I was lost. I held the CAO form in my hands, but I didn’t really have an idea of what I wanted to do. Like a lot of people, I put down arts in UCD as my first choice. It seemed reasonably broad and I had an interest in studying geography.
I knew it wasn’t quite right for me, so I went to a private career guidance counsellor to get some advice. I did a number of aptitude tests, and the results were that I was much better suited to a maths-based course, such as engineering.
I’d always loved maths, even though I fell into ordinary level for Junior Cert. Engineering felt like the right fit for me, but I didn’t want to have to repeat my Leaving before I’d even sat it.
The adviser found a really good route for me through DIT, where I could access it through a one-year, Level 6 preliminary engineering course, which would open up the option of going on to a Level 8 degree course. I made the change on the Level 6 and 7 section of my form. I’m so happy with my decision. I love the college, I have become really involved in student life and I’m chairwoman of the Engineering Society.
Looking to the future, I would really like to work in biomedical engineering. It’s an area that I really love and it also happens to have very good job prospects.
My advice to students: don’t rule out a course because you haven’t got the right subjects, or because you aren’t sitting the higher-level paper.
There are many ways of getting into that course you want without having to repeat, so make sure you do your research.
This entry route has since changed, but students can enter a general engineering course at Level 7 in DIT and progress on to Level 8.
