Do you really need a good Leaving Cert to succeed in life?

In a few days time, teenagers across the country will be sitting the most important set of exams of the school career.

But will a disappointing result determine your future forever?

Coco Brown! CEO Marissa Carter did exceptionally well in her Leaving Certificate but quickly realised it was no guarantee of success.

“I went on to do Managing and Marketing with French in DIT in Augnier Street,” she told The Hard Shoulder.

“I thought I’m going to get my degree and then I failed four out of seven of my end of year exams and ended up as a college dropout.

“But not finishing my formal education was one of the best decisions I ever made because I found my passion.”

Looking back, Ms Carter said she felt she went “wild” in college because she had been so “burnt out” after her Leaving Certificate.

“I do think it’s important to validate to anyone listening that is feeling really stressed about their Leaving Cert - that’s totally normal,” she said.

“It’s okay to feel really stressed but just know that you will get through it, it will pass and… even if you don’t do as well as you hope to, there’s so many other ways of having a successful career.

“You just never know where you might end up or what you might end up doing.”

Leaving Cert students. Photo. Mark Stedman/RollingNews.ie

Comedian Karl Spain sat his Leaving Cert twice after achieving disappointing results the first time.

“I was easily distracted at the time and I had a part-time job,” he said.

“I used to work late at weekends in a fast food place and I wasn’t the most dedicated student.

“When you’re in the top class and just trying to hide amongst the group, it’s not the best place to be.”

Leaving Cert students prepare to sit English Paper One at O'Connell Secondary School in Dublin in 2015. Picture by: Sam Boal/RollingNews.ie

At the time, he had no clue what he wanted to do in the future and describes his academic ambition as “quite low and lacking”.

“No idea, ambition or nothing,” he said.

“I literally did not know what I wanted to do, where I was going to end up.

“The funny thing was, my career guidance teacher at one point, I cracked a joke in class and he said to me, ‘You’re not funny, don’t try and be funny.’

“So, I think as a professional comedian, we all had the last laugh there.”

Main image: Students sitting an exam. Credit: AG News/Alamy Live News