Post-Primary schools are sometimes referred to as Secondary Schools. Choosing a school for your child is an important step and it is worth putting time into researching what schools are available in your area.  

The first thing you might like to do is look at the different types of schools. Each type has a different ownership and management. 

Essentially there are 3 types of schools: 

Voluntary secondary schools are privately owned and managed post-primary schools, usually under the patronage of an individual body such as a religious community, a charitable trust or a private charitable company. The national representative body for the boards of management of voluntary secondary schools is the Joint Managerial Body. 

Community colleges are established by the local Education and Training Board (ETB). The ETB is the sole patron of the school. The national representative body for the Education and Training Boards is the Education and Training Boards Ireland. 

Community schools are established either by one or more private or religious patrons coming together with an ETB patron or as the result of the amalgamation of voluntary secondary and ETB schools. The representative body for the schools is the Association of Community and Comprehensive Schools. 

There are also  

Gaelcholáiste - Gaelcholáiste are secondary schools that teach through Irish. Gaelcholaiste are state funded. 

You can find out more about the different types of Post-Primary (Secondary Schools) here.  

There are some things you may need to consider when choosing a post primary school, exploring their website or utilising local knowledge might be useful.  This might include: 

• Ethos and Mission 
• Co-educational, single sex school 
• Location 
• Fee paying 
• Reputation 
• Special needs supports 
• Pastoral supports 

Other things to consider might be: subject choices available, options for short courses, after school activities, music, sport, drama, or your child’s preference.  

Exploring the school website or utilising local knowledge, like chatting to other parents, might also be useful. 

The majority of post-primary schools in Ireland do not charge fees. However there may be other costs to be met by parents. These may include books, uniforms, subject specific requirements such as home economics ingredients, travel to school, trips, examination fees extracurricular activities etc. 

From September 2024 schoolbooks will be provided to students in junior cycle (1st to 3rd year) 

Non-fee-paying voluntary secondary schools, community colleges and community schools are all funded on an annual budget by the Department of Education. They get grants from the Department to help with their running costs. The grants are based on the number of pupils attending the school. If the school is rated as disadvantaged, it gets an additional grant per pupil. 

There are various schemes to help low-income families meet the costs of schooling. 

Fee-paying schools 
Fee-paying schools do not get any State grants towards their running costs. However, the State pays the salaries of all teachers working in recognised voluntary schools. Fees are set each year by the school. 

Voluntary Contribution

Some schools may ask for a voluntary contribution towards the running costs or extra activities for students. These contributions are voluntary and are not a requirement for enrolment or to participate in any school-based activities during the school day. 

The amount requested may vary depending on the school, but it is entirely up to each parent to decide if they want to contribute or not. 

To find a school in your area you can search post primary schools by type and area using the Department of Education’s Find a School tool. 

You can filter your search results by ethos, language of instruction, and gender. You will be presented with a map showing the schools that meet your selection.  Most schools have a website with information about their ethos, policies, curriculum and extra-curricular activities on offer. 

Transition Year (TY) is a one-year programme that forms the first year of a three-year senior cycle. It is designed to act as a bridge between the Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate programmes.  It can vary from school to school and is not always available or compulsory.  It aims to provide space for personal and social development, work experience, an opportunity to explore and grow and a chance for remediation and compensatory study.  It is not used as part of the Leaving Certificate programme.  You can find out more about it here.  

The Junior Cycle is taught from 1st year to 3rd year, and incorporates eight principles of learning: 

1. Quality-learning to learn All students experience a high-quality education, characterised by high expectations of learners and the pursuit of excellence. 
2. Wellbeing: The curriculum contributes directly to the physical, mental and social wellbeing of students. 
3. Creativity and Innovation: The curriculum provides opportunities for students to develop their abilities and talents in the areas of creativity, innovation and enterprise. 
4. Choice and Flexibility: The curriculum, while broad in nature, offers sufficient choice and flexibility to meet the needs of students. 
5. Engagement and participation: relevance and enjoyment The experience of the curriculum encourages participation, is engaging and enjoyable for students, and relevant to their lives. 
6. Inclusive education: The educational experience is inclusive of all students and contributes to equality of opportunity, participation and outcome for all. 
7. Continuity: The curriculum enables students to build on their learning to date and actively supports their progress in learning.  
8. Lifelong learning: The curriculum supports students in developing the learning skills that will assist them in meeting the challenges of life beyond school, of further education, and of working life. 

These principles aim to develop key skills such as: 

• Being literate 
• Managing myself 
• Staying well 
• Managing information and thinking 
• Being numerate 
• Being creative 
• Working with others 
• Communicating 

Schools will be able to choose from a total of 21 different subjects for inclusion on their junior cycle programme, and students can study a maximum of 10 subjects for the Junior Certificate. Subject choices may vary from school to school for example one school might offer German whereas another Spanish, one school may offer Home Economics whereas another might offer Engineering. 

It’s worth having a conversation with your child to determine their interests and whether or not these subjects are available at the school you are considering. 

All students must study Irish (unless they have an exemption from studying Irish), English, Maths and History. Depending on your school, other subjects may also be compulsory. 

English, Irish and Maths are studied at either ordinary or higher level. All other subjects are studied at common level.  

Other areas that are compulsory include Physical Education (PE), Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) which often come under the heading of Wellbeing.  

Some schools offer short courses which could include Digital Literacy, Coding and Photography. Two of these short courses are equivalent to one full subject therefore students can study 9 subjects plus 2 short courses, or 8 subjects plus 4 short courses.   

You can find more information about options here.  

It is important that you check what schools are offering what subjects prior to picking a school with your child, not all schools offer all subjects, or short courses.  

For further information on the Junior Cycle Curriculum click here www.ncca.ie 

Students will take examinations in June of 3rd year, there will be exams in English, Irish and Maths at higher and ordinary levels.  Exams in all other subject will be at common levels and all exams will be 2 hours or less. 

Throughout the course of the 3-year cycle, students will be assessed through classroom-based assessments or CBAs.  The CBAs will take place between 2nd and 3rd year and will happen during normal class time but within a national timeframe for each subject.  Students will know in advance when they are timetabled and there will be lots of engagement with parents to prepare for this.   

More information can be found here.  

Quality That all learners experience a high-quality education, characterized by high expectations of the learner and the pursuit of excellence 

Inclusive education That the experience of senior cycle is inclusive of all learners and contributes to the achievement of equality of opportunity, participation and outcome for all 

Continuity That the curriculum enables learners to build on their learning to date, actively supports their progress in learning, and facilitates them in preparing and planning for future 

Learning Choice and flexibility That the curriculum, while broad in nature, offers sufficient choice and flexibility to meet the needs of learners 

Participation, relevance and enjoyment That the experience of the curriculum encourages participation, is engaging and enjoyable for learners, and relevant to their lives  

Well-being That the curriculum contributes directly to the physical, mental and social well-being of learners 

Creativity and innovation That the curriculum provides opportunities for learners to develop their abilities and talents in the areas of creativity, innovation and enterprise 

Lifelong learning That the curriculum supports learners in developing the skills of managing and directing their own learning that will assist them in meeting the challenges of life beyond school, in further and continuing education, and in working life.  

Transition Year (TY) is a one-year programme that forms the first year of a three-year senior cycle. It is designed to act as a bridge between the Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate programmes.  It can vary from school to school and is not always available or compulsory.  It aims to provide space for personal and social development, work experience, an opportunity to explore and grow and a chance for remediation and compensatory study.  The TY programme is not designed to include Leaving Certificate curriculum content.  You can find out more about it here.  

There are three different Leaving Certificate programmes available, the 

Standard Leaving Certificate

Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme 

Leaving Certificate Applied

Not all schools provide all three so it is worth considering what will suit your child best and checking what is offered in the schools you are considering. 

Most students choose between 6-8 subjects for their Leaving Certificate. English, Irish and Maths are mandatory at all schools. Some schools may include other mandatory subjects such as a modern foreign language.  There are 36 subjects available however depending on the school these options will vary. Example one school may offer French whereas another may offer Spanish, and one school might offer music and another Physical Education (PE) as a leaving certificate subject. It is worth checking if the school you are considering can offer a subject that your child is particularly interested in. The school’s website is the best place to find out what is on offer.  

All leaving cert subjects are examined at higher and ordinary level with foundation level only available in Maths and Irish.  

Up to 100 points per subject are available with 25 bonus points on offer for anyone who chooses to sit (and pass) Higher Level Maths. 

The State Examinations Commission (SEC) are responsible for assessment, accreditation and certification of the Leaving Certificate.

Applications to third level are done through the Central Applications Office Central Applications Office (cao.ie) 

Results from the Leaving cert can be converted to points for access to third level by following this link Central Applications Office (cao.ie)