Second-level students who take transition year secure significantly more points than those who do not, according to a confidential study for the Department of Education.
The report finds that transition year students gain an average of 46 more Central Applications Office points - a very significant score in the so-called "points race".
For high-achieving students 46 points could be the difference between entry to courses with average points requirements and courses in high demand.
In TCD, for example, 46 points could mean the difference between entry to medicine (570) and law (525) on the basis of last year's figures.
The report would suggest that many who repeat the Leaving Certificate to gain additional points for certain courses might have been better off taking transition year in the first instance.
Points at Leaving Certificate Higher Level range from 100 for an A1 to 45 for a D3. The 46 points in this survey refers to the average number of extra points gained by those who took transition year.
The 46-point advantage is reduced to 26 when the type of school, gender and the overall academic ability of the students involved is taken into account.
According to the recent Points Commission report (based on 1997 Leaving Certificate results) 13 per cent gained 405 points or more, while 50 per cent of candidates gained over 140 points.
About two-thirds of second-level schools - some 500 - in the State offer a transition year programme, although it is not compulsory. The report says students who take transition year have a chance to mature, and the extra year for students between the Junior and Leaving Certificate cycles may be one reason behind the extra points. "Those who do transition year are normally one year older and this is important in examination performance," said a source.
One of the most striking findings of the report is that transition year significantly improves the Leaving Certificate performance of pupils in disadvantaged schools.
The report, however, is unable to identify what elements of the transition year programme are particularly beneficial as the programmes offered differ radically from school to school.
The introduction of the transition year six years ago was a radical departure for the education system and has attracted huge interest from other educational systems in the EU and elsewhere. The report from the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) - which advises the Minister for Education - says transition year is intended to allow students time and space to mature without the pressure of exams and to explore their talents.
The Department of Education says it is a year when students should be encouraged to acquire a better knowledge of themselves, when they should be "free to relax, to reflect and renew, a year when maximum emphasis be placed upon helping them to grow in maturity."
The NCCA report also states: "It is clear that female candidates generally outperform males in the Leaving Certificate. This is so whether or not they follow a transition year programme and irrespective of school type and designation".
The report tracked those who took the Junior Certificate and participated in the transition year and how this affected their results in the Leaving Certificate in 1996/97.
The report represents a significant boost for transition year, which has not always received a good press. Many parents complain that transition year represents an unnecessary break in study and makes it more difficult for students to prepare for the Leaving Certificate. However, the message of this study is that transition year gives students a more rounded education and an additional edge in the Leaving Certificate.