Leaving Cert Subjects
Leaving Cert | Leaving Cert Applied (LCA)
Practical Group
These subjects are 'hands-on' and involve working with tools and machinery on physical things like wood, metals and plastic. They may involve designing, planning and building things.
Science Group
These subjects demonstrate how to explore nature using carefully planned methods, and teach the basic methods and findings of scientific investigation.
Artistic & Creative Group
These subjects involve developing creativity and the appreciation of the work of others. This involves learning the methods and techniques of the subject and producing your own work using these skills.
Humanities Group
These subjects explore the ways in which humans live and communicate in the world. Human life is examined by looking at our past, our present and into our future. These subjects help people to express themselves clearly and develop their reasoning ability.
Social Group
These subjects explore common issues faced by all people living in society. They develop the skills and knowledge used to manage personal resources and guide human behaviour.
Tomas Flanagan, Occupational Therapist
What subjects did you take in school and how have these influenced your career path?
In school we had to choose our Leaving Cert subjects just before the Junior Cert. At this stage I had no idea what I wanted to do as a profession but I knew I wanted to go to College.
In order to keep my options open I chose a mix of subjects to include one language, one science subject and one business subject. In addition to the obligatory English, Irish & Maths I therefore studied French, Biology, Geography & Accounting. I chose these particular subjects as I had an interest in them at Junior Cert level.
I suppose Biology was the most relevant of my subjects when I started college as there was some overlap with Anatomy and Physiology. We also studied research and statistics in college which were Maths related.
Caitriona Jackman, Planetary Scientist
What subjects did you take in school and how have these influenced your career path?
For Leaving Certificate I did the usual English, Irish, Maths, then Physics which I loved, Chemistry which I wasn’t great at (kept breaking stuff in the practicals), French, Geography and Music as an extra. I really enjoyed English actually, and even though a lot of my job involves computer programming and some hard maths and physics, I still rely heavily on my writing skills.
As important as it is to have technical ability in my job, it is still crucial to be able to communicate any results I find. One of the main tasks for me is to write papers for scientific journals, and occasionally to write articles for a more general audience.
My French is also useful because I collaborate with several people from a lab in Paris and they like if I make an effort to speak a bit of French, even though my accent is very embarrassing!
Lara Mulvey, Senior Product Manager AIB
What subjects did you take in school and how have these influenced your career path?
While in school I did a real mix of subjects, from Music to Accounting. I really enjoyed the problem solving side of Maths and Chemistry, but my real passion was for languages. German was definitely my favourite subject. Although my German is now pretty rusty, I like to think my ear for languages has helped shape my ability to translate some of the more technical language into meaningful business terminology.
My wide range of subjects in school showed early on that I liked to have a good mix topics to keep me engaged.
I went into Physio with having never studied Biology, and I remember other students at the time thinking I was crazy, but all in all there was no great downfall to that. I had to work a little harder in my first year, but I quickly got up to speed. It felt somewhat similar walking into Finance with no strong business background.
I really think that being adaptable is so important to whatever career path you’re thinking of pursuing.
No matter the subject, if you’re a rounded individual you’ll find that you’ve learned certain attributes which you can apply to any job.