Leaving Cert students have just over a week to decide whether they want to sit the traditional exams.

The Leaving Certificate 2021 candidate portal opens tomorrow morning, with students required to register for subjects and declare how they wish to be assessed.

They can sit the traditional exams in each subject or receive an Accredited Grade from the State Examinations Commission (SEC), or both.

The portal opens at 12pm tomorrow afternoon and closes on Tuesday March 16th.

The Minister for Education Norma Foley said: “I would encourage all students, when creating their account on the portal, to examine carefully the options available to them in sitting the written examinations and receiving the SEC Accredited Grades.”

“It is also important that students continue to engage with the in-person learning and assessment process which provides further data for teachers to draw from in the process of estimating marks.”

Students will have a chance to withdraw their application to sit traditional exams through the portal in late April or early May.

The 2021 Leaving Certificate Examinations will take place from June 9th to 29th with the Leaving Certificate Applied Examinations finishing on June 17th.

The Accredited Grades will be based on estimated marks provided by schools and a national standardisation process.

Students who opt for both the traditional exams and the accredited grades will automatically receive the higher grade in each subject.