Strong demand locally for further education courses

DEMAND is surging for post leaving certificate (PLC) courses among mature students in North Kerry, Kerry Education and Training Board said following a major fair on the topic in Listowel held last week.

The majority who attended the KETB Kerry Further Education and Training Fair in the Listowel Arms on Monday of last week were, the KETB said, mature students looking for places on PLC courses, apprenticeship information or other parttime courses.

Prospective students from across North Kerry flocked to the fair, attended by six separate institutions in the area of education – the North Kerry College of Further Education Listowel, Kerry ETB Training Centre Tralee, An Tochar Adult Education a- Centre, Causeway, the Literacy and Basic Adult Education Service Listowel, Youthreach Listowel and Kerry College of Further Education Tralee.

Stalls set out the impressive range of courses and subjects on offer at all the participating colleges and agencies, encompassing everything from business and admin to information technology, finance, social care, nursing, healthcare, tourism, sport, law, media and much more.

Jobseekers, second chance learners, school leavers, employers, parents and guidance counsellors all attended the showcase. It demonstrated the extraordinary success the sector is currently ratcheting up when it comes to getting students onto third-level or straight into the workforce.

“Our most recent study on Outcomes for PLC Learners, which is due to be launched soon, shows that more than half of all PLC students go on to third level, while almost a third go directly into employment,” FET director Owen O’Donnell said.

“The trend is that the older the learner the more likely they are to go to jobs on course completion, while a higher percentage of learners under 26 years go on to further study,” he added. He said they are seeing more young students deferring college courses for a year in order to undertake PLCs in which they can avail of SUSI grant aid while building up vital experience.

ABOVE: Busy scenes at the recent further education fair hosted by the KETB in Listowel. RIGHT: Brenda Kirby Tralee presented with a Samsung ‘tablet’ prize by Sharon Browne of KETB, which she won in a competition held in conjunction with the fair.