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Starting post-primary school

What is post-primary education?

Post-primary education (also called secondary school) starts after primary school. Post-primary school is for children aged 12 to 18 years. Most children start post-primary school at the age of 12 or 13. They must be at least 12 years of age on 1 January in the year they start post-primary school.

Attendance at school (or receiving an education) is compulsory from the age of 6 up to age 16 or until students have completed 3 years of second-level education, whichever is the later.

Post-primary education includes a 3-year Junior Cycle and a Senior Cycle that lasts 2 or 3 years.

There are different types of post-primary school.

Choosing a post-primary school

When choosing a school, you can look at:

  • The admissions policy, which should be described in the school plan that the school must publish.
  • The subjects available and the programmes offered by the school aside from the Junior Cycle and established Leaving Certificate – such as the Junior Certificate School Programme, Transition Year, Leaving Certificate Applied, and the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme.
  • The streaming of students – how students are divided into different classes for all subjects from the time they start secondary school, based on the school's assessment of their ability.
  • Student assessment and how feedback is given to parents.
  • School discipline – under the Education (Welfare) Act 2000 (pdf), the board of management must draw up a code of behaviour for students.
  • Facilities, such as, a library, access to computers, a language laboratory, and facilities for lunch, PE and recreation.
  • Support services available – such as guidance counsellors, remedial support for students, pastoral care, etc.
  • Extra-curricular activities available – such as sports, clubs or debating.
  • Other factors like the school ethos, student and parental involvement in the life of the school, and whether the school has a student council or a parents' association.

Read more about choosing a post-primary school.

Enrolling your child at post-primary school

You can send your child to the post-primary school of your choice, provided there is a place available.

To enrol your child:

Where there is shortage of space, the school must give priority based on its admissions policy.

All schools in Ireland must have a published admissions policy outlining how they handle applications, especially when oversubscribed.

The school of your choice may place your child on a waiting list, or you may need to contact other schools to find a place.

You can find out more about applying to a post-primary school and admissions policies in primary and secondary schools.

Single school application system pilot

The Department of Education and Youth is currently developing a single application system for post-primary schools. This system will allow parents or guardians to complete just one application form to apply to multiple schools for a first-year place for their child.

A small pilot of the Single Application System for the schools in 5 towns will open on 1 October 2025 for school places in September 2026.

Read more about the single application system pilot on the Department of Education and Youth website.

Your child in post-primary school

Schoolbooks and uniforms

Most post-primary schools do not charge fees. There may still be other costs if, such as school uniforms and examination fees . You can read about recommendations on school uniforms and the weight of schoolbags (pdf).

Since September 2024, schools in the Free Education Scheme provide free schoolbooks and core classroom resources to all Junior Cycle students. From September 2025, this will be extended to cover all Transition Year and Senior Cycle students in schools in the Free Education Scheme.

Find out more about getting financial help with going to school.

Exams in post-primary school

The Junior Cycle Profile of Achievement examination is taken at the end of the Junior Cycle.

In the Senior Cycle, there is an optional one-year Transition Year programme followed by a choice of 3 Leaving Certificate programmes. Each of the Leaving Certificate programmes lasts for 2 years.

More information

Read more about post-primary education, such as:

If you have a child with special educational needs, you can find out about:

Page edited: 14 July 2025

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