Advice for teenagers post Leaving Cert

The days and weeks after the Leaving Cert results can be an exciting time for many young people, having secured their third level place its time to start planning for college life. The relief and joy that comes with securing your place in third level is followed by the need to quickly begin planning for the year ahead.

For others, there will be disappointment if they are not offered their first preference course. This can be a very challenging situation to find yourself in, however, there are many options that students can choose to pursue, which thankfully means that not getting enough points does not necessarily mean they will not be able to pursue their chosen profession.

Planning for the year ahead

Beginning third level education can be daunting for many students. One of the biggest challenges is moving away from the comfortable structures of second level where students have their friends, are familiar with all of their teachers and have the structure of a consistent daily timetable.

When beginning third level, the many changes in how colleges operate can take a while for students to become familiar with.

Also, friends will begin different courses, meaning that students will meet many new people over the coming weeks. This is a great opportunity to make new friends, but for many it can be stressful and uncomfortable initially and may take more time to settle into their new surroundings.

Throughout this time, it is important that young people are patient with themselves and seek support if needed.

The challenges of keeping up with college work, developing new social circles, and navigating new surroundings, which are often considerably bigger than their secondary school, can result in young people feeling frustrated and overwhelmed.

It is important to allow time to get used to all of these factors and take a day by day approach at the beginning.

One of the most important things that first year college students must do is try to keep up to date with coursework as this can quickly build up and cause stress. Being more used to daily homework it can take time to plan properly to ensure that assignments with longer deadlines are planned for and approached correctly.

How to Manage Disappointment

Unfortunately for some Leaving Cert students, there will be disappointment. It can be very difficult for young people and their families to navigate the emotions when they don’t reach their goal.

Setbacks are a normal part of life and for some young people their Leaving Cert results can be a major setback in their plans initially.

Students facing these challenges need a lot of support and encouragement. They need parents to remain calm and help them to see a way through the hurt and disappointment initially but also to help them to plan what they are going to do next. Thankfully, there are many different options open to students, so it’s important not to panic and take a look at what alternative options are available.

If you’re not successful in the first round of offers, students may be offered a place in subsequent rounds, however while waiting for this, students can begin planning other options. Some of the routes that some of my students have successfully taken are:

Doing a PLC course; Colleges of further education offer a wide variety of excellent courses. If you do your research many of these courses provide a pathway to university courses. One of the lesser-known benefits of doing one of these courses is that you will be working towards a third level qualification with a lot of support. This can be very beneficial to students who go on to university.

Repeating the Leaving Cert; Although this is not an ideal solution for many people as the thought of having to complete the Leaving Cert year all over again is not pleasant, for some students who are determined to get the points for certain courses this can be the best option. 

The benefit of repeating the leaving cert is that students know where they need to improve and what to expect over the course of the year.

Taking a year out. I have noticed over recent years more students choosing to take a year out to work, travel or volunteer before beginning third level. Students who choose this option often reapply to third level the following year. They also have gained valuable experience and maturity over the year and enter third level better equipped to handle the challenges they will face.

Regardless of the outcome of the leaving cert results there are two very important things that students need to remember.

The first is that there are many pathways to success and if you are flexible in how you approach your future you will be successful in pursuing your chosen profession.

The second is that there is no rush, you are young there is time to find your way as long as you persist and do your best.