Once upon a time there was a heart-broken young student who wanted to work as a physiotherapist. She didn't get a place on any of the degree courses in Ireland for which she had applied and she was sorely disappointed. Her heart had been set on a degree course but, thanks to advice from a wise, old guidance counsellor, she had also applied for a two-year certificate course at Carlow IT. She was offered a place and she accepted it.

After completing this applied physiology and health science course, she transferred to a degree course at the UU Jordanstown in Northern Ireland. She graduated two years ago and her career has taken off. She has worked in St Vincent's General Hospital in Dublin but is currently based in Australia. The world is now her oyster and she will, hopefully, live happily ever after.

This is just one scenario where a student was not blinkered by the "degree or nothing syndrome." Many students ignore the certificate and diploma courses on offer in most ITs and other third-level colleges. If "degree" isn't in the title, students tend to turn their noses up at the CAO offer. By doing so, they limit their options.

The certificate course at Carlow IT gives students a chance to pursue career options in a range of paramedical areas such as sports medicine, nursing science, PE, radiography, dietetics / nutrition, occupational therapy, speech therapy, radiography, psychology and physiology. It also provides students with an avenue into third-level colleges outside of Ireland.

Many add-on degree options are available in Irish colleges. It's not always necessary to go outside of Ireland to pursue a career.

At Tallaght IT, for example, students can progress from a two-year certificate in applied chemistry to a one-year add-on diploma in analytical chemistry to a further one-year add-on degree in applied chemistry. This means that students can acquire an honours B Sc in the same time as it would take them if they had begun a degree from the start.

One student wanted to do medicine or science but missed DIT's science degree by five points. She was offered places in Tallaght IT and NUI Maynooth. She opted for Tallaght because she lived nearby. Since then, she has progressed directly from certificate to diploma to degree and now wants to continue her studies in organic or environmental chemistry at postgraduate level - a PhD is her ultimate goal.

Students who refuse a place on a certificate or a diploma course may be shooting themselves in the foot. Apart from leading on to a degree, a certificate or a diploma is a valuable qualification in its own right.

Take a look at the list of add-on degree options below. Some of the courses, such as the bachelor of engineering in electronic engineering, the bachelor of engineering in mechanical engineering and the bachelor of science in computer applications at Cork Institute of Technolgy's are also ab initio degrees, as well as offering students an add-on degree option. In other words, students can begin the course in first year and progress in the normal way. Those who opt for the certificate / diploma route may and do often continue their studies to degree level. Most ITs provide add-on courses from certificate on to diploma to degree.

At Carlow IT, there are two new add-on degree options this year - a BA in business studies in industrial purchasing management and a B Sc in industrial environmental science.

In Dundalk IT it's possible to advance from any of the college's four business studies certificates, through a diploma to a one-year add-on B BS. It also has a number of other add-on degree options.

In Athlone IT students can carry on and complete a B Sc in applied chemistry or a B Sc in toxicology.

According to Higher Education Authority statistics, 62 per cent of science graduates at national certificate level in 1996 went on to further study, presumably to diploma level, while 28 per cent went directly into full-time jobs. A further 4.9 per cent of certificate graduates were seeking employment by April 1997. At diploma level, 48.9 per cent of graduates went on to further study, while 42.5 per cent were employed in full-time jobs. The proportion seeking employment was 4.6 per cent.

The way these courses work is that you accept a place on a two-year certificate or a three-year diploma course. In the case of the certificate, if you perform sufficiently well in your exams you can progress to a diploma. You will usually need a merit or distinction in your exams - 55 per cent or over. Students who pass the exams, but do not get sufficiently high grades, may be accepted on a diploma course if they have a year's relevant work experience. Students with diplomas will also need to do well in their exams to be accepted on to degree programmes.

The uptake on certificate and diploma courses was significantly lower last year then in preceding years. Last year, 42 courses had to advertise vacancies during the college offers season. So don't be blinkered. Don't limit your opportunities. There is more than one way to reach your career goal.