Traits, qualities & characteristics of a resilient person
 
                Viewing change as a challenge or opportunity
                Commitment
                Recognition of limits of control
                Engaging the support of others
                Close, secure attachment to others
                Personal or collective goals
                Self-efficacy
                Strengthening effects of stress
                Past successes
                Realistic sense of control/having choices
                Sense of humour
                Action-orientated approach
                Patience
                Tolerance of negative affect
                Adaptability to change
                Optimism
                Faith

The exam
 Be rested
 Check your timetable
 Have your pens and instruments ready
 Try to stay calm
 Have a plan of action. How much time will you spend reading the
questions? In what order do you intend answering the questions? What
options do you have? Will you attempt the easy questions first? Will you
jot down notes before you begin? Where will you jot down the notes?
 Read the exam paper carefully. Better to spend a few minutes reading
than to misread a question.
 Quickly note the main points of your answers
 Watch your times
 Be sure to answer all questions as required
 Stay until the end of the exam time
 If you have time, read over your answers
 When the exam is over, avoid negative discussions about it and begin
your preparations for the next exam

What The 4th Industrial Revolution Will
Mean For Your Career
•
We are at the beginnings of a new industrial revolution that will not only fundamentally
transform most industries and businesses but will also have a wide
-
reaching impact on our
careers. This new
4
th
industrial revolution
will bring change and innovation at an
unprecedented rate, fuelled by technological advancements like artificial intelligence,
machine learning, big data, the internet of things and more.
Businesses need to
be agile to react to rapidly changing technology and ways of doing
business, so who they need on their team today might be drastically different to who they will
need in even the very near future. This has led to a more flexible approach to workforce
plan
ning where businesses dynamically create teams with the talent they need for a period of
time, often composed of a flexible internal workforce and contractors who come in for one
project and then leave again. This gives businesses the flexibility they need
to adapt to
changing business needs, expand and contract as business dictates, and recruit individuals
with the particular skill
-
set and technical know
-
how they require for a project. We often refer
to this new environment as the gig economy and I believe
we will see a shift from long
-
term
employment to shorter
-
term more flexible gigs.
According to a report from LinkedIn, it’s likely that millennials will hold twice as many jobs
by the time they are 30 years old than their colleagues who are 10 years older
.
Regardless of
whether you are a freelancer or a full
-
time employee of an organization, I believe that as a
result of this change, individuals must treat their careers more like a business of which they
are the CEO. The professionals that behave like any
effective CEO and prepare and train to
be able to supply the skills and resources customers and businesses seek are going to be in
command of their professional futures. These employees are those that have an eye on the
horizon for upcoming opportunities.
This new reality is enabled by the explosion of internet
-
based resources that make it easy for
anyone to acquire skills in any discipline quickly and cheaply. It means more people have
access to essential training than ever before and those that want to f
orge out on their own can
make it happen with the help of abundant free (or cheap) education. It’s those workers that
take advantage of these resources who will set themselves up for success. Plus, data
-
powered
career and employment sites fueled by rich da
ta streams make it easier to know and compare
the opportunities and rewards available to us.
How committed are you to upgrading your skills and knowledge? There are several learning
opportunities that you can take advantage of now to enhance your skill
-
set
to keep you
marketable for the changing economy. Here are a few:
Five Ways 5G Will Rock Our World
On
-
the
-
Job Training from Top Colleges
Corporations who want to invest in flexible continuing education for their workers from
colleges find value with online educational programs such as those offered from
ExecOnline
.
This type of service opens the door to professional development programs from top colleges,
but doesn’t requi
re people to leave the office for extended periods of time.
Network for Top
-
Tier Talent
If the shift for businesses to rely more on contractors rather than full
-
time personnel is going
to work out, there will need to be changes in the way highly skilled ta
lent and those
businesses who need them find each other. That’s where businesses such as
Toptal
come in.
This is a network of top
-
tier talent
--
developers, designers and financial experts
--
all screened
and verified with a language and personality test, test screenings and test projects. This gives
companies a chance to work with freelancers and contrac
tors without any risk at all.
Sometimes it Takes a Crowd
With the power of more than 1 million coders, designers, data scientists and algorithmists at
your disposal through the services of
Topcoder
, org
anizations have the ability to deliver
faster solutions to their tech issues. Through its crowdsourcing marketplace, Topcoder has
helped develop and design apps, cognitive solutions, analytics and more quickly and
effectively to help businesses get ready f
or the challenges of tomorrow.
Expand your Knowledge with Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)
When you consider all the learning you can access from some of the world’s top universities
with just an internet connection, it’s simply incredible. These are
free college
-
level courses
on sites such as
Coursera
,
edX
and
Khan Academy
. Although at the end
of the courses you
will receive certificates of achievement rather than course credits or grades, this is still
marketable education and HR executives and recruiters see these certificates as proof of your
commitment to upgrading skills and knowledge.
Take
charge of your professional development like you’re the CEO of your professional
future, because you are. Professionals who show that they are commitment to skills
acquisition and personal development will be those poised to be the resources needed by
tom
orrow’s businesses.
I write books, deliver keynote presentations and provide expert advice on big data, analytics,
metrics and improving business performance. I have helped many of the world’s leading
companies and governments on how to answer their most c
ritical business questions using
data a...
Bernard Marr
is a best
-
selling author & keynote speaker on business, technology and big
data. His new book is
Data Strategy
. To read his future posts
simply join his network here
.

Junior Cycle

Junior Cycle runs for three years and finishes with the Junior Certificate examination. In these years you will be offered a broad general education that will provide the foundations for your future education and career.
The Junior Cycle is undergoing some changes. From 2014, the new 'Junior Cycle Student Award' (JCSA) is being delivered, which features newly developed subjects and short courses, a focus on literacy, numeracy and key skills. Assessment and reporting is also different. The change started in 2014 with a new English Programme, followed by Science and Irish in 2015, and a new Business course and suite of short courses added in 2016.

Details of the new JCSA are available here. 

Junior Cycle Subjects
During the Junior Cycle you will learn a lot about a wide range of subjects, some of which you are likely to prefer more than others. For many students this is a time where you begin to get an idea about what you would like to do in later life. If you really like a subject, for example business, art or science, you may develop an interest in specialisng in that area in the Leaving Cert, or even in college when you leave school. Read about the subjects you are studying or might like to study in our section on Junior Cycle Subjects.

Self-Assessment
During the Junior Cycle is a good time to start thinking about and exploring careers. Start by taking some tests and exercises that are designed to help you understand how you differ from others. Everybody is unique, and the tests available here are designed to help you understand your strengths and weaknesses so that you can choose what's best for you. Tests are available from the Self-Assessment area.

Career Sectors, Occupations and Videos
We encourage you to start researching careers now so that you get an idea of the amazing possibilities that are available. In particular we recommend looking at lots of Career Videos to get an idea of what is possible. You can explore whole career areas by choosing the Career Sectors area - for example, business, medicine, or engineering to name a few. You can also find out all you need to know about hundreds of occupations - like what the work is like, what qualifications you need to get a job, how much you might earn and so on.

Subject Choice
All Junior Cycle students will have to make choices about what they would like to study for the Leaving Cert. These decisions are made towards the end of Junior Cycle or in Transition year. We provide all you need to know to help you make the right decision for you, in our LC Subject Choice area.

Study Skills
One of the greatest challenges in the Junior Cycle is learning how to study and perform in an exam. Our Study Skills guide provides tips and advice through videos provided by an American expert, along with a test to help you find out where your strengths and weaknesses are.

1st July (17:15) Change of Mind closes
Early July Round A offers for certain Non-Standard categories of applicants - applicants receive an offer by post, by e-mail and SMS text
22nd July (17:15) Exceptional closing date for late applications for those already attending a participating HEI
Early August Round 0 offers for certain Non-Standard categories of applicant - applicants receive an offer by post, by e-mail and SMS text
Mid-August Current year Leaving Certificate results issued
20th August Round 1 offers available from 06:00 online - also issued by post, e-mail and SMS text.
Applicants who have not received an offer will receive a Statement of Application Record
24th August Round 1 Acceptances closing date (17:15).
29th August Round 2 offers available from 10:00 online.
31st August Round 2 Acceptances closing date (17:15).
Early September HEIs begin registration
Early October Results of Leaving Certificate appeals released
17th October (17:15) Offer Season Ends.

DIT – Change to language entry requirements
It has been decided by Academic Council to change the language entry requirements for the following programmes.
We have removed the requirement for a pass in any other language (incl Irish) at O6/H7 or equivalent for each programme.


So, the new min entry requirements are as follows:-


Level 7SubjectsMathsEnglish OR IrishLink
DT4065O6/H7O6/H7HERE
DT4085O6/H7O6/H7HERE
DT4115O6/H7O6/H7HERE

Level 8 Subjects H5’s Maths English OR Irish Link DT401 6 2 O4/H7 O6/H7 HERE DT412 6 2 O4/H7 O6/H7 HERE DT413 6 2 O4/H7 O6/H7 HERE

CAO Change of Mind facility openCAO applicants wishing to make changes to their course choices can do so from noon today (4 May) using the Change of Mind facility.
The CAO Change of Mind facility can be accessed via the ‘My Application’ section at www.cao.ie up to 1 July at 5:15pm. This facility is free of charge and can be used as many times as is required.
Mature applicants, and applicants considering introducing a restricted course to their application, should take note of the restrictions before using the Change of Mind facility.
Speaking about the Change of Mind process CAO communications officer, Eileen Keleghan, suggested applicants should think carefully about any changes that they make.
“The Change of Mind facility is available up to 1 July at 5:15pm, and applicants should use this time to thoroughly research courses, taking special care to check the minimum entry requirements and course content.
“Applicants need to be careful not to make last minute changes to an application based on assumptions about what the points will be, or how well they feel that they have done in their exams. The best advice that we can give applicants is to place their course choices in genuine order of preference.
“CAO applicants should take care when entering their course codes and make sure to check that courses are listed in the correct order by logging in using the ‘My Application’ facility before the ‘Change of Mind’ deadline” she added.
When logging in to make changes, applicants will see their existing Level 8 or Level 7/6 list and a ‘New courses’ list. If an applicant chooses to add, remove or change the order of their courses on either list they must insert all course codes in the correct order on the new list. 
For more information about the ‘Change of Mind’ process, and the restrictions that apply, visit the CAO website or view the CAO Handbook. 
www.cao.ie

1. There is no plan
    Make decisions for fundamental, not instrumental reasons. 


2. Think strengths, not weaknesses.
    What do you do consistently well? What gives you energy rather than drains you? 


3. It's not about you.
    The most successful people improve their own lives by improving others' lives. 


4. Persistence trumps talent.
    There are massive returns to doggedness. 


5. Make excellent mistakes.
    Commit errors from which the benefits of what you've learned exceed the costs of the screw-up.


6. Leave an imprint.
    Recognize that your life isn't infinite and that you should use your limited time here to do      something that matters.