Q: I'D like to know if there is any correspondence course for Leaving Cert subjects? I'm separated and have five young children, never got a chance to do the Leaving Cert and would like to do it now but my available time for study is fairly erratic
- Co Cork mother
A: It's possible to study by correspondence with Kilroy's College - phone (01) 668 9562 - which is a long established college in home study courses. There is a wide range of subjects available such as languages Irish, English, French, German, Latin, Spanish, Italian; sciences such as physics, chemistry, biology; business subjects accounting, economics, business, economic history; general subjects such as maths, history, geography and home economics.
These postal courses can be taken at higher or ordinary level and prices per subject range from £150 - £180 depending on the level taken. The method works by sending you two lessons in each subject and then you return these for correction and the next two arrive in the post.
To sit the Leaving Cert in one or more subjects, you will have to register with the Department of Education as an external student (generally in October) and pay a fee per subject. If you are unemployed or a lone parent, you should check your situation because you may not have to pay any exam fee.
Since you live in a town with a good selection of schools, you should also check if individual Leaving Cert subjects are available for mature students, either at night or during the day because of the drop in second-level numbers. Some schools are providing this option either as foundation courses or as two year Leaving Cert courses under the Vocational Training Opportunities Scheme (VTOS) which gives unemployed adults an opportunity of returning to full-time education without losing their unemployment benefit but you must be unemployed for at least six months for at least six months and in receipt of Social Welfare benefits or credits for at least six months. You would also be entitled to meal and travel allowances, and get free books and materials and free fees. This scheme might suit you better once your children are all school-going and you could take just a few subjects each year to get accustomed to studying again.
Q: How do I apply for a course in art and design in Britain or Northern Ireland? When should I apply and where? I'm a fifth-year student and hope to do the Leaving Cert in 1999.
- Kildare student
A: UCAS generally processes applications for art and design courses except for a few colleges which accept applications directly and those colleges mainly offer foundation courses in art and design. The UCAS system offers two modes of entry - Route A and Route B, both of equal status.
You may use any combination of Route A or B and colleges may recruit by one or both of these routes. The handbook identifies those courses under whichever route is acceptable to the colleges.
Apply for Route A between September 1st and December 15th or if you are applying to the Ruskin School of Fine Art, Oxford, apply by October 15th. It's best to apply by the middle of November of the year previous to entry so that colleges can make arrangements for portfolio inspection. You then choose six courses and these should be listed in UCAS handbook order.
Route B offers a later entry between January 1st and the end of March of the year of entry and you may select four choices again in UCAS handbook order.
You will also have to complete an interview preference form and return both forms to UCAS simultaneously. Copies will be sent to the colleges in the order indicated on your interview preference form.
It's possible to apply through both routes. Again, you may have a total of six choices but with a maximum of four in Route B. In this way, you are keeping all options open.
First of all, you must remember that applicants from Britain and Northern Ireland will have at least one year's more tuition in art than you because they enter on the basis of their A-levels and a year's art foundation course.
So, a good option for you is to do a PLC course in your chosen area of art and design and apply in the year following your Leaving Cert. I think this is by far the best route for an Irish student because you will have refined your own talents and be more focused on your selected area and thereby stand a better chance of entry. You will also be better able to cope with the level of work.
Q: I live in Cork and am thinking of doing the certificate in medical laboratory sciences in Cork RTC but I'd like to get a degree if possible. Do I need any particular subjects? Which colleges have degree courses? What are the job opportunities?
- Cork student
A: The three-year course at national cert level leads on to the degree course which is the minimum requirement for entry to the career now. In effect you will be doing five years study.
The certificate in med lab science is available at Cork RTC, Galway RTC and DIT Kevin Street, Dublin. Specific subject requirements above the normal college matriculation requirements are as follows: DIT requires an Ordinary C in maths and a higher level C in chemistry; Cork requires a pass in a science subject and Galway in addition to a pass in a science subject requires an Ordinary C in maths also.
The three courses follow the same format with the first two years in college and the third year in a designated hospital lab.
You may continue to degree level at DIT Kevin Street and at Cork RTC where a joint degree in biomedical sciences is offered with UCC. Galway RTC does not provide a continuation to degree level so certificate graduates compete on an open basis with cert holders from the other two colleges and they can also apply to the University of Ulster's biomedical degree.
Another option for you is to take the degree in biological and chemical sciences in UCC (CK402) and, although you will not have had practical experience in a hospital lab, there is a prescribed course in second year at UCC from which the selection is made for the biomedical degree option.
Because of the degree, the career options have broadened and most will find permanent work within four or five years of qualifying. Salaries start at around £17,000 and progress to about £26,000. Further information: Academy of Medical Laboratory Science, 31 Old Kilmainham, Dublin 8.
Questions can be answered only through this column and not by phone or post. Write to Sile Sheehy, Education & Living, The Irish Times, D'Olier Street, Dublin 2 - or by email to education@irish-times.ie
