Olivia Kelleher Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris has said Ireland has created a culture of snobbery around third-level education with Leaving Certificate students believing that they have to go to college in order to be a success in a life. In an interview on Newstalk, Mr Harris said he has visited dozens of secondary schools this year talking to students about their options "and being honest, you can see the fear and the anxiety in the eyes of so many." “We are living in a country here where I actually think we are outliers in terms of the pressure we actually put on young people; in terms of you must get X amount of points and if you don’t get X amount of points, you can’t fulfil your dreams or your career. “It’s not true and we have allowed a narrowing of the conversation of the options after school. “I don’t say that to blame parents or students,” he said. “I think that’s a culture we have created in Ireland where it has all been about… sometimes the question is tell me the name of the university you want to go to rather than tell me what you want to do with your life, and we’ll show you how to get there."

Devaluing of trades

Mr Harris said the work of trades and other career paths has been devalued in Irish society. “It’s not accidental that we have a shortage of people to build houses in this country. “It’s not accidental from a policy point of view that we don’t have enough people to retrofit homes in this country. "It’s the result of the fact that we have, in my view, devalued the importance we attach to trades and to alternative routes after school." Mr Harris said that changes have been made to the CAO website to ensure that students can now see options for further education and training and information about apprenticeships. “So, what I am trying to do is broaden that conversation, create better pathways between further education and higher education, highlight the importance of apprenticeships and the fact that they are third level and can provide a qualification and well-paid job for you. “We’ve got to move beyond this idea that when the young adult sits down with mum or dad or teacher, the only conversation they’re having is about the CAO and points and actually start talking about all of the different ways to get where you want to be.”