Shadowing politicians and sailing from the Netherlands to Dublin: winners of Careers Skills competition honoured
The top 29 students were honoured at a ceremony at the Clock Tower in the Department of Education on Wednesday, alongside their families, teachers and guidance counsellors.
Winners were chosen from nearly 1,400 entrants who explored a career and entries were made in English or Irish, either through a written submission or a vlog.
Among the students honoured at the event was Valeriia Stepanenko, the first place winner in the Leaving Cert category.
Valeriia, whose goal is to become a diplomat, arrived in Ireland from Ukraine in 2022 and has settled in Ramsgrange, Co Wexford. Fluent in English, Ukrainian and Russian, she volunteered with local enterprises and the county council before shadowing Labour Party TD, George Lawlor.
"This competition continues to showcase the incredible talent, curiosity, and ambition of Ireland's young people. By exploring real-world careers and reflecting on the skills they've developed, students are not only planning for their futures — they're actively shaping them,' CareersPortal managing director, Eimear Sinnott, said at the event.
The nearly 1,400 students who entered the Career Skills Competition explored more than 200 different careers from farming, horticulture and forestry to construction, architecture and property.
Brendan Owens of Research Ireland and the European Space Education Resource Office (ESERO) Ireland, said: 'ESERO Ireland is proud to support this award to spotlight a student who brings to light the reality of a career in Space Science, Maths or Physics, busting stereotypes and uncovering the amazing opportunities that lie ahead of young people.'
The winners in each of the competition's categories received MacBook Air laptops while second-place winners received iPads and third-place students received Apple Airpods.
All commended students received prizes and four schools each received €1,000 to support their career guidance programmes.
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Organisers said there was a 'notable rise' in the level of interest in politics among the students who took part, while there was also growing interest in apprenticeships in trades like carpentry and engineering.
Healthcare, including medicine and nursing, was also a popular choice. Teaching also remained popular but saw its interest drop compared to previous years.
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