The vibrant Post Leaving Certificate sector will have about 20,000 places on offer to first-year entrants this autumn. In all, there are about 24,700 Post Leaving Certificate places.
Most PLCs are one-year full-time courses leading to a qualification awarded by the National Council for Vocational Awards. They are on offer in more than 200 schools and colleges throughout the State - in vocational, secondary, community and comprehensive schools, with the majority of courses on offer in the vocational sector.
PLCs fit somewhere between second-level and third-level; the colloquial term "two-and-a-half" level provides a fair description of where they sit in the educational spectrum. They grew out of the old secretarial-type course offered by technical colleges.
There are now more than 1,000 courses to choose from, ranging across disciplines as diverse as computing, pre-nursing, community care, horticulture, applied languages and teleservices, art and design. A list of approved courses and centres is available from the Further Education Section in the Department of Education and Science. (Tel: (01) 889 2428/889 2432).
Unfortunately, there is no central applications system for PLCs, even though the intake is now close to two-thirds of the intake into traditional colleges. So students must apply individually to each college: most colleges require an interview.
The educational standard required is Leaving Certificate or equivalent, with no points rating for students' performance. Popular courses tend to fill early and some colleges hold interviews in May. In the past, many students regarded these courses as a fall-back if they did not get the CAO offer they wanted. This, however, is no longer the case. So, Higher Options provides you with a wonderful opportunity to meet staff, and investigate opportunities, at a variety of Post Leaving Certificate colleges. Represented at the conference are colleges from Co Carlow, Co Cork, City of Dublin and Co Dublin VECs, Dun Laoghaire, Co Galway, Co Monaghan, Co Tipperary and Co Wicklow VECs.
And PLCs are not just for those with the traditional Leaving Certificate. As more students opt for the Leaving Certificate Applied, the PLC sector offers them a route to further, and, perhaps, higher education. LCA students may not apply directly for third-level.
There are no tuition fees for PLC courses, but students may have to pay for books, uniforms/clothing and equipment (items such as chef's uniforms or knives), students services, registration charges by professional bodies and exam fees. It costs £25 to register for certification by the NCVA but certification or registration with professional bodies may be more expensive. Inquire at interview.
PLC students are eligible to apply for means-tested maintenance grants, which are paid along the same lines as the current third-level students support scheme.
The main aim of the PLC sector is to prepare students directly for employment. However, a minority of courses are specifically designed to prepare students for further education or training. These include courses such as pre-apprenticeship, pre-nursing, and portfolio preparation courses. A survey of 1996/97 PLC graduates, carried out in 1998, shows that 64 per cent of graduates found work with 16 per cent in part-time jobs and the remainder in full-time employment. A further 36 per cent went on to further education or training. In all, 24 per cent proceeded to third-level colleges.
This year, there are 2,000 places set aside for NCVA level 2 holders on certificate and diploma courses in institutes of technology. These places are set aside for PLC graduates and are not open to school-leavers. PLC graduates may have to compete with each other for these places but they are not competing with Leaving Certificate students who secure places on the basis of points.
The Leaving Certificate is irrelevant for all of the institutes of technology other than the Dublin Institute of Technology which requires PLC students to have achieved the minimum educational standard in their Leaving Certificate. The situation in the DIT is currently under review. TO QUALIFY for an NCVA level 2 award, students must reach the required standard in eight modules. Places are then allocated on the basis of students' performance - three points for a distinction, two for a merit and one for a pass.
Colleges rank students on the basis of their cumulative scores. There is a slight variation in treatment here in that some colleges total points for their best eight modules while others allow students to add up points for eight-plus.
Unfortunately, there still seems to be some confusion surrounding this links scheme. In all cases, students must have completed eight NCVA level 2 modules, and achieved a full certificate, to be considered for one of the reserved places. A high proportion of applicants are found to be ineligible because they do not have eight modules.
Students who are considering using a PLC as a route to third-level should do their homework now. Get a copy of the NCVA's Guide to the Higher Education Links Scheme (Tel: (01) 837 2211). This sets out the linkages. So, for instance, students who do an interior design PLC (code AIDXX) may apply for reserved places on Sligo IT's national diploma in design (industrial design; course code SG232).
In some cases, the third-level college may specify a particular module. For instance, to be eligible for one of the places on Tallaght IT's national certificate in mechanical engineering (TA005) you must have an NCVA level 2 certificate in control technology (CCTXX) or engineering technology (CENGT). The certificate must include the mathematical methods module C20038. So, students must check particular module requirements as well as the course title and linkage.
