Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail)
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179. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the ratio of students to teaching staff in each of the years from 2013 to 2017 at third level. [53614/17]

Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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The current staff:student ratio in the higher education sector is 21:1. This is calculated based on the 2016/17 enrolment figures.  This is based on the ratio of full time students to core teaching staff. A breakdown of the ratio for the years 2013 - 2017 is detailed for information.

Higher education is a priority for this Government. Budget 2017 provided the first increase in higher education funding since 2009. This process of reinvestment was continued in Budget 2018. In total, we will be investing €100m more in higher education in 2018 than in 2016.

To complement the increased investment in higher education I hope to publish a new System Performance Framework for the higher education sector early in 2018. This will provide the key system objectives for higher education in the years ahead.