If you ask any leaving cert students, past or present, they will likely tell you that they wished that they had some advice about the two years of study that the program entails.
With students being required to cover a minimum of six subjects, it can certainly become difficult to navigate your study. When time is constrained such as in the period leading up to the final leaving certificate examinations, this is amplified and students often find themselves struggling to sustain their study efforts.
Having an idea of what the program involves, the decisions that you will face throughout your study or even how to study are all things that can be nailed down in advance of commencing your fifth-year education at school. This means that you can allocate your time towards studying and ultimately attain a higher overall grade in the exams!
In this article I will provide an overall guide for students who are completing the leaving cert either in the future or at the present moment, deciding on their CAO application, trying to create a study plan to adhere to or simply trying to get as many points as they can out of their exams.
This guide should help students and parents get some more information on what courses or subjects they should be considering at the secondary school level after they've finished their Junior Cert. This sort of information will make you better prepared to go into the last chapter of your leaving cert and you should find yourself more prepared for the exam when the day rolls around!
This blog will help you to decide what subjects you choose to study.

Filling out your CAO application
Throughout your sixth year of secondary school, you will need to apply for PLC and college-level courses via the CAO application form. This may seem like a diversion or like wasted time when the workload piles up when you could be studying instead.
When completing your application, you should also consider all of your possibilities. You might discover a course in a field that you hadn't even thought about before your investigation that you are interested in. Additionally, you can come across a school or college outside of your intended commute radius.
It is crucial that you don't restrict yourself in what you choose to include in your CAO application form because this is an exciting moment in any student's life.
Leaving Cert students should not only spensed a lot of their time in 6th year preparing for their exams, but also ensuring that they have all the information on where and what they wish to study. Your leaving cert exams will help you to get the best out of yourself, so make the most of it and don’t just do it for your parents.
Have a scroll through this article on filling out your CAO application.
Creating Your Study Plan
In order to keep a consistent pattern while preparing for the leaving cert exams throughout your final two years of school, creating a feasible study plan is half the battle.
For students, preparing for the leaving certificate exams can be a difficult and stressful experience. Making a study plan is a fantastic approach to reducing some of this pressure.
Following a well-organized study plan can help you stay focused on the current task at hand rather than becoming side-tracked by thoughts about all the work you need to finish for a certain subject. You'll be held responsible for your study efforts as a result, which will ultimately result in a more effective study.
Make sure to include the exam paper within your study plan!
The practice of test-style questions should be prioritized since while possessing all the knowledge is one thing, being ready for the exam environments you will encounter in June is quite another.
Working through old exam papers is a great approach to getting a sense of the specific kinds of questions that students can expect to be asked.
Another resource that students might use to create even shorter notes is flashcards. Usually, 2-3 flashcards are enough to cover the most crucial information from each chapter.
Flashcards are a useful study tool that can help you refresh your memory as you prepare for the leaving cert exams and should certainly be included within your study plan!
Here is some information that will help you to form your leaving cert study plan.

Choosing the right subjects to study
Your choice of subjects is a huge decision that you will have to make when entering the senior cycle of education at school.
If you want to have any chance of keeping up a successful study schedule, it is crucial to study topics you are interested in.
Selecting subjects that play to your skills and preferred learning style is equally crucial. Consider the courses or positions that might result from continuing your education in the field after receiving your leaving certificate.
A student's performance on the exam may be significantly impacted by the Leaving Certificate topics and subjects that they select. Some of which are actually required for entrance to particular third-level courses.
At your school, you'll probably have the option of studying seven topics. Your best six grades from the Leaving Certificate or its equivalent will be combined to establish your point score for admission into college courses. As a result, as you choose to study more subjects, you will need to cover more material.
Make sure to pick a subject that best suits your level, the free time you have in your day and your interests. You should also consider your past exam results in the subject. You might also want to talk to your parents about your choice of subjects or courses in order to get the best possible guidance.
Maximising your points in the exams
Getting a high grade in the leaving cert exams is actually quite simple; you should begin by learning the fundamentals before expanding your knowledge by consulting extra sources.
You will of course need to make a carefully thought out study plan that you can adhere to in the long run!
Before examining the most crucial resource—your leaving cert books—students usually make the error of spending hundreds of euros on online courses and grinds.
It is imperative that students go through their leaving cert texts and evaluate their comprehension by responding to the questions for each chapter. This will guarantee that they are conversant with the chapter's material and assist the student in identifying their areas of weakness and better focusing their future learning.
The Leaving Certificate textbook is a reputable source that includes all subject matter that can be tested.
The leaving certificate subjects will provide you with a high level of information across a wider variety of topics over fifth and sixth year.
On the day of your leaving certificate exams, you will have to stay focused and make the most of your time inside the exam hall. Make sure to get as much information down on the exam paper as possible so that you can get the best grade possible.
Read more about how to jump up a few grades in your leaving cert exams here!

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Whether you want to brush up on your maths skills before starting college or find yourself behind on the material, there are some invaluable resources available to leaving cert students.
Perhaps one of the more effective resources, and also possibly the least adopted by students is availing of a personal tutor. A personal tutor can provide some much-needed clarity for students on how to study for the leaving cert.
This is often a difficult transition for students, but working through the more complex questions alongside a teaching professional can help students realise their weaknesses in the subject, allowing them to better target their future learning for their leaving cert exams.
Understanding what changes are being made to your subjects in the 2024 leaving cert amendments will help you better prepare for the exams.
Superprof is a community which comprises millions of tutors around the world. There is certainly no shortage of higher-level maths tutors available to leave cert students looking to maximise their CAO points.
The platform allows you to refine your search according to the background, hourly rate and proximity of the tutors that list their services in the area.
The number of leaving Cert teachers that offer their services within Ireland is also on the rise. It has never been easier to find a suitable tutor that suits your style of learning.
It can be difficult figuring out where to find the right leaving cert tutors to mentor you and help you along the way. Superprof serves to mitigate some of these concerns by matching you with an eligible community of teaching professionals to select from.
The right Leaving Cert teacher for you is only a few clicks away!