Gifted Teens Programmes, Scholarships & Events

For more information on internet safety for kids and teens please consult Webwise.ie, a great intiative from the National Centre for Technology in Education. You can also check out Internet safety advice by and for teens at NSTEENS.

CTYI Talent Search Programme (12-16 yrs)

The Centre for Talented Youth Ireland has a Talent Search Programme for post primary children aged between 12 to 16 years, the purpose of which is to:

"To identify, assess, recognize, and provide educational opportunities for mathematically and/or verbally talented secondary school students aged 12 - 16 years."

The Talent Search programme forms the assessment criteria for eligibility for the CYTI's three week residential Summer Programme. In order to be accepted students must sit the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT), a widely used test for College entry in the United States. This test is used as it is "an excellent indicator of mathematical and verbal reasoning ability at a young age." For more information on the Talent Search Programme please consult the Frequently Asked Questions and the Academic Content sections on the CTYI website.

• Children are required to sit the Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test (PSAT), and American model widely used as an assessment for college entry in the U.S.
• If a child scores exceptionally high in this assessment they may be considered for a merit scholarship towards the cost of the Summer Programme.
• Eligibility is based on the student's PSAT scores and their age at the time of testing.
• If students first scores do not qualify them for entry they can resit the test at a later date.
• According to the CTYI website a limited number of children may be accepted under "other criteria" , at the discretion of the CTYI Director.

Young Social Innovators

Young Social Innovators is a unique programme that gets young people (15-18yrs) involved in action which helps improve the lives of others in their community. It involves thousands of young people in Ireland each year in hundreds of projects and social enterprises which are youth-led, team-based and action-focussed. The YSI programme involves young people tackling a social issue that matters to them. Working in teams, they identify an issue that they believe they could help to change. They study the issue, identify ways of improving or solving it and, where they can, they put their ideas into action. So far, over 25,000 young people have risen to this challenge in Ireland and have made a difference to the lives of others. To find out how you can get involved go the YSI website.

Lucca Leadership Ireland

Lucca Leadership "runs courses in transformational leadership which enable young people of all nationalities and backgrounds to discover their purpose, clarify their vision and develop the skills needed to make change happen for the benefit of their communities, nations and ultimately humanity itself." With courses designed for ages from 12 to 30 and a leadership option for schools, this is an excellent programme which has life changing possiblilities for each participant.

Information for Irish Students applying to Harvard

Harvard College has an open policy when it comes to candidates. There are no quotas for US or Foreign Students. As such, each candidate is evaluated on their own merits. With nearly 30,000 applicants seeking one of the 1675 places available, the 6% rate of acceptance is clearly low. Foreign students have historically had a much higher rate of acceptance and this is in no small part due to the high calibre of applicants in this pool. For the past 30 years there has been a continuous presence of Irish students attending Harvard and we would like to keep this streak going. If you're interesting in discovering more of what Harvard has to offer, what the application process entails, how much it's going to cost, or indeed any question specific to the College, please feel free to contact their Alumni Interviewer, based in Dublin, via email at lonergan.killian@gmail.com. Killian will be able to talk on topics such as the following:

What Harvard admissions is looking for:
There is no magic formula for gaining admission to Harvard. Academic accomplishment in Secondary school is important, but the Admissions Committee also considers many other criteria, such as Community involvement, extracurricular activities, and work experience. Strength of character, ability to overcome adversity, enthusiasm, creativity, and other personal qualities often play a part in the Admissions Committee's decisions. Your grades and test scores help to assess your academic promise, but they are by no means relied upon exclusively.

The Application process:
The application process is multi facetted. It includes Personal Essays, Teacher Recommendations, an Alumni Interview, a Common Application Form, and the sitting of standardised US Academic Tests (SAT and SAT II) which are available here in Ireland. All of this is completed prior to sitting the Leaving Cert, and as such granting a successful applicant an offer of a place in Harvard in April to the forthcoming September term.

Cost:
How the $52,000 a year fee can be reduced to a fraction of this. Candidates whose parents earn less than $60,000 are not expected to contribute any finance towards their fees. Candidates whose parents earn between $60,000 and $180,000 are expected to pay approximately 10% of their earnings towards costs.

Courses: 
How studying Medicine or Law isn't available to an Undergraduate. Why Harvard encourages a 'General Education' policy for all Students, and what this means in practice.

Information kindly provided by Killian Lonergan, Harvard Alumni Interviewer

Science Foundation Ireland/DELL Scholarship – Young Women in Engineering

The Science Foundation Ireland/DELL Scholarship – Young Women in Engineering "aims to attract and encourage more high-achieving young women into third-level education in engineering disciplines. In 2009, it is anticipated that up to 10 scholarships will be awarded.The fourth year of the scheme (academic year 2009/2010) will again focus on young women entering designated four-year engineering degree programmes (pdf) in third-level institutions in Ireland. In addition, the list of Eligible Courses includes two courses, DN087 and DN080, which offer 3 years of undergraduate study leading to a Master in Engineering degree after a further two years of study (5 years total). The Scholarship SFI Scholars will receive:

• An annual award of €2,000 administered through their host institution
• A DELL notebook computer
• The assistance and support of an active researcher as a mentor throughout their undergraduate career
• At least one funded summer research-internship in an academic research laboratory or an industry R&D laboratory in Ireland."

For further details on how to apply and eligibility visit www.sfi.ie

The R.I.A.I. Foley Scholarship

"The National Building Agency Limited, in consultation with the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland and in line with the Agency's role in social housing, has established the NATIONAL BUILDING AGENCY FOLEY SCHOLARSHIP FOR ARCHITECTURE. The Scholarship commemorates the late Dermot Foley who had been successively Managing Director and Chairman of the Agency for some 25 years. The Scholarship is designed to provide the opportunity to study Architecture to persons who, because of a disadvantaged background, might not otherwise be in a position to undertake the course of study." Certain eligibility criteria need to be met and the closing date is April 30th. Please consutl the R.I.A.I. website for more details.

J.P. MacManus All Ireland Scholarships

In March 2008 this fantastic intiative to support highly able students from a disadvantaged background was announced, with the first of 118 students receiving their scholarship in September 2008. The scholarship is worth €6,750 per year for each recipient to support them for studies at undergraduate level. It is awarded to the top performing students in each county who attend any recognised non fee-paying post-primary school and are exempted from paying the Leaving Certificate Examination fee. It can be held in addition to the student maintenance grant - with qualification for the scholarship only open to those who qualify and are in receipt of the grant. A minimum of two scholarships will be offered in each county, with additional awards to be provided in the areas with greater numbers of eligible students. For more details see the All Ireland Scolarships website.

Donogh O'Malley Scholarships

Announced in December 2006, these scholarships are awarded to the top performing students who attend post-primary schools included in the DEIS Action Plan for educational inclusion in each of four geographical regions: Dublin City and County, Rest of Leinster, Munster and Connacht/Ulster.  A minimum of three scholarships will be offered in each region, with additional awards to be provided in the areas with greater numbers of eligible students.   This is in addition to the normal student grant and 'top-up' grant supports that are available subject to a means test. An annual award of approximately €6,500 will be made to each successful scholarship recipient to support them through third level education. See the Department of Education & Science website for more details.