Moate CS hails achievements of Leaving Cert and Leaving Cert Applied students

Moate Community School has congratulated five of its students who achieved the maximum 625 points in the Leaving Cert exams this year.

The school expressed its pride in the "fantastic achievement" of the five students, Ella Corcoran, Katie Molloy, Jack Lappin, Claire McCormack and Aisling Murphy.

In addition, it congratulated the five Leaving Cert Applied students at the school, all of whom received distinctions (90%+).

The results were "testament to their hard work, dedication and attitude over the last two years. They will be missed around Moate CS," the school said in a social media post.

Speaking to the Westmeath Independent on Monday, the school's principal, Tom Lowry, was "very pleased overall" with the Leaving Cert results this year.

He said that, in addition to the five students who achieved the maximum 625 points, a further two had a 613 points haul.

"We had over 30 students in the 500 to 600 points bracket, and another big group who achieved between 400 and 500 points," said Mr Lowry.

"The most rewarding aspect of results day was that most students seemed to have enough points for their first choice course, based on last year's CAO figures."

A total of 109 students sat the Leaving Cert in Moate.

This was the first year for the Leaving Cert Applied exam to be offered to students in Moate, and Tom Lowry said it was "a particular source of pride" to see the class performing so well.

Some 70 to 80% of all Leaving Cert students from Moate Community School now proceed to third-level or further education studies, and Tom Lowry said the school was "very keen" to make students aware of the many routes they can take to their first-choice course if they do not get enough points initially.

"We see students here who automatically look at their second choice, but there may be, and there very often is, another route they can take towards their first choice and that is the direction we would be pointing them towards".