THOUSANDS of young Scots are being turned away from colleges across the country despite a growing demand for qualifications and high rates of youth unemployment.
A snapshot survey by The Herald has prompted calls for extra funding after it revealed at least 10,000 students are on waiting lists, with the final total likely to be significantly higher.
While 21.5% of 16 to 24-year-olds in Scotland are now out of work, the Scottish Government has slashed teaching budgets for further education institutions – which focus primarily on vocational courses – while spending on universities has been protected.
The Scottish Government said overall spending on colleges for this year had been increased and officials have suggested it is not unusual for students to apply to multiple colleges.
However, while college principals accept the figures may include some duplication, they believe that cannot explain the sheer scale of the waiting lists.
Teaching grants in further education have been cut by more than 10% in each of the past two years, with further deep cuts planned for the next two. That has led to the number of lecturing staff being cut by more than 1800.
Colleges have also been tasked with a major restructuring exercise, with many deciding to merge along regional lines.
The largest waiting list was at City of Glasgow College, where it is understood there are as many as 8000 applicants who cannot find courses.
North Glasgow College, in Springburn, said some of its most popular courses, including plumbing, beauty and nursing, were oversubscribed by some 2000 people.
Motherwell College, in Lanarkshire, said it had a waiting list of 800, while West Lothian College in Livingston said it had a waiting list of 550 people.
Other colleges that confirmed they had high demand for courses, but could not supply figures, included James Watt in Greenock and Forth Valley College in Falkirk.
Colleges in Edinburgh – including Telford and Stevenson – said they had experienced high waiting lists in recent weeks, but that numbers had now declined because many students had decided to go back to school.
The Government has insisted that, despite the cuts, places have been preserved – but many colleges believe that is not the case, particularly in regions such as Glasgow.
John Henderson, chief executive of Scotland's Colleges, called for the Government to take action to help colleges recruit more students.
"If the numbers being reported by some of our members are widespread then demand is outstripping the supply," he said.
"The Scottish Government should increase college funding in its draft budget to better meet this demand.
"Colleges across Scotland have adapted to the economic situation we find ourselves in and will continue to do so, but we must better invest in colleges so that they can deliver training and qualifications to the thousands of people in Scotland who need them."
Larry Flanagan, general secretary of the Educational Institute of Scotland union, which represents college lecturers, said: "Further education plays a vital role in our society, providing lifelong learning opportunities for people of all ages and equipping Scotland's workforce with the types of skills needed to work the country out of the economic downturn.
"While all sectors of education have seen real-terms decline in their budgets over the past few years, further education has been particularly badly hit."
Robin Parker, president of NUS Scotland, which represents students, said the current situation was no surprise given high levels of youth unemployment.
"We'd be extremely concerned if potential students had no opportunity to develop new skills because of too much demand and too little capacity," he said. "Every student turned away is another potential addition to the dole queue."
He added: "With the Scottish Government preparing their next budget, it's vital that education be at the heart of its economic strategy."
However, a Scottish Government spokesman said: "We have, in fact, increased college budgets this year, providing the funding necessary to meet our commitment to maintain student numbers.
"We are also delivering on our pledge to provide 'Opportunities for All', meaning that every 16 to 19-year-old in Scotland not in education, training or a job is guaranteed an offer of a place in education or training."
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