Moving to Ireland at 16 - Education Experiences

krissovo

Has anyone on here moved to Ireland at 16 and joined joined a school to do their leaving cert?

I am the father of a 16 year old who has currently completed his GCSE's in the uk. I live in Ireland but he considering joining me from England and he would like to know what other peoples experiences has been in a similar situation both positive and negative before he makes up his mind.

frenchy1992

Hey !

This is exactly what I did. I'm french and I came in Ireland in 5th year when I was 16 (at the time to improve my english). A few months later I came to realise that I was more than able to understand what was going on and decided to stay one more year in order to sit my leaving cert and maybe get into college. And here I am, waiting for the results

To sum up : I am french, when I came first I hadnt a word of english. If I did, anyone can.

krissovo

Thanks Frenchy for your response, may I ask how you got on with making new friends?

Good luck by the way with your results!

frenchy1992

No problem
Making friends was not a problem at all to be honest. I lived in the countryside, meaning that pretty much everyone in the class knew each other for the past 10 years and that I was THE foreigner.
But that was not a bad thing, indeed. Most of the people in the class made an attempt to approach me and talk to me and within a week I didnt feel lost anymore.
As well as that, for me, at the time, the language barrier might have been an obstacle in the process of making friends that your son obviously will not have to worry about.

Bobsammy

I came back to Ireland at 16 after 8 years in London. I didn't really struggle academically although the approach taken to some subjects here was quite different to what I had experienced in the uk. I found for the most part I was at a similar if not higher standard to those who had sat their junior cert. Making friends that age was tough but not impossible. It's hard joining classes who've been together for a few years but I'm sure he'd be fine if he's not painfully shy or anything! Anyway that was 8 years ago and I'm now a teacher moving back to england next week so it didn't have a negative impact on my education in any way! I actually think we have a much better education system here and that the leaving cert is far superior to the A levels but that's just my opinion!

kate.m

Both my brother and friend did this one actually came over to repeat the A levels.

Education wise, the only thing your son to keep in mind is the change in the system. You don't go into detail in the subject as much as with the a levels but the difference is that you have almost three times as many subjects. My friend sat back because she found biology and chemistry easier but then a few mints before the LC realised the amount of work she had to do in her other 6 subjects.

Considering the amount of subjects, there is a lot of coursework. Remember that and your son won't have a problem.

bscm

I know a few people who have moved over during 3rd/4th/5th Year

Best thing to do would be have your son start in 4th Year as most schools mix classes in 4th Year, friend groups would be 'loosened' and people would be more approachable as they aren't with the regular group every class. Also it would give him time to adjust without a heavy academic workload (he could also catch up if necessary on subjects that may be taught differently here).

Depending on the school making friends varies, 4th Years tend to be more open to befriending new people as dozens of international and exchange students come into 4th Year each year because improving their English without the normal academic load is appealing