‘I felt lost after the Leaving Certificate — but look at me now’
LEAVING Certificate results day is a nerve-racking experience. Many look back on it fondly, remembering the relief that came with knowing they had done enough to get their desired CAO course.
For Danay Berhane, an award-winning chef working at one of the country’s top luxury hotels, results day in 2016 was not what he expected. Danay did not get the course he wanted but persevered and found another way of getting the career of his dreams.
“I knew I wanted to be a chef, that was all I wanted to be, so I filled out my CAO application for Cork Institute of Technology (CIT), studied for my exams and looked forward to starting in September.
“When I got the results, I knew straight away it wasn’t going to be enough to get into CIT. I was gutted and felt lost about what to do next — but a friend told me about a professional cookery course at the College of Commerce in Cork. I figured I had nothing to lose, so I applied.”
He enrolled in the one-year course and was soon learning his craft in the kitchen. He got practical experience cooking for diners in the college restaurant. Danay said cooking for paying customers early in his studies was “very intense” but he thrived learning on the job. He also got a two-week work placement in a restaurant at a nearby hotel which opened the door to a part-time job.
After completing the College of Commerce course, Danay was eligible for the CIT Culinary Studies course. Last year he was selected to represent Ireland in the Dairy Chef of the Year 2019 competition.
“The final was held in Paris, and it was tough, but I was paired with a French student chef and together we designed a three-course menu which won the competition,” he said.
As part of the prize, Danay earned an internship in the world-famous Parisian hotel Le Bristol, and its three Michelin star restaurant. He has since accepted a job offer from one of Ireland’s leading hotels — Adare Manor — as demi-chef de partie.
“If you had told me on the day I got my Leaving Certificate results in 2016 that this is where I would be working, I wouldn’t have believed you,” he said.