THE had 400 points in the Leaving Cert and an offer of a business studies degree in the DIT and her mother said she was thinking of repeating.
Why? To try for a place in business studies at DCU which requires 410 points.
Sometimes it seems to this column that it is not just that people want a degree place anymore, but they want a particular degree in a particular college and they become fixated with this to such an extent that they lose all sense of perspective on the wider range of choices.
The DIT business studies degree is a very good degree course. The notion that anyone with such a good course on offer and with 400 points already under their belt should subject themselves to the rigours of the Leaving Cert all over again is extraordinary - and simply to do another business course on the other side of the city.
We spoke to another student who was thinking of repeating for a computer degree course and who almost by accident told us at the end of the conversation that he had an offer of a certificate/diploma in computing at Waterford RTC. He had, in other words, a place on offer in a college which ranks among the top three in computing - and with the chance to advance to a one year follow on degree in the fourth year - and he was going to turn it down to repeat the Leaving.
It is clear to Points Race that far more students fail to get a college place because of snobbery than because of not getting the points. There are thousands of students holding perfectly good degree and RTC cert/diploma offers at the moment who are toying with turning them down out of sheer ignorance and prejudice.
It is quite simply not true that a degree necessarily provides the best career and employment opportunities. Sure, if you want to be a lawyer, a teacher, a doctor or a vet there is not alternative to a degree and there are dozens of very good and rewarding general university degrees on offer. But it is not the case that a degree in itself will automatically be more attractive to employers.
Science is a good example. Figures produced each year by the Higher Education Authority show the job placement rate is actually better for students coming out with a diploma in science from an RTC/DIT course than it is for students graduating with a degree in science. Indeed, each year a number of students with university degrees in science end up going on to a one year RTC diploma afterwards to provide them with a practical job qualification.
That is not to say that students with a good honours university science degree and post graduate qualifications do not do very well indeed they do. But there are also plenty of students who come out with a mediocre degree and their prospects can be quite limited.
The same can apply to university arts graduates. Students who get a good honours degree will usually do well. But there are also hundreds of students who come out with pretty average arts degrees and they are as confused about their career direction and job prospects after graduation as they were before going to college.
The moral here is to stop and think before automatically turning down that DIT or RTC certificate/diploma place offer. Many of them offer very good career opportunities, many also offer an alternative route to a degree through the follow on degree system. So, in turning down a cert/ diploma place, an applicant may also be turning down the opportunity of getting a degree.
. FOLLOW ON DEGREES
AN RTC two year certificate course can, in many cases, be seen as the first of three stages on the road to a degree. After completing the two years the student advances to a one year diploma course; and on successful completion of this, there is the opportunity to advance to a one year follow on degree, so over four years - five in engineering - the student graduates with a degree.
This is a relatively new development and one with which probably all students and their parents are not familiar. Other RTCs offer the possibility of transfer into degree courses in universities such as UCC UCG UL, DCU and British and Northern Ireland universities.
As these avenues of progression are not always evident from the CAO handbook, Points Race has compiled a list of the follow on degree courses currently available in the different RTCs - and remember that graduates of diploma courses in any RTC or DIT are eligible to apply for these, you do not have to restrict yourself to the college where you did your diploma.
. Athlone RTC: Tourism and Hospitality; Software Engineering; Toxicology; Business Studies; Applied Chemistry Accounting and Finance.
. Carlow RTC: Industrial Biology; Production Technology; Software Engineering; Business Studies (services marketing). There is also a joint degree programme with Essex University: a BSc in Physics - physical optoelectronics and a BSc in Chemistry - environmental and industrial chemistry.
. Cork RTC: Analytical Chemistry with quality assurance; Biomedical Sciences (jointly with UCC); Applied Physics and Instrumentation; Business Studies; Structural Engineering/Civil Engineering.
. Dundalk RTC: Commercial Computing; Business Studies; Product Design; Engineering; Building Surveying.
. Galway RTC: Business Studies; Software Development; Furniture Technology; Digital and Software Systems Engineering.
. Letterkenny RTC: Business Studies (general/marketing/accounting).
. Limerick RTC: Information Technology; Fine Art; Design.
. Sligo RTC: Quality Assurance; Civil Engineering; Social Studies; Computing; Business Studies; Environmental Science; Environmental Chemistry.
. Tallaght RTC: Computing (information technology); Business Studies (accounting/management/marketing with languages - German/French/Spanish/Japanese; Manufacturing Engineering. These degree courses are all also available part time by night, so students who take up a job after their diploma could still lake a degree through part time study.
. Tralee RTC: Computing; Information Systems Management; Business Studies (marketing/accounting).
. Waterford RTC: Business and Financial Studies; Recreation and Leisure; Computer Aided Manufacturing; Applied Chemistry with quality management; Computing (commercial software development).
These are all fully recognised degree courses validated through the National Council for Educational Awards (NCEA). And by any definition they represent an attractive package of degree courses.
Places in degree courses business/marketing and languages in universities very high points for example. In Tallaght RTC, students successfully complete a certificate/diploma course can do additional year to end up such a degree through the follow on system.
Would it not make sense, therefore, for the student with a certificate place on offer in business/marketing and languages - in any RTC - to take up this offer and set their sights on the follow on degree?
Then there are the computing degrees. We all know that job opportunities are very good in computing at the moment and points for many computer courses went up this year. Points Race has spoken to many students who were disappointed in their quest for a computer degree course as a result.
If you have an offer of a certificate/diploma course, why no take it up with a view to progressing to a computer degree in either Waterford, Tralee. Tallaght, Limerick, Dundalk Galway, Athlone or Carlow RTCs? These follow on degrees were put in place precisely in order to produce additional skilled people to fill the new jobs being created in the software industry.