The CAO has officially opened, and for Sixth Year students across the country, the pressure to figure out what comes after school is starting to feel very real.
Between teachers reminding you about applications, parents asking what courses you’re considering and friends chatting about their college plans, it can feel like everyone expects you to have your future figured out already.
But what if you haven’t a clue?
Maybe you’ve looked through the CAO website and nothing has really stood out to you. Maybe you have a few different interests but can’t imagine choosing just one. Or maybe you’re so focused on getting through the Leaving Cert that thinking about what comes next feels like another thing on an already overwhelming to do list.
Here’s something worth remembering: you’re only 17 or 18. You don’t need to have your entire life figured out just yet.
College Isn’t Your Only Option
When you’re in Sixth Year, it can sometimes feel like the only acceptable next step is going straight to college in September. But there are so many different ways to go about life after school, and not all of them involve heading straight into a four year degree.
You might decide to take a gap year, get a job, save some money and give yourself a bit of breathing room to figure out what you actually enjoy.
You could do a PLC course to explore an area you’re interested in without committing to a full degree straight away. Or maybe an apprenticeship appeals to you more because you’d rather get out into the working world and start earning.
And if you do want to go to college? That’s great too.
The point is that there’s no one right way to do things. Just because most of your friends are applying to university doesn’t mean you have to follow the exact same path.
You’re Allowed to Change Your Mind
Something that doesn’t get talked about enough in Sixth Year is how normal it is to change direction.
You could start a college course and realise after a few months that it’s not what you expected. You might take a gap year and discover an interest you never even considered in school. Or you could start working and decide a few years down the line that you’d actually love to go to college.
None of those things mean you’ve failed or wasted your time.
People go back to education in their twenties, thirties and forties. Some people apply to college as mature students at 23, with a few years of work and life experience behind them. Others spend years in one career before deciding to do something completely different.
If people can change their entire careers at 40, why should you be expected to know exactly what you want to do at 17?
You’re Not Falling Behind
It’s easy to feel like you’re running out of time when everyone around you seems to know what they’re doing.
Maybe your best friend has wanted to study medicine since First Year, someone else already knows which college accommodation they’re applying for and you’re still trying to figure out what you’d even like to study.
But life isn’t a race. There’s no prize for figuring everything out first.
Taking a year to work, doing a PLC or choosing an apprenticeship doesn’t mean you’re missing out on life or falling behind your friends.
Your experience might look different from theirs, but different doesn’t mean worse.
And if you do decide to go to college a little later, you won’t be the only person there who didn’t go straight from school.
You Have More Time Than You Think
When you’re in Sixth Year, choosing a course can feel like the biggest decision you’ll ever make. And while it’s definitely worth putting thought into, it doesn’t have to be a decision that defines the rest of your life.
The reality is that you have so much time ahead of you to try things, make mistakes, change your mind and start again.
You might feel grown up now, especially with everyone asking about your future, but 17 or 18 is still SO young. You’re only just beginning to figure out who you are outside of school, never mind what you want to spend the next 40 years doing.
You don’t need to have a dream job, a five year plan or even a definite college course picked out right now.
Of course, it’s important to research your options and keep an eye on CAO deadlines if you’re planning to apply. But try not to put so much pressure on yourself to make the perfect choice.
Because the truth is, there probably isn’t one perfect path waiting for you.
You might go to college straight away, you might take a different route, or you might end up doing something you haven’t even heard of yet.
Whatever you decide, remember that you’re not choosing the rest of your life. You’re choosing what you’d like to try next.
And if that doesn’t work out? You’re allowed to try something else.