Leaving Cert business: Largely fair paper with a tough compulsory question
‘A good, balanced paper allowing students to display their knowledge’
Students
Stories related to third level students
Leaving Certificate Applied: ‘If you’re a more practical person, it is really good’
Reduced emphasis on exams can suit some students
A graduate’s story: ‘Supporting a mentee takes enormous time, patience and generosity’
My mother’s work to improve access to neurorehabilitation services for patients has been a source of inspiration to me
How graduates can ‘clean up’ their social media and stand out to recruiters
‘In the world of AI, employers want to see the authentic student voice coming through’
Irish J1 students: ‘They did actually reject the visa until they could review all my social media’
Demand for visas has remained ‘strong’ despite students’ safety concerns
Leaving Cert history: ‘Very challenging’ paper with few predicted staples
No major shocks, but very few questions that could be described as highly predictable
Leaving Cert French exam gets mixed reaction from teachers: ‘Odd, challenging, balanced’
Some feel the higher-level paper was accessible and fair, but others think it contained tricky vocabulary
A graduate’s story: ‘I felt uncertain about whether to start working or continue studying’
I chose a master’s in sustainable finance because I felt it aligned with where the future is heading
The experts’ view: What does a graduate programme offer and how is AI changing the game?
Graduate programmes provide support and certainty but they don’t represent the entire graduate jobs market
Leaving Cert biology paper contains mistake that may have caught out students
State Examinations Commission apologises for error, which will be taken into account in marking
Leaving Cert Irish paper two contained more challenging unseen elements than in previous years
Prose and poetry questions were approachable but some of the reading comprehensions may have been challenging
What ‘soft skills’ are and why they’re more important than ever
Skills like critical thinking, creativity and problem solving allow a graduate to stand out from their peers
Graduate to professional: 10 organisations offering paid programmes in Ireland
EY, Boston Scientific and Irish Distillers are among businesses and agencies offering paid graduate programmes
Sophie should be doing her Junior Cert exams, but instead she’s sorting out her wardrobe
Mother of student with dyslexia made the difficult decision that her daughter shouldn’t sit the exams
What sort of workforce are graduates entering, and what do they need to know?
AI means the employment environment is changing, but there are indications of resilience in the graduate jobs market
Rise in Irish exemptions denies children part of their identity, report says
Spiralling exemptions are being driven by increased diagnosis of learning disabilities such as dyslexia, says report
Leaving Cert: Happier Monday for students following Maths paper two
Hopefully, Leaving Cert students who left school halls drained and miserable last Friday after the higher-level maths paper were a little happier following the second paper
Leaving Cert Irish paper one: Students glad to see predicted topics
Ordinary-level Leaving Cert Irish paper considered fair, manageable and accessible for students
Leaving Cert maths paper two gets far more positive response from students
Jean Kelly, a maths teacher, said that the ordinary-level paper was fair, modern and thoughtfully designed
Hairdresser to HR, biochemistry to accountant: Choose the career you want, not the one you think you should have
Afraid you have made the ‘wrong’ choice? Don’t worry – there are ways to change direction
A graduate’s story: ‘I led the world’s biggest pilot of the four-day working week’
From Galway students’ union to Toronto, via New York – I’ve learned so much from working with some of the most innovative people and companies
Siblings at exam time: ‘You will be unfairly treated... When it’s your turn the same will apply to you’
Psychotherapist Colman Noctor would much prefer to see a child approaching the exams in a ‘chilled’ fashion, rather than ‘stressed out of it’
Last-minute tips ahead of the Leaving Cert Irish exams
Irish teacher Hugh Gallagher suggests it’s better to stick to simple, accurate sentences when writing answers, as opposed to more complex ones, where mistakes can occur
Sex-for-rent demands in Ireland: ‘You can sleep with me or I’m not going to help you’
Maria’s story is a snapshot of the situations many international students, migrants and women face in Ireland’s ‘precarious’ housing market
U2’s Adam Clayton and others on their boarding school days: ‘Being separated from the age of 8 was a trauma’
How do famous former boarders view their time at school now?
Leaving Cert: ‘It requires a lot of mental energy to sit a full exam paper’
Kat Ruane (18) has ADHD and dyspraxia, and finds it hard to manage the timings of exams
Leaving Cert: It’s time to relax, recover and recharge
Okay, it was a short week, but it probably didn’t feel like that for anyone sitting the tests.
Leaving Cert maths, paper one: A song and dance about a bum note
Students were generally relieved with an approachable higher-level maths paper one, but the element of choice allowed them to swerve trickier questions, teachers said.
Leaving Cert geography: Students generally pleased but some difficult questions
Students sitting the Leaving Certificate geography exams were happy with a paper that rewarded preparation while avoiding unexpected questions, teachers have said
Leaving Cert: ‘You just have to go with the child that’s in front of you’
When it comes to our Junior Cycle students, it’s all about continued support and motivation
Leaving Cert: ‘If I don’t do good, then it maybe sets a tone for the rest of my siblings’
Momin Bari is studying seven higher-level subjects and also French at ordinary level
Leaving Cert English paper two a ‘thought-provoking’ paper with ‘no curveballs’
Paper two challenged candidates but was ‘manageable’, teachers say
Fiachna Ó Braonáin’s Leaving Cert: ‘I stayed up very late at night, drinking coffee and cramming’
The musician and broadcaster sat the exams in the summer of 1984
The Leaving Cert according to a guidance counsellor: ‘Their brains have been working so hard ... they need to get fresh air’
Guidance counsellor says students should focus ‘on what they know’ rather than what they feel they do not
The Leaving Cert is dense, demanding and far superior to the UK’s A-levels
With its seven, maybe eight subjects, the Leaving Cert cherishes the value of the generalist. In the UK, a 16-year-old may be studying just three
Leaving Cert home economics paper was ‘unpredictable and will leave some with mixed emotions’
‘Accessible’ higher level paper ‘fully aligned with the syllabus’ across ‘wide range of topics’
Leaving Cert: One down, half-a-dozen or so days to go
Thank you to each of the students, parents and teachers who have shared their views with us
My Leaving Cert: ‘Remembering the fun, very silly, happy-go-lucky people we were is like a warm hug’
Erin McGreehan, TD for Louth
Leaving Cert: ‘Even though it’s foundation maths it’s still very stressful’
Grace McNamara (18) is hoping to do well in English and history
Number sitting Leaving Cert climbs to record level
Over the Leaving Cert, Leaving Cert Applied and Junior Cert, 146,553 candidates will sit their exams
Leaving Cert: Just one more sleep to go
Classroom to College: If you are a student, parent or teacher, we have the news, views and information for you
‘Kids after Leaving Cert English look punch drunk’: teacher has his say ahead of ‘tough’ first exam
Sheer amount of handwriting required in answers can make heads – and hands – ache
‘I’m going to do medicine’: Student who left school in second year now aiming for top LC points
Kayleigh Quinn says a comment from a psychiatrist pushed her to do the Junior Cycle exams, which has now led to tackling the Leaving
My Leaving Cert: The school secretary took me to lost property and kitted me out with a new uniform
Author Liz Nugent sat her Leaving Certificate in 1985 and still has nightmares about it
Leaving Cert: How can you, or your child, best get through the next fortnight?
More than 100,000 households begin the Junior Cert and Leaving Cert exams this week. Yes, we said it, because if one person is sitting the June exams, everyone in the family is.
Leaving Cert: ‘I would much rather wear my comfy clothes’ in the exam hall
Eoin Murphy found you sometimes can’t win as a Leaving Cert student, such as when you get too much sun
My Leaving Cert: ‘I was upset with a performance anxiety-related false start’
Fionnuala Moran, broadcaster, sustainability influencer and DJ
Leaving Cert: 10 tips for parents supporting an exam student this month
Pointers on how best to help and encourage a son or daughter in what can be a stressful period
Leaving Cert and diabetes: ‘I used to be going constantly in and out of class, going to the first aid room’
Danny Goff is the eldest child in his house - a positive and a negative when it comes to exam pressure
‘There’s no way I’m going to the US now’: Irish students choose Europe over J1 for summer jobs
Many Leaving Cert and third-level students plan to seek work on the Continent, not the United States, this summer. What are their options?
Inside a Quaker-ethos secondary school in Ireland: ‘There is a high expectation of good behaviour’
There are currently 86 boarders in Newtown School in Waterford City, with more than half from abroad
Are there opportunities for students to explore entrepreneurship while studying?
Across Irish universities there is a growing focus on helping students test ideas, solve real-world problems and, in some cases, develop start-ups
‘You can’t force people to stay’: How to stop the exodus of Irish medical graduates?
Last year, 630 Irish doctors got visas to work in Australia, this year so far it’s 437. A senior medic says the numbers leaving are ‘off the charts’
Newly-qualified doctors could have college fees paid in bid to stem numbers moving abroad
Reduction would be in return for doctors agreeing to work in Irish health service for set period
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