Higher education participation in Northern Ireland

Abstract

This paper seeks to provide an overview of higher education participation in Northern Ireland. The aims are to set out quantitatively, the main dimensions of participation located within a comparative United Kingdom (UK) context, to identify the main social characteristics of participation, to draw upon qualitative research evidence to contextualise the patterns identified and to briefly discuss the relevant public policies. The paper draws upon a range of official statistical sources and the findings from research conducted in the past twenty years in Northern Ireland. - [Introduction]