More than 67,000 students will receive their eagerly awaited Junior Cycle exam results later today, five months after the exams were taken.
The usual two-month wait for students to receive their grades has now lasted four months.
Moreover, they were the first students since the Covid pandemic exam cancellation in 2019 to take the entire exams.
The Leaving Cert was held later than scheduled and there weren’t enough examiners to mark the papers, which led to the delayed results.
Minister for Education Norma Foley said she hopes there won’t be similar delays next year.
“Of course we all wish that the timing would have been earlier, but I do accept the State Examinations Commission’s view that they had particular challenges this year.
“Notwithstanding that, there will be a full review by the State Examinations Commission looking forward at things for next year and how the best accommodations can be put in place to make sure we’re looking at an earlier timeframe at the very least.”