The lead-up to February 1st each before the Leaving Cert can be highly nerve-wracking for students. A lot of that pressure comes from the CAO form.
Students feel immense pressure at the age of 17-18 to know precisely what career path they wish to follow for the rest of their life before filling out this form, not only that, but they also have to ensure they are reaching high enough grades to meet the 'points' set by individual colleges for specific courses. All of which have to be done before you even sit an exam.
Giving yourself credit when you complete a task and trying to focus on things you can control can help when it comes to managing exam stress and anxiety when studying for your Leaving Cert.
With this amount of adult decision-making put on teenagers without any real-life experience, it's no wonder 'mental health problems including anxiety and depression affects one in ten young Irish people'. - Mental Health Ireland
In this post, we are going to explore the other options available to students, what's out there if the CAO points don't go the right way or, if you just don't know what you want to do with the rest of your life at 17. Because that's completely fine and you have lots of options!
Private College Alternatives Don't Always Require CAO Points
What a lot of students don't consider is the fact that they don't have to get CAO points or even fill out the CAO form to apply to every college.
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There are several other options:
Firstly there are a number of private or independent colleges, which offer programmes for which students may apply directly to the college involved. Each private college or university will have a list of qualifications similar to the ones below which have been taken from Trinity College Dublin.
- Meet the minimum matriculation requirements.
- Meet the age requirement.
- Meet English language requirements.
- Students whose first language is not English, or who do not have a pass in English in their recognised school system, must display a high level of competence in the English language.
- Satisfy course-specific requirements
- Some courses will have additional requirements for admission. They will be detailed on the relevant course page at www.tcd.ie/courses.
- Satisfy any additional requirements or restrictions as detailed in the sections on the above-linked page.
- Meet competitive standards for admission to the course.
- Please note that posted scores are minimum entrance requirements only and do not guarantee admission. Where places are competitive, a student must have excellent examination results to qualify for a place on their preferred course.
Why Not Try a QQI Course before Committing to 4 Years at University?
The minimum academic qualifications for these courses are normally five passes at Leaving Certificate. These courses are designed as a step towards skilled employment and, are closely linked to industry and its needs. However, that's not all there are courses in Colleges of Further Education which are linked to Universities meaning you can sample the first part of the course and continue on in a Uni if you do well and enjoy it.
In the last 3-5 years Further Education Colleges have taken the game and changed the rules!
Not only do they help you make up valuable CAO points lost so you can take you're original course later, but they also offer an array of courses.
Further Education Colleges offer:
- Link courses
- Traineeships
- Apprenticeship Programmes
- Post Leaving Cert CAO courses
- QQI mature student courses (over 23)
- Some colleges even offer support to those who need help getting into their programmes.
I highly recommend creating a study timetable. It means that your whole day isn't taken up deciding what subject to revise and when.
The Difference Between a Traineeship and a QQI Course
So a lot of people think when you go to a college of further education you can only do a level 5 0r 6 QQI course and that's where your options end, but I'm here to tell you differently.
Yes, you can do a QQI let's explore that a little shall we?
What Exactly is a QQI Course?
A QQI course (sometimes called a PLC) is usually a full-time course for post-secondary students that last from one to two years. They are held in usually held in Colleges of Further Education (CFEs) in smaller towns or villages they may take place in the community college.
This type, of course, is great for someone who is looking to gain skills in a specific area, or who is still trying to decide what sort of job or university degree could be best suited to them.
These courses tend to be targeted toward specific jobs. About half of your time on the course is spent on knowledge and training directly related to employment. You will also have the opportunity to go on work experience as part of the course, giving you hands-on experience in a job you’re interested in.
HELS gives learners the opportunity to use their QQI Level 5 or 6 major awards to apply, through the CAO, for a place in the first year of a higher education programme. Linked awards, special requirements and available higher education programmes are published by the admissions office of the individual higher education institution and on cao.ie.
The Higher Education Links Scheme (HELS) allows further education learners with specific awards to advance onto a wide range of third-level courses in most of Ireland’s universities and institutes of technology.
What is a Traineeship?
Traineeships are courses that vary in duration up to 20 months, with a minimum of 30 per cent on-the-job learning. They’re specifically aimed at someone who needs a particular qualification for a particular job, and that person could be a school leaver or someone who is looking to make a career move.
Traineeships are available in the following areas (some schools have extra ones not on this list):
- Animal Science
- Business
- Care
- Construction
- Fashion & Beauty
- Finance
- Hospitality
- Media
- Retail
- Sports and Leisure
- Tourism
STEM courses are becoming increasingly popular! But the classics like Medicine and Accounting still remain popular among the Leaving Cert applicants for 2023.
Over 75 programmes are available nationally in a range of industries with new Traineeships being developed on an ongoing basis by ETBs.
Traineeships:
- Lead to an award at NFQ Levels 4-6, or equivalent.
- Are between 6-20 months in duration.
- Include at least 30% of learning on the job.
- Combine transversal and technical skills development.
- Are designed for flexible delivery – online, face-to-face, and blended learning.
- Provide open access to prospective trainees, unemployed people may be eligible for income support.
- Respond to an identified industry skills need.
I hope this post provides you with a little relief in the knowledge that your future does not revolve around one form.
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