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We have been asked by the Dublin Branch of Tuairim to examine the position of higher education in Ireland, and to make suggestions for the future.

Many broad topics come up for consideration, for example, the suitability of our secondary education system as a basis for university and technological education; the changing functions of the university, with its increased emphasis on professional training; the facts of easy admission to our universities for those who can pay the fees (which are nothing like the real cost), and of little assistance given to those of ability who cannot afford the expense; our present and likely future need for graduates from the various faculties; the present structure of our higher education system--the N.U.I. with its three constituent colleges, Dublin University with one, the College of Surgeons, and the Institutes of Technology in Dublin--and the lack of co-ordination within that system.

These subjects all deserve detailed examination. However, a matter of great urgency has arisen with the publication of the Report of the Commission on Accommodation Needs of the Constituent Colleges of the National University of Ireland. We are publishing this Memorandum to bring our views on some aspects of the first chapter of that Report to the attention of the public.

Criticism has already been levelled against those who did not give evidence to the Commission but now question its findings. In reply to this, we point out that the detailed facts on U.C.D. accommodation needs were not available to the public, and even a member of the Governing Body of U.C.D. claims not to have been fully informed (Attachment II to Chapter I of the Report). Without these facts informed submissions on the U.C.D. accommodation question could not have been made. The Commission has performed a valuable function in obtaining the facts, and the public is now for the first time in a position to review the situation. It is a pity that the chapter on U.C.D. (which was presented to the Government a year before the final Report was published) was not made public immediately, so that submissions could have been made before the Commission completed its study.

The present text is a revised version of our earlier stencilled Memorandum.

We wish to thank the many people with specialised knowledge of the subjects with which we deal who gave us great assistance, and to thank those who generously subscribed to the cost of printing.

The views expressed in this Memorandum are our own and not necessarily those of the Dublin Branch of Tuairim or of its members.

Signed,

HAROLD CLARKE, B.A.
ELIZABETH HEALY
RONAN KEANE, B.A., Barrister-at-Law
JOSEPH McCULLOUGH, B.E., A.M.I.C.E.I.
HENRY McERLEAN, B.A., B.Sc.
PATRICK T. MOORE, M.Sc., Ph.D.
MARY O'REILLY, B.Arch.
FRANKLIN J. O'SULLIVAN, B.C.L., LL.B.
FRANK WINDER, M.Sc. (Group Chairman)
37 Park Drive, Rathmines
DECEMBER, 1959.

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