Pat Deering (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael)
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259. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the number of students that entered third level colleges in 2012; the number that applied for college grants; the number that were successful in part or in full; the number of applications that were received from PAYE families, self employed families and unemployed families; and the number of students that declined course offers because their grant application was refused. [39690/13]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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Provisional figures provided by the Higher Education Authority to my Department indicate that some 42,000 students entered higher education institutes for the first time in the 2012/13 academic year.

I understand from Student Universal Support Ireland that, as at 15th September 2012, some 69,705 new applications had been received for the 2012/13 academic year. In addition, information received from local authorities and VECs in the January Survey indicated that, at the end of January 2013, some 42,714 renewal applications had been received for the 2012/13 academic year.

My Department is currently analysing the data received in the 2012/13 annual statistical return from grant awarding authorities and the final number of awards will be available in the coming weeks.

I regret that the information related to socio-economic category and applicants who declined offers as a result of ineligibility for a student grant is not collated by the student grant awarding authorities in the format requested by the Deputy. However, the Deputy may be aware that affordability is just one of the factors that impact on students continued participation in higher education. There are a range of wider factors that also impact on participation, including social and cultural issues, prior academic attainment and teacher and parental expectations.