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Non-Formal Education

Non-Formal Education

CSO statistical publication, , 11am

This chapter looks at the relationship between non-formal education and a collection of sociodemographic characteristics. It also shows the main reasons for participation in non-formal education, most popular field of education, key outcomes, and the delivery methods.

Non-formal education refers to institutionalised learning activities which are made up of structured hierarchical programmes typically not recognised by the QQI. The different types of non-formal education are courses, workshops or seminars, guided on-the-job training and private lessons.

Nearly half (48%) of adults aged 25-69 participated in some form of non-formal education in 2022

  • Nearly six in ten (57%) of 25-34 year olds reported participating in non-formal education compared to 33% of 55-69 year olds.
  • Regionally, Dublin had the highest participation rate in non-formal education of adults aged 25-69 at 55% with Border area the lowest at 37%.
  • Employed persons aged 25-69 were nearly twice as likely to have participated in non-formal education than those who were unemployed (58% versus 30%).
  • The most popular type of non-formal education was Courses (63%), followed by on the job training at 39%. See Tables 2.1 & 4.1.
Table 4.1 Persons aged 25-69 who participated in non-formal education, classified by the type of non-formal activity, 2022

Fields of education for non-formal

  • Health and welfare was the most common field of education for those aged 25-69 participating in non-formal education (29%) while Business, administration and law was the next most common field of education (18%).
  • For nearly four in ten (36%) Females aged 25-69 participating in non-formal education Health and welfare was the most common field of education this compares to just over two in ten males aged 25-69 (21%) in this field of education. See Figure 4.1 & Tables 2.1 & 4.2.
X-axis labelMaleFemale
Health and welfare2136
Business, administration and law1917
Engineering, manufacturing and construction152
Information and communication technologies147
Education412
Services76
Generic programmes and qualifications65
Social sciences, journalism and information26
Art and humanities35
Other34
Agriculture, forestry, fisheries and veterinary30
Natural sciences, mathematics and statistics21
Table 4.2 Persons aged 25-69 who participated in non-formal education, classified by the field of the activity, 2022

Job related reasons the most popular choices for participation in non-formal education

  • Amongst 25–69 year olds the most popular reason for participation in non-formal education was, To do my job better, with nearly four in ten persons (36%) reporting it.
  • For younger adults improving their career prospects was a more important reason (13%) for pursuing non-formal education than for 55-69 year olds (1%).
  • The most popular outcome selected from non-formal education was also job-related with 52% of adult 25-69 choosing Better performance in present job.
  • Nearly six in ten (58%) of 45-54 year olds chose Better performance in present job as their main outcome compared to half (50%) of 55-69 year olds.
  • As age increases, the main outcome chosen of Getting a (new) job decreased in importance with 5% of 25-34 year olds choosing this as their main outcome for participation in non-formal education compared to just 1% of 55-69 year olds. See Tables 4.3 & 4.4.
Table 4.3 Persons aged 25-69 who participated in non-formal education, classified by the main reason for the non-formal activity, 2022

Table 4.4 Persons aged 25-69 who participated in non-formal education, classified by the main outcome of the non-formal activity, 2022

Just over half of non-formal education was delivered completely or mostly online

  • Nearly half (48%) of persons aged 25-69 participating in non-formal education did so completely online.
  • One third (33%) of persons aged 25-69 participating in non-formal education did so completely on-site.
  • Nearly two thirds (65%) of persons aged 25-69 participating in non-formal education had the tuition fully paid by somebody else.
  • Nearly eight in 10 persons aged 25-69 (78%) who participated in non-formal education were currently using the skills or knowledge acquired a lot (46%) or a fair amount (32%). See Table 4.5.
Table 4.5 Persons aged 25-69 who participated in non-formal education, classified by details about the activity, 2022