Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 8 July 2014
77. Deputy Jonathan O'Brien asked the Minister for Education and Skills if he has examined the possibility of making leaving certificate results available earlier in order to provide students with more time to prepare for the transition to third level, especially considering the lack of affordable rental accommodation for students; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29407/14]
View answerI am advised by the State Examinations Commission that the Leaving Certificate results are issued 7.5 weeks after the written examinations in June. Following each days examinations the candidates' scripts are returned to the SEC offices before being despatched to the examining team for marking. The marking schemes must be finalised and examiners trained before commencing to mark. Each examiner's work is monitored by a more experienced examiner to ensure that they are correctly applying the marking scheme. The marked scripts are then returned to the SEC in order to process the final grades, which includes the collation of marks for the different components, such as the oral, aural and written paper in a language subject. I am advised by the SEC that due to the significant logistics involved and the need for the highest possible levels of quality assurance it is not possible to issue the results any sooner.
