Matt Cooper is a broadcaster, journalist and author. He co-hosts the podcast Path to Power with Ivan Yates. He sat the Leaving Cert at the North Monastery in Cork in 1983 at the age of 16.
What is your most vivid Leaving Cert memory?
It’s actually not from the Leaving Cert itself but from the many years afterwards. Around Leaving Cert time I have dreams and nightmares that I’m going back to repeat it again. I kept getting older and I kept going back then as an adult in among all those kids, finally trying to get my Leaving Cert.
Who was your most influential teacher and why?
We had a very good teacher from Kerry who taught us French – Vincent Healy. He took an interest in what we were likely to do after we left school, rather than just coming in and teaching the subject. He’d been with us all the way from first year through to sixth year and was really committed. He would do extra classes and just wanted us all to succeed.
What was your most difficult subject?
Irish. I always struggled badly. I don’t know what it is, why it is, but to my shame I’ve always struggled with it. I struggled to keep up, struggled to know what was going on. I was amazed I managed to pass Irish, particularly the oral. I remember the nerves and wondering would that bring me down completely.
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And your favourite?
English. I always loved it. I loved the essay writing, the books, the plays and the rest of it.
Can you recall what points you got?
This shows you how old I am: I got 21 points in my Leaving Cert. I needed 19 points to get into UCC. I was disappointed that I got a B in English. Two of my friends that went on to do chemistry in UCC used to scoff at me that they also got Bs in English, despite all my bullshit about it. But, as I pointed out to them, I got a B in chemistry.
How important were the results for you?
They were important. They gave me the access to college. I needed four honours, I got six, but I needed four to qualify for the Cork Corporation grant for UCC to cover my fees and give me living expenses, without which I wouldn’t have been able to go to college.
What did you do after secondary school?
I went straight into UCC to study commerce. It was a four-year degree and from there I went on to do a postgrad in journalism and went straight into the workplace. And I’ve been working as a journalist across print media and broadcast ever since.
What would you change about the Leaving Cert?
I don’t know. The increased focus on project work is probably a good thing rather than compressing everything into a single exam at the end. It’s also good to see that there’s greater emphasis on supporting people who have learning difficulties or other challenges. We’ve come a long way since I did my Leaving Cert.
What advice would you give to your Leaving Cert self?
I was 16 doing my Leaving Cert and I sometimes wonder would I have done better if I had an extra year. And would I have done better in college as well. I don’t have had an outstanding degree – I got a 2.2 – but I can’t complain about how everything worked out subsequently.
Also, I’d say to myself: don’t get as drunk as I did on Leaving Cert results night.
- In conversation with Jen Hogan
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