Chelsea Curtis, Event Management, DIT

It is important to remember that not everybody knows what they want to do with their lives – in fact, only a very small minority of people do. It’s crazy to expect anybody to know exactly what career they want to pursue at such a young age, so don’t put yourself under so much pressure when it comes to the approaching CAO deadline.

Deciding what options to put down on the CAO was the bain of my life in Sixth Year. I had no idea what I wanted to do, and the idea of committing three or four years of my life to the wrong course made me sick to my stomach. I felt like everyone around me knew what they wanted to do, and I was still clueless. So, as the deadline loomed closer, I panicked and put down a course just for the sake of going to college. I wanted to get the CAO over with, just so I could start focusing on my Leaving Cert studies.

When the day of the CAO offers came along, I didn’t feel any more certain of my decision. Long story short, after a month of uncertainty, I knew I had made the wrong decision. I dropped out - and it was the best decision I ever made.

I took the year out and gave myself the time to discover my options and figure out what I was genuinely interested in. Then, when the time came the following year to fill in the CAO, I put the BSc in Event Management at DIT as my first choice. I am now three years into that degree. and I couldn’t be happier.

Sometimes it is okay to take more time if you need it. Don’t let the pressure of CAO deadlines rush you into making the wrong decision.