NCI Blog

Calling all Leaving Certificate Students! You’ve completed your mocks, you’ve been studying hard, and you are now just a few weeks away from the main event. It can be a nerve-wracking time but just remember, you got this!

There are many reasons why you should study marketing but for recent graduate, Kim Bracken, the element she loved most was the practical approach to learning new skills and executing exciting ideas.

Jimmy Ahmed (pictured far left) at the Finbarr Flood Scholarship Ceremony For many students who are making their CAO choices, one factor that helps rank college courses is the positive impact you could have on society as a graduate. Working in areas such as healthcare, sustainability, non-profit or education can be incredibly rewarding and it starts with the choices you make as you prepare to leave secondary school.

Eve Gibney, far right, is pictured at our CAO Open Day in November 2023 Studying computing or computer science at college means you have the opportunity to develop skills which are highly in-demand in the workforce. These include software development, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and data analytics. Currently studying the BSc (Honours) in Computing at National College of Ireland, Eve Gibney shares her reasons for choosing the course, what she has learned from her studies so far as well as advice for anyone considering their CAO options at the moment. Read Eve’s story below to get an insight into studying this course.

Starting college is an exciting and significant milestone in any individual’s life but it can feel quite daunting. Meeting new people, possibly moving away from home for the first time, combined with assignments and study can all lead to a sense of being overwhelmed, which can affect your day-to-day life. Effectively managing your time can be a great way to deal with this anxiety as it will help bring clear structure and balance to your busy lifestyle, ensuring you can enjoy the fun, social activities of college life as well as successfully fulfilling your academic responsibilities.

In this blog post, Niamh Daly shares her journey studying the BSc (Honours) in Data Science at National College of Ireland. She recalls her interest in data analysis from a young age, how she learned NCI's course was a perfect fit for her as well as he experience completing her work placement with Dell Technologies. Finally, Niamh discusses her final year project which focuses on the impact of the weather on Formula One and won the overall prize at the Computing Project Showcase recently.

As a teenager or young person starting your adult life, the choices you make, such as deciding whether to continue your studies to third-level and which college and course to choose, may be based on examples you see around you. For instance, you might think that you wouldn't be able to work at a desk job for 8 hours a day as you don't see examples of this in your life. As a result, you don't understand the rewarding challenges such a professional can face and the little wins that drive them to continuously learn and build new skills in their role, ultimately leading to personal growth and job satisfaction.

National College of Ireland takes part in the DARE and HEAR access routes. These are higher education admissions schemes for Leaving Certificate students (under 23) applying through the CAO whose economic or social backgrounds are underrepresented in higher education or whose disabilities have had a negative impact on their second level education.

Are you beginning your journey to third-level education? If you're thinking about your college choices and filling in your CAO application, then you might be considering joining us at National College of Ireland which means you might have some questions for us!

Missed the CAO deadline or you're unhappy with your previous course choices? You still have a chance to attend NCI this September through the Available Places facility! Further information can be found on our Available Places hub.