News 22 Apr 2008

The High School Zion Road Rathgar Dublin 6 Tel: 01-4922611 Fax: 01-4924427 office@highschooldublin.com

Above - the first of two Gaisce President's Award hillwalking trips to climb Carrauntoohill

Mock interview evening

On the 8th April the fifth year mock interviews were held in school. These interviews are organised annually by the Careers teachers in the school and the Parents Association. The interviews are carried out at the end of a job application module which is part of the 5th year careers programme.
Over 100 fifth years took part. The feedback from the interviewers was particularly positive this year. The High School students were reported to be confident, friendly, well presented and prepared. Interviewers were impressed with the enthusiasm and focus shown by students. One interviewer even said to me that ‘if this was the calibre of young people going out into the country after school, then the future is bright for Ireland’ and another interviewer was eager to employ the student she interviewed!!!
Some of the comments from students after the experience include:
"Before doing my interview I researched my area of interest and this really helped me when I was talking to the interviewers because I could talk to them easily about it."
"It was a very enjoyable experience and I had fun preparing for it and learnt a lot about interview technique and physiotherapy."
"I was a little nervous before going but found that they were very nice, and they were not trying to catch you out! They liked that I had done research into my area of interest so I would advise taking time to do that. They liked my enthusiasm and said it is very important for any chosen career path so try to show that you are! They also said it would be a good idea to put a bit more detail into my CV."
"I thought the mock interviews were a useful experience, I gained a good understanding of what type of questions I should be prepared to answer in a real interview situation. You should be prepared to sell yourself and use everyday examples to emphasise your strengths. Don’t be nervous, there is no need, act confident and relaxed. One important piece of advice I was given, was to finish up the interview with one last reason as to why you think you should get this job."
I would like to thank everybody who gave up their time to arrange and conduct these interviews.
T. Jones, Guidance Counsellor

Annual staff vs parents cricket match

This will be held on Monday 12 May at 5.30 p.m. Refreshments will be served. Any parent who would like to play, please contact Mr Colin Rogan at 086 837 5724. New players are most welcome!

Better Parenting Ireland

The above organisation is holding a series of seminars in the RDS on Saturday 10 May. The range of seminars covers everything from new borns to teenagers. One of the speakers will be Dr Patrick Ryan who will discuss the secondary school years and issues such as sex, drinking, drugs, smoking, peer pressure, and personal safety. The cost is €45 per seminar. For details log on to
www.betterparentingireland.com
or Lo Call 0818300207

Uniform issues

There will be a small change to the PE uniform for girls in September 2008. The red polo shirt will be crested and must be purchased from our suppliers, School Uniform Store, Montrose. This has been introduced because of the wide range of colours and styles which have been purchased in the past, leading to an inappropriate and untidy appearance for teams which use this shirt and in school photographs which are published and are valued as souvenirs by pupils and parents. Please also be aware that all polo shirts worn in the school (e.g. boys PE and all pupils for summer uniform) must be properly made Aertex polo shirts, plain, with a proper short sleeve and of good quality. Quite a variation has been appearing, with cut off shoulders and shirts made of T-shirt material, shirts with logos, etc. None of these may be worn.