Until very recently, going to college was, for many of the students on TCD's new access programme for school-leavers, "a faraway dream. We never thought that coming from our backgrounds we'd be going to college or that we would be able to cope with it," one mused.
Nine of us are sitting in Cliona Hannon's cramped office. She's the course co-ordinator of TCD's foundation course for higher education - young adults, which was introduced on a pilot basis last autumn. This morning, we're ruminating on the benefits of the new course, which provides a bridging year between school and college for youngsters from disadvantaged Dublin schools. The students are bright, certainly, but due to circumstances beyond their control have been unable to achieve the very high Leaving Cert points required for college entry.
For most middle-class kids, going to college has become the norm. For youngsters from working-class backgrounds, it remains a major struggle - and one that most of them don't even contemplate. "People tell you that you'll never get the points to go to Trinity and that anyway it's too expensive to go there," the students say. Some 18 Dublin school-leavers were admitted to the access programme last October. Over two-thirds of the students have come from schools which are affiliated to TCD's access programme, TAP. The others come from similar schools which enjoy connections with DCU, UCD and NUI, Maynooth. To do well, students on the Trinity access programme need to be 50 per cent more motivated than college-bound youngsters from the average middleclass school, according to Cliona Hannon.
"They've been in poorly motivated classes where attendance is poor," she explains. "Fifteen of the group did Leaving Cert honours subjects in pass classes, so they had to teach themselves. Some of the schools don't have full-time educational guidance and a lot of the students have responsibilities at home that most middle-class kids wouldn't have. If they fall behind in maths, say, they don't get grinds. A lot of students would have low expectations of themselves and there's no family tradition of going to third level." Applicants for the course are shortlisted and interviewed. "We're looking for people who will stay the course of a whole degree programme," Hannon says. This year, the students are receiving £2,000 to cover some of the costs of going to college. It's a help, they say, since most of their parents are unable to give them any extra cash.
The course includes three core subjects: IT; educational support and guidance; and English language/literature and communication skills. The English programme includes essay writing and debating and is geared to building up academic skills. Before the start of their first term, the students spent two days exploring the optional subjects - social sciences, including sociology, social studies, political science, economics and business studies; arts, including English, history and French; and science, where physics, chemistry and biology are on offer.
Only two of the current crop of 18 students are taking science subjects. The fact that many schools fail to offer physics and chemistry puts students at a disadvantage when they come to choose third-level courses. Students spend time with both subject and educational guidance tutors (mostly TCD staff) discussing their course options. Students with a good attendance record, who pass their exams and do well in their continuous assessment, are "more or less guaranteed a place on an undergraduate course next year", Hannon says. They've sent in their applications to the various departments are now awaiting interviews, she says.
This year, Trinity is setting aside up to 70 places for young adults who are educationally disadvantaged. Some of the places will be made available to "near misses" - students from TAP schools, who, due to their points' scores, have narrowly missed obtaining places at TCD through the CAO. Just now, exams are looming for the 18 school-leavers on the access programme. On the face of it, they're pretty relaxed about their situations. "I've been very lucky," comments Hannon. "They're a terrific group and they have gelled extremely well. They've been very enthusiastic about college life and about the way they approached the course." The students, too, are appreciative of the chance they have been given.
"The intelligence I see in the tutorials is incredible," comments Colin Glynn from Ballybrack. "There's so much potential, but so very few people get the chance to reach their potential." "This course has given me a chance I would never have had otherwise," says Jennifer Gannon from Ringsend. "I don't know what I would be doing now. In the Leaving, I concentrated on the subjects I liked, so I did well in some but not in others."
"Everybody has developed a lot and matured," notes Joanne Martin from Drimnagh. "On this course they teach you all the skills you need for college." Phillip Boylan, Clondalkin, relishes the opportunity to think for himself. "At school you're not allowed to have your own opinions. Here, it's encouraged," he says.
"When you leave school, you don't have the maturity to make the right choices in life. This course helps you," adds Colin Glynn. It's a hard year, but better than repeating the Leaving Cert, students agree. You can concentrate on subjects you're interested in. You're thrown into college life. You learn to juggle your academic and social life. You get to know your way around college and how to use the library. You learn vital study skills. You grow up and the college campus holds no fears for you.
Cliona Hannon is confident the students will do well on their undergraduate courses. "The tutors are saying that the standard of people is solid upper 2:2 and 2:1, so they're well able for university," she reports.
