The Sunday Times published it’s annual ‘Schools Guide’ last weekend. The guide lists the top 400 secondary schools in Ireland ranked by the average proportion of pupils gaining places in autumn 2011, 2012 and 2013 at the main universities, teacher training colleges, Royal College of Surgeons and NCAD.

According to Kate Butler who compiled the data, “the work ethic of Irish-language and fee-paying schools is helping them achieve top marks for students heading to university.” Butler reports that there are just 36 Gaelcholaisti in the republic but 28 of them are in the Sunday Times top 400. So while they represent just 5% of the 721 secondary-level schools in the country they take up 7% of the Sunday Times Report top 400, 18% of their top 50 and 30% of their top 10.

The same disproportionate success can be seen in the fee-paying schools section. There are 51 fee-paying schools in the country which take up the remaining 70% of the top 10.

The school topping the list nationally this year is Laurel Hill Colaiste Limerick with 88.7% of its students gaining university places over the last three years. The school is the first Irish-language school to head the annual Sunday Times parent Power survey since the paper published its first league table in 2003. It is also the first non-fee paying school at the top of the Sunday Times league table for 10 years.

Details of the Top 20 schoools regionally can be viewed here. Progression data to third level colleges for every secondary school over the last eight years can be viewed on Schooldays.ie

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