Pre-University courses, direct access to the jobs market and apprenticeships are some of the key reasons students attend Blackrock Further Education Institute.
With the Taoiseach Simon Harris stating, when he was Minister for Higher Education, that there is too much emphasis on traditional educational pathways, attention rightly turned towards alternatives to the CAO, and the Further Education sector is leading the charge. Students, career guidance counsellors, parents, the media and wider society are sitting up and taking notice.
Pre-University Courses
BFEI has worked hard to develop an access route for students who wish to gain degrees. Recent data has shown that three out of four BFEI students who applied through the CAO in 2023 get offered a place, the majority on Level 8 courses.
Their Pre-University Law QQI Level 5 course, now in its seventh year, can boast of past pupils taking places in university law courses across the country from TCD to NUIG.
The Pre-University Arts and Social Studies programme aims to do the same for students who wish to become teachers, social workers or NGO employees but missed their CAO target.
These alternatives to the Leaving Certificate/CAO route are a valuable lifeline and pressure release valve for so many students, and BFEI has many years’ experience in successfully delivering these courses and helping students achieve their goals.
Their Psychology course is another example of where BFEI excels. BFEI have been running their Level 5 course in Psychology for over 16 years and this has facilitated many students to progress on to degree and masters level courses in DCU, UCD, SETU (Southeast Technological University), DLIADT, Maynooth, to name but a few.
Due to the success of these courses, BFEI now runs similar programmes in IT and Business and Design all with the same aim: start your studies in BFEI and then complete them in your choice from a wide range of other colleges.
Direct Pathway to the Workplace
Direct progression into the workplace on courses such as IT, Beauty and Body Therapy, Nails and Lashes and Over the Counter Pharmacy Assistant, has long been a feature of the success of BFEI.
The list of household names that have graduated from the beauty courses in BFEI include Suzanne Jackson, Jennifer Rock (The Skin Nerd), Rose Connolly, Michelle Regazzoli (Mrs Makeup) and Caolán Kelly (RTE Glow Up Ireland 2021 contestant). Not to mention the many students that go directly into salons and pharmacies in Ireland and abroad with confidence from having a widely recognised qualification under their belts.
Apprenticeships
In 2016, together with Accounting Technicians Ireland, BFEI began its Accounting Technician Apprenticeship. Students qualify after two years as an Accounting Technician and can progress to a Level 9 course with Chartered Accountants Ireland.
Students study one day a week in BFEI and work four days a week with employers who have included ESB, Grant Thornton, OSK and Revenue, earning a salary starting at €20,000. The symbiosis between the classroom and the workplace benefits the students greatly and is evident in their satisfaction with this method of learning.
Easy Application: If you wish to apply to any course in BFEI it is as simple as logging on to their website (www.BFEI.ie) and completing a free online application.
