More work is needed to address Protestant under-representation

He made the comments as the Universities Minister Dr Stephen Farry revealed that just 16 per cent of the Magee intake in 2012/13 was of people who declared themselves as being of a Protestant background.

Mr Campbell said: “The figures are similar to those I’ve obtained in the past. At that time I took it up with the university authorities who did indicate that they were aware of the matter.

“If you look at the wider North West society as a whole, the figures should be up towards the 25 to 28 per cent mark, so there is a significant gap.”

The East Londonderry MLA also said that, in the past, certain incidents had contributed to what some perceived as a ‘chill factor’ at Magee.

“I alluded to a whole range of issues that were coming up at the Magee campus around six or seven years ago,” he said.

“For example, there was one occasion when the Army Cadets had a stall and they were verbally abused. Now this would obviously have been off putting for students from a Protestant background.”

He acknowledged he hadn’t heard of any such incidents recently.

The University of Ulster told the Sentinel it was doing all it could do address under-representation.

A spokesperson said: “Ulster University is committed to providing an inclusive, high-quality teaching environment and we actively encourage students of all backgrounds and beliefs to study here.

“Places are offered to students who choose to apply to study at Ulster University and who then meet the necessary entry requirements.”

The DUP MLA also said more needed to be done to tackle the appallingly low level of Protestant working class boys going to university.

Back in 2012 this paper reported how just 25 Protestant boys in receipt of free school meals who attended non-grammar schools throughout Northern Ireland went to university in 2011.

There were even fewer (23) Protestant boys from deprived backgrounds who progressed from grammar schools to university.

Mr Campbell said: “That is one of the big issues. Protestant working class boys, particularly from deprived areas, aren’t attending universities in sufficient numbers.

“That is where the Colleges, the North West Regional College in Londonderry and the Northern College in Coleraine, need to ensure they intensify their course offering, targeted at people who may go on to university later as mature students.”

The Sentinel recently reported how far more Catholics (2,080) than Protestants (580) enrolled at the Magee Campus of the University of Ulster in Londonderry in 2012/13, according to the latest figures available.

There were also more students designated as either ‘Other’ or ‘Not Known’ at Magee than there were designated as Protestant in that year.