A leading English academic has criticised Irish colleges which are awarding increasing numbers of students top-class degrees.

According to the latest figures available from the graduating year 2008, third-level institutions such as DCU are awarding up to 20% of their graduating students a first class degree, formerly the academic gold standard.

The usual percentage of students who receive firsts in their courses is normally in the region of between 8-14%, depending on the size of the institution.

Professor Alan Smithers, director for the English Centre for Education and Employment Research, has said the Irish government should tackle the issue as it is leading to employers "not taking top-class degrees as seriously anymore".

"Employers need to be able to trust the degree results in front of them. This is something for the Irish government to look into. They need to analyse the effect this is all having on their educational international reputation," he said.

Smithers is currently reviewing the degree award classification systems in the UK after what he says is a worrying rise in the amount of English universities handing out top degrees.

He is currently lobbying for a new "A plus" system which he says will "restore the prestige of the top level qualifications".

According to Smithers, university officials are taking advantage of the figures to increase their rankings in league tables.

"The use of a certain column in the league table which shows how many firsts and 2:1s are being given out are affecting the figures; this is one of the reasons for the high rates. I have been at meetings with other universities who quite simply have said, 'If we had 5% more students with firsts and 2:1s we would be eight places ahead of that other university."'

UCD associate professor in History Michael Laffan said the high figures do not correspond with an increase in student ability.

He also said he believes many academics are not grading rigorously enough, and have even been instructed by external examiners in the past to "grade easier".

"We are now seeing some very poor standard students doing masters courses where they would not have been before.

"We are also seeing a huge number of foreign students coming in, raising serious concerns about their ability as a lot of them need to be taught remedial English. A review into classifications might be a way forward now," he said.

Degrees of success: 2006-'07 graduates who received firsts

Dublin City University 20%

NUI Galway 18%

University College Cork 18%

University of Limerick 16%

Trinity College Dublin 14 %

NUI Maynooth 13%