IF first and second round offers have passed you by, you may be thinking of repeating your Leaving Certificate. If you have got an offer of a college place but it was not your first or second preference, it is an even more difficult decision. Fr John Dunne, president of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors, advises students with a CAO or CAS offer to take a very hard look at it. There is a formal route from certificate to diploma to degree, he says.
"Be very careful about foolish rumours about the value of courses. Be very careful of snobbery. This is your life - not somebody else's," he adds.
If you do not have an offer, Fr John Dunne suggests you look to the Post Leaving Certificate sector as there are places reserved on certificate and diploma courses in the regional technical colleges and the Dublin Institute of Technology for students with NCVA qualifications.
The first thing to do if you're thinking of repeating the Leaving Certificate is to assess your potential honestly. Did you work hard over the past two years? Do your results reflect your potential or could you do better with a little work?
In spite of the difficulties, repeating can be a good choice for students who genuinely have not put in the work. Each year there is a group of students who may have experienced health, personal or family problems and for whom a repeat year is a vital option.
Fr Dunne says that, if a student is very sure of what he or she wants, repeating may help them to gain the necessary points.
Having decided to repeat, students must now choose between staying in the same school or moving to a new environment. The main advantage of staying in the same school is that you know the set-up. However, Fr Dunne is of the opinion that it is not a good idea. "It is too hard to break old habits that did not work, as the results show," he says.
Where you repeat may be governed by finances and where you live. Fees in private colleges can be as high as £2,000 whereas State-funded colleges tend to charge the fees set by the Department of Education (£100 course fee and £125 exam fee) and, possibly, a small fee for photocopying, registration or other extras. Moving away from home would involve substantial added expense.
Prospective students should check the range of subjects offered by the college and whether adequate class time is allocated to each subject. They should also check the availability of facilities for practical subjects such as art, science and home economics. Class size is also important.
Students must decide which subjects to re-sit. Points cannot be accumulated over two Leaving Certificates but basic subject requirements can he.
Mr Jim Doherty, acting head of Repeat Leaving Certificate courses at Ringsend Technical Institute in Dublin, says students must juggle matriculation, faculty and points requirements. Ringsend, like many repeat colleges, interviews all candidates so each case can be discussed individually.
What about taking up a new subject? Mr Doherty says that there are some obvious choices such as applied maths for students who are already taking honours maths and physics. However, he says students should be wary of folklore about "easy" subjects.
Apart from the potential points gain, many students benefit enormously from their repeat year. The extra year gives them time to mature emotionally and socially. Mr Doherty says that, usually, students' ability to handle college is much improved.
