Leaving Cert students have said the decision to delay their results has put them under “completely unfair” pressure. 

Usually exam results in Ireland are released in August. However, because of the pandemic, students will only learn how many CAO points they have scored in early September.

It means thousands have been forced to delay planning their student lives. 

“The delay in results, not only is it very stressful but it’s very worrying,” Angelica from Wicklow told Lunchtime Live. 

“As you said there, in terms of accommodation, students like myself around the country are wondering if we’re even going to have a place to live and actually attend college. 

“Because if you don’t have accommodation and you’re from rural Ireland, how are you expected to be able to commute to Galway or Cork?” 

Angelica already has a UCAS offer from a college in Belfast with a guaranteed offer of accommodation. However, ideally she wants to study Philosophy in Dublin.

But having a choice is a luxury that some students have been denied. 

“There are some students from across the country who have been told by universities in the UK,” she continued, “that because of the delays in results, they might actually not be able to attend the colleges they hope to attend. It’s completely unfair.” 

Students are seen on the campus of Trinity College Dublin in March 2016. Picture by: Sergio Azenha / Alamy Stock Photo

All in all, this year’s cohort of Leaving Cert students have endured stresses that few have experienced before. They have survived a pandemic, been educated virtually and endured long separations from friends - all whilst not knowing whether they would actually sit Leaving Certificate exams.  

“What I found the most stressful was when we were unsure about what was actually going to happen to our Leaving Certificate back in January last year,” Angelica described. 

“It was a very stressful time. I was watching the news nearly every single night because I didn’t know if my Leaving Cert would be on or not. 

“I didn’t know what changes we had. I think that had a very profound impact on me and a lot of students around the country.” 

The Leaving Certificate results will come out on 2nd September and first round CAO offers will be made on 8th September.

Main image: Leaving Cert students in an exam hall. Picture by: Mark Stedman/RollingNews.ie