Women account for two-thirds of new Gozitan students

Gozitan women account for a staggering 68.3% of the 448 new students hailing from Gozo, compared with their counterparts which form 55.4% of new university entrants from Malta.

The academic success of Gozitan womn contributes to the higher representation of Gozitans at university.

13.2% of students who enrolled at university this year hail from the island of Gozo, which accounts for just 7% of Malta's population.

But while Gozitan women account for 16% of the female students who enrolled at university this year, Gozitan men only account for 10% of new male students at university.

The Gozitan locality of Xewkija also boasts the second highest proportion of new university students as a percentage of its population among towns and villages with a population of more than 2,000.

Numerically, Mosta accounts for the highest number of new students (216) but when the population size of each town is taken in to account, this locality is surpassed by nine other localities.

These include four Gozitan, and six Maltese, localities.

Six of the least represented localities - namely Marsa, Birgu, Bormla, Isla, Valletta and Floriana - border the Grand Harbour.

Only 23 students out of 3,395 hail from the three cities of Birgu, Bormla and Isla. 

Males outnumber females in only 11 out of 91 localities. Apart from Gozo, the highest predominance of females is found in Mellieha, where females account for a staggering 68.3% of new students hailing from this northern locality.

On the other hand, male and female students are equally represented among new entrants from Swieqi and Attard.

Women also predominate in most university courses except engineering, science, theology and architecture. And they are in the majority when it comes to law, medicine, arts, dentistry, economics and education.

The highest number of women is found in the Faculty of Education, where they account for an impressive 79%, while the highest predominance of men is found in engineering, where they account for 77%.

Three other Gozitan localities feature among the top ten localities.