Q: MY daughter is in Leaving Cert year and is interested in a career in speech therapy. She is doing eight subjects and intends to do six higher-level papers in German, accounting, maths, chemistry, biology and music as these are her best bet for points. She plans to do lower level in English and Irish. Her problem is that TCD, the only college offering this, has a course requirement of higher English. Is there any way around this - maybe by doing arts or science for one year and then transferring?

Mayo mother

The first thing to establish is that your daughter will have the college matriculation requirements for TCD - these are six subjects in the Leaving Cert, three of them at higher C level.

She must pass in English, maths and a language other than English and then pass in three further subjects.

The second thing to verify is that she has the faculty/ course requirements for the clinical speech and language studies degree which are a HD/OD in maths and a HC in one of English, French, German, Irish, Italian, or Spanish and a HC in one of applied maths, physics, chemistry, biology, or physics/chemistry.

Since your daughter is doing higher German, if she achieves a HC in this, she doesn't have to worry about doing the lower level Irish or English then, as long as she passes English. However, I would look again at taking eight subjects because she can be graded on six only and eight is a very heavy work load.

Q: I'M very keen to train as a home economics teacher. If I don't get a place in a college here, could I train in a college in Britain or Northern Ireland and would my degree be acceptable for second-level teaching here when I come back?

Co Dublin student

You will have at least three options in your CAO degree course list: the B Ed in home economics in St Catherine's College, Sion Hill, Blackrock, Co Dublin, and the home economics and biology option or the home economics and catechetics option, both in St Angela's College, Sligo.

Home economics is not taught in Northern Ireland or in Britain as a composite subject anymore, so if you wish to take a degree course there you have to take a combined degree to include such options as food science or nutrition etc to suit the type of courses that are taught at O Level or A Level. There is no course called home economics at degree level, so it's not possible to take a course which qualifies you to teach the full home economics course at post-primary level here.

For instance, if you opt for Sion Hill, the course consists of three disciplines: home economics, education and an elective subject. There is a choice of three electives: economics and consumer studies, an cursa Gaeilge or religious studies. The major components of the home economics are food studies, home and environment studies and textile studies.

Again, for St Angela's, the degree is comprised of three disciplines: home economics, education and the electives of either biology or catechetics. Here, the major components of the home economics section are family resource management, food studies or textiles fashion and design. So your choice is really governed by the elective subject.

Q: I'm in sixth year and will be doing my Leaving Cert next June. Unfortunately, I didn't do too much research on my career choice when I was in fifth year and now I find there are a lot of college open days and career fairs which I feel I should attend but I have very little free time. Are they worth going to?

Offaly student

If you're not at all sure about your preferences in courses and colleges, then it's well worth your while going to your local higher education/ careers fair. However, prepare yourself ahead and don't just go around grabbing every college prospectus in sight, stuffing them in a plastic bag and then go home and ignore them.

Find out which colleges offer the type of courses you are most interested in, get their stand numbers and head straight there. Ask about course content, entry requirements, exams, graduate opportunities and compare your answers and how you were treated.

Talk to recent graduates and attend talks on entry procedures and particular courses of interest to you. If you got around to, say, five colleges you would be doing well, paying particular attention to colleges near you.

Use this as a means of researching your course preferences in a realistic way. When you get back to school, ask to see your guidance counsellor and discuss these choices and get further information on the courses that are still of interest and for which you are eligible.

You can then visit the particular colleges you want on their open day. The more careers research you do early in the year the better because then you can settle down to your study.

It's very important to check out at least your first three college choices. After all, you will spend three or four years there and you'd better like it and the environs.

At an open day, you will get a very good feel for the college and its facilities. Try to see the campus accommodation which is always a very good choice for first years. Check if first-years get any preference on the list. Check the cost. Check if course content suits you, if the course is semesterised or if it's an end-of-year exam?

If you are interested in a practical course, say, science or engineering, check the laboratories and equipment.

Some colleges provide introductory lectures and subject lectures are also given. How would you rate these? Were they well organised? Were they stimulating?

What are the undergraduates like? Are they motivated, positively disposed towards the college?

What are the graduate destinations like for the courses you are interested in? What kind of travel will you have to undertake to get there?

If you're still not sure after visiting your top three choices on their relevant open days, then you could ask your guidance counsellor to set up a visit for a small number of students from your school to visit a particular faculty later on in the year.

Queries can be answered only through this column and not by phone or post. Write to Sile Sheehy, Education & Living, The Irish Times, D'Olier Street, Dublin 2 - or by email to education@irish-times.ie