'School wasn't for me but further education suited me,' says student, as thousands of places cut
Luke McCoskerFurther Education colleges across Northern Ireland plan to cut almost 8,000 student enrolments for the 2026/27 academic year, Stormont's economy committee has heard.
This is almost double the original figure of 4,000 they had planned to cut.
In a statement, a Belfast Metropolitan College (BMC) spokesperson said that the deadlock over a Stormont budget was partially responsible. The executive has been unable to agree a budget and has appealed to the government for more money.
Luke McCosker dropped out of doing A-Levels at school because the environment was "not for me" but thrived at North West Regional College, where he did a two-year course in applied science.
He's now studying medicine at Ulster University having already completing a degree in computer science at Queen's University Belfast.
He said North West Regional College had "trusted you a lot more with self-directed learning - to go home and study or use the library rather than having to do all the learning in class under a strict environment".
"I just didn't think that really suited me, even the study room in sixth year where you were being watched all the time, it just felt too regimental."
He told BBC News NI's Evening Extra programme the type of learning at the further education college more closely resembled the university environment when he started at Queen's.
"Speaking to some of my friends at the time, they found that a big jump, but it felt like just a small step up from further education," he said.
"I really think if I had stayed on in school I would have not done as well as I did - maybe had to repeat or maybe have given up altogether."
'Don't know how many businesses won't be born because courses have been cut'
Erinn KerrOne of the courses being dropped at Belfast Met is jewellery making.
Businesswoman Erinn Kerr left a full-time job in journalism seven years ago to open her own home-made bracelet business and now has stores in Broughshane and Glenarm in County Antrim.
She said it was important that such courses are protected.
"My situation changed quite dramatically when I became a mum and I had extra caring responsibilities because one of my children has a condition that just requires a lot more care," she told BBC News NI.
"So it's been brilliant to just work around the need of my family and be a bit more flexible."
She added: "Being able to do something for yourself to make a bit of extra money or build a business, it's essential that those things are protected."
She said there are "people just doing bits and pieces from home, from their kitchen tables and also that's how a lot of businesses start, that's how my business started".
"Not everything can be self-taught - there's obviously access to a lot of information on the internet and you can get so far, but usually you're going to need eventually some sort of professional training.
"It would be a good place for people to start on a course like that.
"Not everyone wants to be doing academic courses...and I think it's important that people are given the opportunity to make a livelihood out of whatever they enjoy.
"We don't know how many businesses won't be born or come around because those kind of courses have been cut."
How many enrolments are affected across Northern Ireland colleges?
Belfast Metropolitan College - reduction of 2,681 enrolments
Northern Regional College (NRC) - reduction of 1,370 enrolments
North West Regional College (NWRC) - reduction of 1,330 enrolments
South Eastern Regional College (SERC) - reduction of 1,661 enrolments
South West College (SWC) - reduction of 706 enrolments
Southern Regional College (SRC) - no significant impact on enrolments
Which courses have been cut?
According to BMC, it has had to make reductions to a several programmes.
That includes English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) classes, which especially help newcomers to Northern Ireland learn English.
The college has withdrawn GCSEs in French and Spanish and cut GCSE English courses.
Evening A-level classes, targeted at adult learners, have also been reduced.
Essential skills classes. which often help students get qualifications in English, Maths and IT have been reduced, along with some community education programmes.
Evening leisure courses in subjects like DIY joinery, bird watching, jewellery making, and Tai Chi have also been cut.
That in turn has meant that work for part-time staff has been reduced.
Meanwhile, speaking to the economy committee on Wednesday, Tommy Martin from the South Eastern Regional College (SERC) said there were about 160 individuals this year who had enrolled in courses who were then unable to be offered a place.
He also said the college was facing a 10% reduction in apprentices from last year.
BMC alone has had a cut of £6.8m in funding compared to 2025/26.
As a result, it has cut planned student enrolments by more than 2,500 - from around 19,100 students to around 16,500.
Adult learning, evening and leisure courses have been especially affected.
What has the reaction been?
Belfast councillor Brian Smyth of the Green Party told BBC News NI that he had been contacted by a number of constituents whose classes at BMC had been cancelled.
"It seems to be fairly unprecedented, over 2,500 student placements have been cut," he said.
"That's directly linked to Stormont's inability to put together a budget.
"I believe it's disproportionately going to impact the most on women looking to get back into the workforce, young people from working class backgrounds and adults seeking to retrain."
Smyth said he felt "a deep sense of frustration" as he believes that "this is going to harm Belfast's future skills pipeline.
"We keep talking about wanting to build apprenticeships, traineeships and building up the city. This is going to have a direct result and it's going to cause harm."
Martin, from SERC, told the economy committee that further education (FE) colleges were a significant part of Northern Ireland skills infrastructure.
"The colleges work directly with local and regional employers to develop the skills the economy needs, while also providing opportunities for school leavers, apprentices, adults returning to education, people seeking to retrain or up-skill and learners who may otherwise face significant barriers to participation," he said.
What has Belfast Met said?
In a statement to BBC News NI, a spokesperson for BMC said that they had been given contingency funding for 2026/27 "which equates to 94% of our budget from last year.
"When considered along with other unmet pressures this has created a resource budget shortfall which is approximately £6.8m for the college," they said.
"The college has sought wherever possible to retain provision through the consolidation of classes and cohorts rather than complete withdrawal of programmes."
BMC added that it had tried to protect qualifications that support progression into employment.
"The current situation for the college and for the sector is unprecedented, but it comes on the back of previous years of funding cuts and budget pressures which have impacted across FE, HE [Higher Education] and part-time community programmes."
Due to the absence of an agreed budget BMC said colleges have been provided with a "contingency allocation and are having to consider cost-saving actions to live within that allocation".
Damian Duffy, from BMC, told the committee that FE colleges were a "central part of the skills ecosystem".
"Our concern is not simply about individual courses being reduced, it is about the cumulative effect on learner choice, geographic access, employer provision and the skills pipeline that Northern Ireland economy needs," he added.
