What A Difference A Year Makes

Day 2,750, 06:41 • Published in Ireland Ireland • by AoifeNiBhriain

Hello everyone,

A year ago today I was preparing for the final exam which is held in RL Ireland. It is called the leaving certificate and it commands the majority of your attention for at LEAST two years of your life, and trust me, they are not a fun two years. A lot of those years are taken up with the following though:




Here are the basics to it:

There are 11 pass grades (A1, A2, B1, B2, B3, C1, C2, C3, D1, D2, D3) and 3 fail grades (E, F, N.G.). Many joke that N.G. stands for "natural genius" rather than "no grade"!

In higher level, an A1 is worth 100 points, an A2 is worth 90 and each result decreases by 5 points after that, down to a minimum of 45 for higher level. Similarly, in ordinary level an A1 is worth 60 marks and decreases in the same manner down to a minimum of 5 marks. Fail grades receive no marks

If you choose to sit higher level maths, you get a bonus 25 points so that and A1 is worth 125 marks, an A2 is worth 115 marks etc

You must sit English, Irish and Maths in your first L.C.

6 subjects are counted in your final results

Most students do 7 subjects




I worked incredibly hard for my L.C. so this was my experience with it:

Over the year of torture, you learn to take solace in the little things. It's all you can do to keep your spirits up to be honest! Between teachers giving you mountains of homework and study for in-class tests and the mock L.C. exams, free time becomes a mere myth. You're lucky if you get to see your friends outside of the ice-cold, unforgiving walls of your school. You forget what fun is and all that matters is getting that A1 (highest result you can get). You will cry, you will feel stupid and you will feel like all of your friends are studying more than you. Getting through the L.C. makes you a strong person to be frank!

Then come the exams... I'm not going to lie, they were a hell of a lot of fun. It is a strange thing but you become more relaxed and you just get on with it. It's a two week process in which the more popular subject choices are examined first with the less popular towards the end of the two weekds! These pink (higher level) and blue (ordinary level) papers are then sent off to the State Examinations Comission (S.E.C.) where they are given to the correctors and a marking scheme is drawn up. From here your papers are taken by an examiner and the process begins.



The correcting takes most of the summer and the marking scheme is changed to make sure everyone fits into the bell-shaped curve.



Eventually the day comes in mid-August where the results are released. You go to your school with your tail between your legs hoping you will get the points you need to secure a place in your desired college course.

Overall, I got 6 A1's and a B1 and scored 610 out of 625 points and I got a place in the course I had chosen. Also, I scored in the top .5% in Ireland for my results. It didn't come easily but after a year in college I know all the work was worth it.



One thing every real-life Irish person knows is; during the two weeks of the L.C. we have fine weather! So this year I hope the tradition stays true and I get to experience the relief of never having to do it again!



Thank you all for reading this. If you have any questions about the L.C. please leave a comment and I'll answer it to the best of my ability.


Bailíonn brobh beart.

A little gathers to a lot







Yours respectfully,
Aoife NiBhriain