RTE star Samantha Libreri has issued a message of encouragement to Leaving Cert students ahead of exams next week. The new eastern correspondent also recalled her own disappointment when it came to the points system. Samantha has given her honest opinion on the Leaving Cert system adding that it gives students an opportunity to be "disciplined".
In a clip posted to the RTE 's Twitter page, the Finglas native was asked what she "remembered fondly" about her time doing the Irish exams. The 41-year-old immediately laughed and replied: "Nothing!" She quickly added on to her humorous statement, saying: "Ah no, ah no, the good thing about the Leaving Cert is the discipline that it gives you." The RTE star carried out her own Leaving Cert exams back in 2000.
Samantha told how she clearly remembers "the pressure" and "the stress" and added: "I felt the way that everybody does, I felt like everything was riding on that exam and how I did with it." The broadcaster then explained how at the young age of 11 she decided she would study to be a journalist because she was "really good at English and writing". The Irish star highlighted how she began working for her local newspaper, the Finglas Forum every week.
However, Samantha missed out on her first CAO choice of Journalism by just 15 points after receiving her results. She said: "I was devastated because it was what I really wanted to do." The Dublin woman persevered with her dreams of being a journalist and went on to study and arts de.