Engineering Education in Ireland's Institute of Technology Sector

To secure a place at either a university or institute of technology a second-level student must accumulate a specific number of points in the national Leaving Certificate examinations. Points are awarded on the basis of student performance in either a higher level or ordinary level Leaving Certificate subject. As the mechanism for entry is competitive in nature, students do not always get the course of their choice and often accept courses for which they are unsuited. The national trend is that a decreasing numbers of students and students with a decreasing number of points accumulated are opting to study engineering. This is a trend that must be reversed if Ireland is to sustain its current levels of economic growth. This paper concentrates on the characteristics, challenges and innovations in the engineering education domain. It outlines the generic structure of education programmes currently offered by the institutes of technology sector in Ireland. Details are given of course entry requirements and how the institutes work with industry and respond to the needs of incoming learners. The author's course development and delivery model is included to give a flavour for course development and delivery across the sector.