Junior Cycle

Have you ever thought about what you would like to do when you leave school? The Junior Cycle is a good time to start thinking about different career options and considering what subjects you might choose for Leaving Cert. We have lots of useful tools to help you start exploring yourself and the thousands of exciting career paths that lie ahead.

Explore different Career Sectors - for example, business, medicine, or beauty to get a picture of the types of skills and jobs involved in working in that particular area. 

Search hundreds of occupations in our Career Explorer to find out what the job involves, the type of person it would suit, what you might earn and the qualifications you would need.

You can also watch lots of career videos or read career stories with people employed in a variety of jobs across the country to get an insight into different sectors and industries. 

Discover Careers
View All
OEM Engineering Traineeship
OEM Engineering Traineeship - OEM Engineering Traineeship
Forestry Education
- Forestry Education
Specsavers Careers in Optometry
Careers in Optometry - Specsavers Careers in Optometry
Activity Instructor
Activity Instructor - Activity Instructor
Jennifer Bourke
Third Secretary - Press Officer - Jennifer Bourke

Join our complete Guidance programme designed for Irish Junior Cycle students (purchase required).

Build you own unique Career Portfolio through exploring our fun Island of Discovery as the programme takes you through a series of explorations about yourself, your motivations, and your dreams and ambitions.

What Career Type are you?

Creative?

Creative people are drawn to careers and activities that enable them to take responsibility for the design, layout or sensory impact of something (visual, auditory etc). They may be atrracted to the traditional artistic pursuits such as painting, sculpture, singing, or music. Or they may show more interest in design activities, such as architecture, animation, or craft areas, such as pottery and ceramics.

Creative people use their personal understanding of people and the world they live in to guide their work. Creative people like to work in unstructured workplaces, enjoy taking risks and prefer a minimum of routine.

Explore Career Interests...
Career Chat...
View All
Mary Ita Heffernan
Mary Ita Heffernan, Social Worker

Mary Ita Heffernan is a Social Worker who works for the HSE in Kilkenny.  After completing her Leaving Certificate she did a degree in Social Science and a Masters in Social Work. This led to a National Qualification in Social Work which is the only recognised qualification to be a practitioner in this field.

Ask me a question!

Career Articles

ESB Network Technician - Take the Apprenticeship Route
ESB Network Technician - Take the Apprenticeship Route
Posted by ESB
Niamh Kelly - Ink Chemist
Niamh Kelly - Ink Chemist
Posted by CareersPortal
Maeve Tobin - Osteoarchaeologist
Maeve Tobin - Osteoarchaeologist
Posted by CareersPortal
Discover the Apprenticeship Route to an Accounting Technician’s Career
Discover the Apprenticeship Route to an Accounting Technician’s Career
Posted by Accounting Technicians Ireland
I Want Your Job: Window dresser
I Want Your Job: Window dresser
Posted by CareersPortal
Media Graduate - Broadcaster Mairead Ronan
Media Graduate - Broadcaster Mairead Ronan
Posted by Ballyfermot College of Further Education
Close