Irish organisations back new second-level education initiative.

PRESS RELEASERepresentatives from Spunout.ie, Schooldays.ie, ISSU and the Digital Youth  Council came together today to launch Student Slingshot Academy, a new  approach to education and careers for transition year students -Student Slingshot Academy was launched today at its future home in Filmbase,  Temple Bar.It is a new initiative developed to change how transition year students approach  education and career prospects. Once a month, beginning on March 15th, some of Ireland’s leading third level students will work alongside industryprofessionals to create immersive and interactive sessions for transition year  students.  It has garnered support from some of the most prominent institutions for Irish  second level students including Spunout.ie, Schooldays.ie, Irish Second-Level  Students' Union and the Digital Youth Council

Oisin McKenna, Staff writer at Spunout.ie, stated:“Work, career and job-seeking are some of the key things that SpunOut.ie's readers search for on a daily basis on our site. It's great to be an information  partner with Student Slingshot Academy in order to support young people's information needs around moving from second level to third level. It's a unique  initiative that offers real life insight for students.”Fiona Farrell, head of Sales and Marketing for Schooldays.ie, stated: “At Schooldays.ie we provide an online resource for parents and teachers, we are delighted to support Student Slingshot Academy, an innovative forum for  Transition Year students aged 15 to 17. It is a wonderful initiative by some of Ireland's undergraduates to provide the next generation with an insight into  future career paths.”Rebecca Dempsey, Student Engagement and Development Officer for the IrishSecond-Level Students' Union, stated:"This is a fantastic and fresh initiative. We love how third level students will be able to share their experiences and knowledge with second-level students in a way that hasn't been seen before. We believe that Transition Year creates an opportunity and space for second-level students to learn and to be creative in their learning ways. The Student Slingshot Academy can add positively to this unique year of study. We encourage TY students nationwide to apply".Harry McCann, founder and director of the Digital Youth Council, stated: “I feel it is so important for students to take their futures into their own hands and not just wait for the education system to take them along. Students need to  become more proactive, they need to go out and look at what is on offer to them and I feel Student Slingshot is the perfect opportunity for any student to start.”Patrick Guiney, founder of Student Slingshot, stated:“Just over 54,000 students sit the Leaving Certificate every single year. Of those 70% of them will be lucky enough to go onto 3rd level. Through a mentoring and support programme, led by some exceptional college students, we want to ensure that students pick the right course, earn a new skill and bring their focus back to what they want to do, not what the CAO dictates.”

The first Student Slingshot Academy takes place on Sunday, March 15th in Filmbase, located in Temple Bar. Transition Year Students will have the opportunity to learn from and meet college students from computerprogramming, medicine, law, journalism, finance, language and art, among further areas yet to be announced. A selection of industry professionals in these fields will support the students to develop new and inspiring sessions.Student Slingshot is a student-run organisation focused on maximising prospects for Ireland’s students. On November 18th, they held the first Student Slingshot event in Dublin Castle where 150 of Ireland’s best students met at Dublin Castle for an evening of networking, panel discussions and keynote speakers. The students from this event are those who will teach at Student Slingshot Academy.Further details can be found at:www.studentslingshot.comApplications for Transition Year Students close at 5pm on March 7th, 2015 Student Slingshot Academy is kindly supported by SAP, Enterprise Ireland and Eventbrite.ENDSContact: Sam Pearson, Tel.: 087 255 1148, sam@studentslingshot.com