PGDE in NUIM

Edja

Going to be a mature student soon.... 36.....being made redundant from current job, but I pre-empted it and applied for the dip last year and got it in Maynooth!

Subjects, English & History! Yes, I know, there are NO jobs in teaching, and there will NEVER BE any jobs in English and History EVER again!

Thing is, I haven't got a school yet....getting worried....anyone else not got a school???

Toto Wolfcastle

I don't have experience in NUIM but I did my dip in Galway and didn't get a school until the day the state exams started. I wouldn't worry hugely about it. Keep looking and maybe contact the college if you find it very difficult. They may be able to help.

I love the bit about how there will never be any jobs ever again. So funny. Nice to see someone with a sense of humour about the situation. It wont be so bad in a few years I hope.

Dionysus

Edja wrote: »

Going to be a mature student soon.... 36.....being made redundant from current job, but I pre-empted it and applied for the dip last year and got it in Maynooth!

Subjects, English & History! Yes, I know, there are NO jobs in teaching, and there will NEVER BE any jobs in English and History EVER again!

Thing is, I haven't got a school yet....getting worried....anyone else not got a school???

You really have to get off your arse and look for schools everywhere - Now. Don't leave it until July as I did last year and was rejected by c. 20 schools in the process. I am consequently back this year for the PGDE as I didn't do it earlier last year.

No excuses - Now. Apologies for the arse comment but let somebody else rephrase it more eloquently than I can

PS. I went looking for jobs on the day I got my PGDE offer. And this year I finally got a couple of offers for PGDE teaching hours as a direct result of looking/annoying principals early.

Edja

Thank you both! Sent out 12 CVs yesterday, so hopefully something will come of it! Seeing as I am being made redundant, I have looked on this as a chance to change my career/life for something better, (even though chances of getting a job is slim to zilch!)!

Feck it, too long being bored in business at a desk job....lifes too short! This is my 3rd time applying for the dip in 12 years! Got it in 2002, but couldn't do it! Got it again, and the only reason I can do it now is because I am getting enough redundancy to pay my salary and childcare for 18 months! After that, my wife and I will be poor for a while.....(luckily, she's a teacher!!! Full-time permanent!!)!!

Sure you have to look on the bright side! So I may not afford to keep my car! No holidays for me!! But I was brought up on a farm where we never had holidays, and nobody died from it! It'll be grand!!:D

Nead21

If at all possible, try and visit the schools where you're dropping in Cvs...its far more effective to actually meet with the principal in person than be just another CV on the towering pile of CVs!!

Best of luck in Maynooth....on of the best years in college

Edja

Bad news, bad news indeed! One school rang me and told me I was terribly late sending in my CV!!! Bugger! Is that me screwed! My redundancy will be used up and I won't have enough to do it the following year!

Dionysus

Nead21 wrote: »

If at all possible, try and visit the schools where you're dropping in Cvs...its far more effective to actually meet with the principal in person than be just another CV on the towering pile of CVs!!

I agree entirely with this. I wouldn't for a moment just send my cv in. You must must must visit the schools.

You just have to.

Dionysus

Edja wrote: »

Bad news, bad news indeed! One school rang me and told me I was terribly late sending in my CV!!! Bugger! Is that me screwed! My redundancy will be used up and I won't have enough to do it the following year!

PS And that means all of the schools near Maynooth, not just one (or even five)! Brostaigh ort!

Edja

My God Dionysus, you are a teacher aren't you!!!

What about this 40 mile radius thing? How hard and fast is that? I mean I rang the dept in Maynooth and yer one laughed at me and said get the AA routeplanner!!! That does it by road, not radius for Gods sake!!!

Edja

I live in Laois!

Lord TSC

I'll be starting in NUIM as well, so nice to see someone else who'll be there in September.

Finalized my placement in Balbriggan today. I got really lucky actually; on the day I got the offer, my Dad had the vice principal of the school in his taxi and was telling him I got the offer. The Vice principal, knowing my Dad and having taught my mom, offered me a placement in his school. So yeah, I barely had to try :P

I did send two CVs to other, more convienant schools but despite the fact I visited personally as well as leaving phone messages, they never got back to me. Wasn't pleased with them at all for that.

40 miles is a pretty wide radius. Looking at the list of schools they sent out which were samples of who was in the area, Carlow, Cavan, Dublin, Kildare, Laois, Louth, Meath, Offlay, Westmeath and Wicklow all fall within the range.

Dionysus

Edja wrote: »

My God Dionysus, you are a teacher aren't you!!!

What about this 40 mile radius thing? How hard and fast is that? I mean I rang the dept in Maynooth and yer one laughed at me and said get the AA routeplanner!!! That does it by road, not radius for Gods sake!!!

hehe I do try. At this time in the process you have to fly through the midlands faster than Aodh Mór flew through them in October 1601 on his way to meet Aodh Rua before Kinsale.

Seriously, you have that list of schools which the PAC crowd in Gaillimh gave us? Well, it's a ridiculous list written by unthinking idiots as it is not organised by county or, in Dublin, postcode. Anyway, you're just going to have to go through every one of the 26 counties in order to find the schools from Kildare, Meath etc.

Go on Google maps and you'll see places like Dunboyne in Meath that are very close to Maynooth. Just use the map to find locations and then trace the schools from that lazy Department of Education list. Anyway, the schools are closing soon enough so get the finger out anois go tapaidh gan mhoill, horse!;)

Bain taitneamh as!