We learned last week that 70 per cent of Leaving Cert students get grinds outside of school for that all-important exam. And today, 100 per cent of them will find out if all the hard work they and others have put into that exam has paid off. I hope it has, both for that 70 per cent, and for the other 30.

I hope it has, because really, it's for the parents, isn't it? The Leaving Cert is a stepping-stone, and only parents of current students, and some teachers, really see it as the be-all and end-all of anything.

For any Leaving Cert alumni who are reading this, momentarily distracted from celebrating or commiserating, I'm sorry. But that's the truth. Your Leaving Cert results are only important until about the second day in college, your apprenticeship, your job, or wherever you end up. After that, life steps in.

In case you're worrying about living up to today's results when you get to college; don't. Your degree counts only as far as your first job outside of college.

Unfortunately, this is contrary to everything you have ever been taught. You have been taught that points are everything, that you must do well, that you must achieve.

In fairness, most schools are well acquainted with the concept of rounded human beings. But not all of them. And, at the end of the day, that's what counts.

When you go for a job interview, they will take one look at your academic achievements, and then ask about your experience – because it's more important. They will judge you on your smile, your eye contact, your handshake, your posture and all the other millions of little things that encourage human beings to trust each other.

But unless your results are spectacularly bad, or even spectacularly good, they won't get a second glance. All they need to know is that you were sufficiently well adjusted to handle five or six years of school, and the process of a major exam, and that you know what work is and how to do it.

And that much is an achievement in itself. So, whatever your results, celebrate that. Celebrate surviving some of the best, but often the hardest, years of your life. Celebrate the friends you've made, the fun you've had, the life you're leaving behind, and the life that's about to begin.

Because now is when the real fun starts.

Comments (0) »

Show/Hide comment form

Name

Email

Title

Comment

Write the displayed characters

Add Comment