Cork principals: Leaving Cert ‘results only part of the jigsaw’

School principals have advised the 7,007 Cork students preparing to get the results of their Leaving Certificate tomorrow that there are many ways to get to where they want to be, regardless of the grades they get.

The principal of Coláiste Chríost Rí, Pádraig Mac an Rí, told The Echo that it was normal to be nervous.

“A certain amount of nerves and anxiety are guaranteed, mainly because students have put so much into the Leaving Cert and there’s an awful lot riding on it.

“The results are what they are at this stage, and we go to great lengths to teach that the Leaving Cert results are only part of the jigsaw,” he said.

“If they go with you on the day, that’s great. If not, there are many other pathways. Our guidance counsellors will be available on Friday to help the students and the parents — sometimes the parents can be more affected.”

Mr Mac an Rí explained students have been invited into the school tomorrow morning “to meet the teachers and have an outlet, because it can be a lonely experience opening them at home alone, especially if it doesn’t go the way they want.”

Coláiste Eamann Rís principal Aaron Wolfe said the school would be hosting a barbecue for students and their families to come in and celebrate.

“The hard work is done now, so students shouldn’t worry about the results because there’s no more you can do. It’s a great achievement just to have done the Leaving Cert,” he said.

“Those that are happy will be waiting for the CAO, and those that aren’t happy should talk to their guidance counsellors, but they also won’t know until they get CAO results — it will be an unusual year because the inflation the last couple of years made the grades higher.

“There’s so many different ways into third level now, it’s not like it used to be. You can look at lots of different further education courses, but Friday is about having done the Leaving Cert and celebrating that responsibly.”

Kieran Golden, the principal of Mayfield Community School, said the school would also be inviting students in tomorrow.

“We’ve reached out to all of them and invited them into the school to collect their results. If they come in, we’ll give them a cup of tea and go through it with them.”

He advised students that they should feel proud of themselves for having completed the exams, and that there were lots of alternative routes to get to where they wanted to be such as PLCs and the new tertiary access programme, encouraging them to get in touch with the school if they wanted support.

“For students and their parents, there’s the National Parents and Students Leaving Certificate helpline, that opens Friday and is for parents as well as the students themselves.”

The free service is funded by the Department of Education and Youth, and offers vital support to Leaving Certificate students and their parents and guardians when exam results and CAO offers are received.

Helpline guidance counsellors can provide support for issues such as calculating CAO points, rechecking examination results, accepting or deferring an offer, and what to do if a subject is failed.