PLCs: What's the point?

From equine studies, fashion or woodcraft to theatre, hairdressing or retail studies, there is a world of choice within the PLC sector - including some of the key growth areas such as teleservices, information technology, media production and information processing. The breadth and relevance of Post Leaving Cert courses has moved this sector to centre stage in higher education. Thousands of school leavers are completing PLC courses each year and finding jobs at the end of their course's one or two year period.

At the beginning of this month, the National Council for Vocational Awards (NCVA) presented 15,000 students with certificates on the successful completion of a PLC course. And as the sector continues to grow, different courses are being developed at centres around the country in response to employment and public needs. The NCVA, the agency of the Department of Education which sets, monitors and certifies national standards for these courses, explains that the courses are employment-focused and designed in conjunction with employers. Research shows that some 90 per cent of students who complete PLC courses gain employment almost immediately.

Some of the newest and most popular awards are NCVA Level 3 (a two-year PLC diploma course); this year these included a networks and software systems certificate and a green-keeping certificate. Another area of rapid growth is the sport and recreation area. In 1994, the NCVA awarded 69 people a national vocational certificate in green-keeping while this year, the number had increased to 288 people. The traditional areas within the business studies area are as popular as ever. There is no centralised application system for PLC courses. Students must apply directly to each college, and places are usually allocated on the basis of an interview. A portfolio may be required for certain courses. In its first year - 1994 - the NCVA awarded 5,000 national vocational certificates. The next year the figure jumped to 8,000. This year it is 15,000. In all, 50,000 certificates have been awarded. "The significance is that the number has trebled since 1994," says Cynthia Deane Fogarthy, chief executive of the NCEA.

And these graduates, she explains, "are getting jobs in the area of their chosen career". Economic and Social Research Institute research shows, she says, that almost 90 per cent of award-holders gain employment immediately on completion of their courses. "People choose these courses because they are immediately relevant to job opportunities," she says.

James Martin, head of the school of communication and media at Dublin's Colaiste Dhulaigh, which has run PLC courses since the late 1970s, says that the PLC sector has "definitely strengthened and become more credible in the eyes of the public, especially over the last five or six years".

The courses are, he explains, "very vocational in their bias but that does not mean that they are not challenging in an academic way. They are more realistically focused." As one of the biggest PLC colleges in the country, Colaiste Dhulaigh, which is under the City of Dublin Vocational Education Committee, has a current PLC student population of about 700. Courses vary in length from one to two to three years. The most popular areas, according to Martin, are Computer-Aided Design (CAD), tourism, languages, media and design courses; computers and information technology have become quite popular in the last few years.

PLC courses enable students who do not get high points for certain courses at universities or colleges to pursue the career of their choice via an equally valid route. "In a way the university thing is a little bit unreal in that you have to get tremendously good points, but you don't need that to pursue our courses," he says.

Another college which has seen the number of applications to its PLC courses grow is Dun Laoghaire Community College. "A lot of people come to do PLCs who would have repeated a number of years ago," says Michael Condren, head of the college's business department. Dun Laoghaire Community College, he says, "especially prides itself on its links with industry which enables it to place students in worthwhile work experience positions". The college has stepped in to deal with skills shortages in a range of areas, including electronics and teleservices. "Electronics is a fast-growing industry where demand for qualified staff has far outstripped supply," he says. The college has a two-year diploma course and places students with electronics companies as part of the course.

Although the main aim of PLC courses is to prepare students for immediate employment, students now have the option of completing a PLC course and progressing on to third level. Since 1995, links have been forged with third-level colleges so that students may continue on to a number of third-level certificate and diploma courses in Institutes of Technology in this country and even degree courses in Britain. Every year since the introduction of the links project with Institutes of Technology here, up to 1,000 places have been set aside for students who choose to go this route. Although only a couple of hundred take up this option each year, "anecdotal evidence indicates that the link scheme is performing well", says Cynthia Deane Fogarty.

To qualify for access to this linkage scheme, students must successfully complete a PLC course - which means qualifying for an NCVA level 2 award, reaching the required standard in eight modules, five vocational, two general studies and one preparation-for-work or work-experience module. Students should check that the particular PLC course links in directly with a third-level course; not all PLC courses have this added attraction. The NCVA publishes a list of PLC courses along with the corresponding third-level courses and some college prospectuses list these courses.

This linkage scheme has a couple of distinct advantages. NCVA candidates are not competing with Leaving Cert students, as about 1,000 places are reserved for them, although they may have to compete with each other. Links have been forged with several British colleges, whereby students have been able to undertake further study leading to a degree. James Martin reports that some 100 Colaiste Dhulaigh students have done a further year's study and obtained degrees in media, architecture or computer-aided design in the last few years.

Although the Minister for Education will provide maintenance grants for PLC students this year for the first time, the Irish Vocational Education Association believes that this money will not be available until early next year. "This may deter students from going on a course," says Brendan Griffin, president of the IVEA. "We are concerned that the payments will not come through until February of next year. They will be back-dated, of course, but there is a strong feeling among members of the IVEA that this might be a deterring factor to many students." However, sources in the Department say that the money has been set aside, the scheme is being actively worked on, and it is hoped that it will be in place during this coming term.