Latest news with #Grinds360
Irish Times
25-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Carl O'Brien: ‘Are grinds really worth it?
I was writing today on how white-hot competition in the grinds sector is leading, in some cases, to eye-watering salaries for the most sought-after teachers. One of the new arrivals to the private tuition scene is online provider Grinds360, which has poached teachers from established operators like the Institute of Education and the Dublin Academy of Education. The grind schools, which are heavily oversubscribed, insist students fare best in-person with real teachers. Most Leaving Cert students avail of grinds nowadays. Photograph: Cyril Byrne Either way, business is booming in a sector estimated by some to be worth as much as €60-€80 million. But maybe a more significant question is: why? What factors are at play in driving so many to secure whatever advantage they can get? READ MORE High stakes The high-stakes nature of the Leaving Cert and CAO points system is an obvious one. Some argue that competition for top college courses has intensified due to grade inflation and rising points requirements. Others point to increasing anxiety, with more students feeling pressure from their own expectations or those of their parents. What is clear is that grinds have become normalised and are now an accepted part of exam success for most students. The grinds culture in Ireland is well in excess of many other European countries. According to a 2022 ESRI study , about one in five final-year students (16-20 per cent) get private support in Germany compared to more than half (55 per cent) in Ireland. Yet, the study's authors, Prof Selina McCoy and Prof Delma Byrne , found that private tuition only appeared to pay off for students with lower levels of achievement, with 'little, if any' gain for their middle and higher achieving peers. Nonetheless, grinds remain a lucrative business in Ireland, with costs ranging from €80 per hour for private grinds to more than €11,000 for full-time grind schools. The popularity of grinds raises uncomfortable questions around the quality of teaching in regular schools. Teacher shortages in key subject areas mean many students have either reduced subject choice or may be taught by an unqualified or 'out of field' teacher. Shortages Parents often are unaware, given that principals fear reputational damage if they highlight these difficulties. Some schools, especially in the South Dublin area, have been losing significant numbers of students to grind schools as a result. It remains to be seen whether Leaving Cert reforms – with a greater emphasis on project work and continual assessment – will affect demand and, in turn, the business model of grinds. Or perhaps the growth in the number of alternative pathways into further and higher education will take some heat out of the CAO points race. Anything that eases some of the acute stress experienced by students must, surely, only be a positive. How were the exams for you? We'd love to hear your feedback on this year's Leaving Cert exams: what were the hardest ?; what kind of toll did it take on students?; what changes would you like to see?; are you concerned about grade 'deflation' and its impact on CAO points? Please take a few minutes to complete our survey, below, and we'll share the results soon: Later this week: In advance of the CAO deadline, we'll share a last-minute checklist, as well as updates on what course areas have additional places and our analysis of how the 'deflation' of grades this year may affect this year's CAO points.
Irish Times
25-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Leaving Cert grinds industry: ‘Salaries scales for the top teachers can be 100 to 250 grand'
The final Leaving Cert exams are over – but another competition has been raging among grind schools where top teachers have been snapped for eye-watering salaries. The race is for a slice of a grinds industry estimated to be worth up to €60-80 million. Grinds360 is the newest competitor on the market, which raised more than €3 million from investors who include former and present rugby players such as Brian O'Driscoll , Caelan Doris and Jordan Larmour . It describes itself as a 'hybrid' service, combining an app which streams weekly grinds across 20 subjects, a Netflix-style catalogue of video lessons as well as in-person workshops at certain times of year. The cost, which has varied since its launch almost a year ago, is currently €1,399 a year. The company started out by poaching several teachers from rivals such as the Institute of Education and the smaller Dublin Academy of Education on huge salaries for the sector. READ MORE The circumstances of one those cases – maths teacher Rob Browne, who left the Dublin Academy of Education to work for Grinds360 – was at the centre of a High Court row last September, which was subsequently struck out. Brendan Kavanagh, chairman and co-founder of Grinds360, says the firm started out hiring about teachers from its competitors for key subjects like maths, English, Irish, sciences and business. The going rate to attract some of the top teachers from its rivals initially was, he says, 'anywhere from 100 to 250 grand'. 'Are they worth 200 grand or 250 grand? For the hours they had to work – they were working six, seven days a week in day school and night school – I'd want that kind of money – especially for teaching!' Kavanagh laughs. At the online platform, he says, they are able to work fewer hours but play key roles in the developing the future of the company. 'It's not really apples for apples. The more experienced grinds teachers are able to add a lot of value as we train other teachers throughout the country [who are now working for the company].' Some, he says, were also attracted by the idea of becoming involved in ownership of the firm. 'If you earn that kind of money, you pay a lot of tax. So I think the opportunity for them to become stakeholders in the business ... created a new sort of environment there.' Subsequent teachers have been hired part-time, on different contracts, from schools in Limerick, Cork, Galway, Waterford and Roscommon. The result, he maintains, is they are making grinds 'accessible and affordable' for students, while disrupting the 'superstar teacher' narrative which he says has been pushed by some grind schools. 'I'm off a few Christmas Card lists and I've been referred to as the Michael O'Leary of grinds. I'll take it if making overpriced, over-glorified education finally compete on fairness, access, and transparency earns me that comparison,' he says. Nearly one year on from launch, Kavanagh says Grinds360 has seen 'explosive growth' with more than 3,000 paying members and 18,000 app users. Backed by a €3.2 million seed round, he says the company is set to 'double revenue' in 2025-2026 and claims the company has established itself as the 'go-to alternative to traditional grind schools'. 'The numbers speak for themselves – there's a real hunger for a new model of academic support,' he says. Yet, business is also booming at the Institute of Education on Dublin's Leeson Street, which itself was a disruptive force in the education sector 57 years ago when it started the trend for exam-focused tuition. Yvonne O'Toole, principal of the Institute of Education, Leeson Street, Dublin. Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill The institute was sold to a UK-based schools group, Dukes Education, in 2023 for just under €135 million. This year, the institute is forecasting a record enrolment of 1,700 full-time students in September across fourth, fifth and sixth year, with students paying annual fees of up to €11,000 a year. It also runs grinds, crash courses and online learning for up to 10,000 students attending other schools. Yvonne O'Toole says demand is growing not just for exam results but because students have 'moved on' from single-sex, religious schools and uniforms by the time they are in senior cycle. While it lost some teachers to Grinds360, she says 'crazy salaries' are not the norm, but that teachers are paid well on the basis that they are 'expected to go above and beyond'. 'They do a lot more hours ... there are extra classes – morning, evening – and they're expected to be available. They put their heart and soul into it.' The institute's main competitor, the Dublin Academy of Education in Stillorgan, south Dublin, is also running at capacity. It had about 350 full-time fifth- and sixth-year students last year and says it is on course to grow to 400 when it moves to a larger premises in Blackrock in September. It expects numbers to grow to 500 in 2027 when it launches a fourth year offering. Chris Lauder, founder of the Dublin Academy of Education (left) with Dawn McCarron and Padraig Hourigan at the new location for the grind school. Photograph: Maxwells Founder Chris Lauder says while it also lost some teachers to Grinds360, it has 'a deep squad' and was able to 'march on'. The academy, he says, is always looking for top teaching talent. 'What we used to do was ask our students if they knew of great teachers and surveyed them. Teachers also know other great teachers. And, these days, you also find them on social media,' he says. He questions whether some of the top salaries being mentioned are sustainable for the sector and insists the best teachers ultimately want to teach students in-person rather than online. 'We pay more than what the public sector has to offer, and in some cases a lot more – maybe 50 per cent more,' he says. 'Our teachers want to work for not just for remuneration; they like teaching students who are serious about academics. This is senior cycle only. They're young adults, not children. They are driven – and they are a joy to teach.'
Irish Independent
09-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
The Indo Daily: Rugby stars, Leaving Cert grinds, lewd jokes and a High Court case
The private grinds industry in Ireland is booming, and is estimated to be worth between €50-€60m. Investors, including well-known names like Brian O'Driscoll and Caelan Doris, have been keen to get in on the action, as the pair did when they helped fund hybrid learning platform Grinds 360 last year. But the competition in the grinds world can be just as intense as it is on the rugby pitch, and sometimes notably bitter. Take the case of respected maths teacher Rob Browne, whose high-profile transfer from the Dublin Academy of Education to Grinds 360 led to a contentious dispute that landed in the High Court where, among other things, a lewd joke made on TikTok was under scrutiny. On this episode of The Indo Daily, host Kevin Doyle is joined by Sunday Independent journalist Mark Tighe, to discuss this unusual legal battle.
Irish Independent
08-06-2025
- Irish Independent
Leaving Cert grinds school backed by Brian O'Driscoll and Caelan Doris saw ‘star teacher' caught in row over alleged attempt to poach students
High Court case shines a light on the cut-throat world of private tuition Yesterday at 21:30 A maths teacher who was recruited as a star signing by an online Leaving Certificate grinds school backed by Irish rugby stars was the subject of High Court injunctions after he was accused of 'stealing' student contact details in an alleged effort to poach students. The Dublin Academy of Education obtained interim High Court orders last year preventing Rob Browne, its former teacher, from using its confidential information after it accused him of secretly downloading student contact details before he left to join Grinds 360.
Irish Independent
01-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
‘I'm getting paid to actually study' – meet the TikTokers who earn cash for Leaving Cert videos
How to get to 635 points, the finer points of the tuiseal ginideach and concerns around grade inflation are among issues covered in the online ecosystem of the TikTok influencer. Ella Martin (19), from Co Meath, has a place in a dance college in Dublin secured already, so points are not too relevant for her. Her 'Spend The Day Studying with Me' TikTok content features video of her at her desk interspersed with other activities and hanging out with friends. Ella is a brand ambassador for Simple Study, an online subscription platforms that provides access to revision notes, past papers and quizzes. 'I got a message from them about four weeks ago asking would I be interested in doing one video for them and I said absolutely. I was earning commission off however many people used [my discount] code,' Ella said. 'Now the videos I'm making up to the Leaving Cert are all paid for as well. It's €20 a video, which is really good for just videoing what I'm going to be doing during the day anyway. I'm getting paid to actually study. 'It was really motivating. It meant I had to get up and make my bed tidy, make my bedroom presentable, and then actually sit down and study.' Eighteen-year-old Ryan Dolan, from Co Westmeath, needs to get at least 500 points to study law in Galway. He started his TikTok account this year after an injury left him unable to play Gaelic football. 'It was quite nerve-racking, I won't lie. I didn't know what the perception was going to be at the start,' he said. 'It felt like there was a lot of slagging going on at first. But people started to realise, 'oh, Ryan's able to put up a TikTok in the evening and he makes as much money as I'm making [at a part-time job] over the weekend'.' At one point he was getting so many negative messages, he had friends logging into his account to filter what was coming in. But he said things have calmed down since. Ryan works with a company called Grinds 360, whose investors include former rugby star Brian O'Driscoll. He describes himself as a Leaving Cert creator, and makes videos that are typically 'day-in-the-life' content. 'I don't get paid to make the videos, but for anybody who uses my code, I get €50 for a referral,' he said. Ryan recounted an incident in which a 'random account' posted a video accusing him and other exam TikTokers of scaremongering. 'That wasn't very nice,' he said. 'There is a lot of scaremongering out there, but I try to motivate people away from the fear of the Leaving Cert.' Catríona Lawless-Molyneux (19) sat her Leaving Cert last year. From outside Mullingar, she now lives in Belfast, and has just finished her first year studying English and Irish at Queen's University. She's an ambassador for study website Studyclix. 'Last year they gave us free full access to the website, and Studyclix merchandise,' Catríona said. 'This year I have been involved in a number of paid promotions for them, receiving up to €250.' She posted recently about fearmongering. 'Looking back at myself last year, I was definitely part of a group of people that I'm sure people were sick of seeing on their social media just talking about the Leaving Cert. But I feel like this year it has taken on a whole new form. I've seen videos of people saying they're waking up at 5:30 in the morning to do a 12-hour study day,' she said. Aisling Walsh, from Co Mayo, is currently in Australia on exchange as part of her studies in law and politics in UCD. The 21-year-old sat her Leaving Cert in 2022, the year that several people pinpointed as the year this kind of content really took off. She became known at the time as The Leaving Cert Girl. 'I started to do day-in-the-life videos. I was doing these study days that were between five and eight hours, which obviously was a lot of study. It blew up because of people's reaction to the amount of study that I was doing,' Aisling said. She now works for Studyclix's social media team, having posted sponsored content for the company when she was studying for her Leaving Cert. Jake Glendon, a 19-year-old from Kilkenny, sat his Leaving Cert last year and still posts online advice for students. He also runs grinds on Zoom for a €15 hourly rate. He previously worked with Studyclix, and now works with Simple Study. 'If the video does really well, and you do 20,000 views, you could get anywhere from €70 to €100. They give bonuses depending on how the content does,' Jake said. Caoimhe Graham's 'Day in the Life' TikTok videos have a slightly different context. The 18-year-old, who lives in Galway, has a kidney condition – IgA nephropathy – that has flared up in the past few weeks. It means she is studying and posting videos from her hospital bed. Last November, her mother Susan died. 'Considering everything, I definitely think I am doing really well,' she said. Caoimhe went back to school two weeks after her mum died, and sat every paper on her mocks. 'They were fine,' she said. She is hoping to get Advanced Therapeutic Technology in RCSI. She describes her TikTok as 'a studying account. I've really enjoyed it, and being able to help people. I've had messages from people all over the country. People come up to me and thank me for posting videos'.
