As state examinations begin, Leaving Certificate students face the harsh reality of poor employment prospects.
The summer is on hold for the 126,000 students sitting Intermediate, Leaving and Group Certificate examinations. The state examinations are being held in over 2,500 exam centres throughout the country.
The exams will continue for about two weeks and as tradition would have it, Irish was first.
The consensus among students is the Irish paper was as they expected. Some students even found it easier than in previous years,
The poetry and prose was easy but the essays were a bit harder than I expected.
The numbers taking the state examinations in 1983 are up. One reason is thought to be the poor employment prospects for school leavers. Now those who remained in school to Leaving Cert level are facing the reality of poor job prospects.
There's an awful lot of students leaving school disillusioned with all the unemployment.
One student does not think there are any jobs for those currently taking their Leaving Cert exams.
Another reckons there might be some work available but,
You just have to take anything you can get, you just can’t choose.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 8 June 1978. The reporter is Michelle McCaughren.
