • Ireland had the highest proportion of Mathematics, Science and Technology (STEM) graduates in the EU in 2015.
  • The proportion of graduates in these disciplines  was 31.5 per 1,000 of the population aged 20-29 in Ireland, while the EU average was 19.1.
  • The proportion of male graduates in STEM areas in Ireland, at 45.4 per 1,000 of the population aged 20-29, was the highest in the EU and the proportion of females graduates, at 17.9, was the second highest in the EU.
  • The proportion of male graduates in STEM subjects in Ireland fell from 30.3 per 1,000 of the population aged 20-29 in 2006 to 23 in 2009 before increasing to stand at 45.4 in 2015.
  • The proportion of female graduates fell from 12.7 per 1,000 of the population aged 20-29 in 2006 to 10 in 2009 and then rose to 12.6 in 2012. The proportion of female graduates fell again in 2013 to 10 before rising to 17.9 by 2015.

 

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