THE principal of Douglas Community School has hailed his students as "great ambassadors" following their terrific set of results in the Leaving Certificate.

Douglas Community School had seven students achieve over 600 points with two of their pupils receiving the maximum 625 points tally. This culminated in the vast majority of their pupils getting their first choice course when the CAO offers were made on Tuesday afternoon.

Pat Barry the principal of Douglas Community School was pleased their hard work paid off. 

“It was a very proud day as they are brilliant ambassadors for the school. It was lovely to see them all smiling after getting their CAO offers. It is great to see their hard work over the last six years being rewarded,” he said.

Mr Barry said a lot of the courses his students now intend to study at third level have been heavily influenced by the teachers in the school. 

“A lot of the courses they chose have been influenced by the teachers they had in the school who left a lasting impression on them. It was a great achievement for the school to have two students achieve 625 points and have seven students get over 600 points. This represents around 7.4% of our cohort and this is almost double what it is nationally.” 

The school principal said the hard work from the teachers in the school can often be the difference between a student getting their first choice course or not. 

“We are lucky we are blessed with an exceptionally talented and dedicated bunch of teachers. We have teachers who are always trying to get that extra bit out of the students. These things can often be the difference between a grade or two,” he added.

Nationally there was a significant rise in the points requirement for most third-level courses this year. Despite the points rise, there was good news for many Douglas Community School students.

Ethan O’Mahony who got 625 points in his Leaving Certificate was offered his first choice course at UCC. He will be studying Physics and Astrophysics. He is looking forward to getting started. 

“I got my first choice course. I am delighted. I’m really excited about starting college.” 

Alex McMullen who garnered 601 points in the Leaving Certificate was offered his first choice course in Commerce at UCC. The Cork student praised Douglas Community School for their expert help. “I can’t wait to get started. It will be a new adventure. Douglas Community School is a great school. The teachers are always so friendly and helpful. I wouldn’t have done as well without them.” 

Another happy student was Aaron Pamment who was offered his first choice course studying Biological and Chemical Sciences at UCC after achieving 602 points. He said last year was ‘tough’ for everyone. “It was tough for everyone, the pupils, parents, and teachers. We missed out on a lot of learning throughout the year. I have great memories of my six years at Douglas Community School. It is the best school in Cork.” 

Rory Coughlan who got 590 points in his Leaving Certificate wasn’t offered his first choice despite achieving the required points tally. He was offered his second choice course however in Genetics at UCC. “I got enough points but I lost out on the ladder system which is a random selection of the people who got the points. I got my second choice course which I am happy about. I can’t wait to start now. It will be a great experience.” 

Sean Barrett who achieved 613 points in the Leaving Certificate is looking forward to studying Biological and Chemical Sciences at UCC. “I am really happy. I have always been interested in science and UCC has really good science facilities. I am looking forward to getting going.”