Kilkenny school search
Kilkenny College offers co-educational day and weekly boarding places. St Kieran’s is a boys’ day school, while Loreto is an additional girls’ option. Check each school’s own 2027 admissions process.
The first question in a Kilkenny secondary-school search is whether the child needs boarding, co-education or a single-sex day school. Kilkenny College and St Kieran’s College are separate institutions, despite their similar names. Both follow Irish secondary education through to the Leaving Certificate.
Kilkenny College is a Church of Ireland co-educational school on Castlecomer Road. Its boarding arrangements require pupils to go home every Friday evening. This is useful for weekly boarding, but not a solution for a child who needs school accommodation throughout weekends. Ask where the child will stay during every closure and request a written cost schedule for the intended day or boarding place.
St Kieran’s is a Catholic boys’ day school on College Road. Its admissions policy does not allow fees as a condition of application or continued enrolment, subject to the statutory exceptions it identifies. Meals, trips and other permitted extras should still be checked. It cannot meet a request for a girls’ place or boarding.
For a girls’ day-school comparison, include Loreto Secondary School on Granges Road. It has its own application process; a visit to either college does not cover Loreto.
Kilkenny College’s 2027–28 annual notice, dated 1 September 2026, gives an application window of 1–22 October 2026. Applications before 1 October are not accepted; those after 22 October are late. It advertises 160 Form 1 places: 76 boarding and 84 day. Those are current 2027 figures, even though older text remains on the admissions webpage.
St Kieran’s current application page also opens on 1 October 2026. Its deadline is 4 pm on 22 October 2026. The page says its 2027–28 annual notice will follow. Check that notice for the complete process and allocation information.
St Kieran’s open night is 21 September 2026. Joining its open-night mailing list is not an application and carries no enrolment advantage. Loreto’s first-year 2027 application form opens on 1 October 2026; use its own notice for the remaining dates.
A child already in secondary school needs the transfer procedure, not the first-year intake form. St Kieran’s requests a transfer form, the two most recent reports and a letter explaining the move. At Kilkenny College, contact admissions about the relevant form and boarding availability.
Compare Castlecomer Road, College Road and Granges Road from the home you are considering. For siblings at different schools, check both finishing times and transport arrangements before assuming one collection will work.
The Kilkenny overview and Ireland guide put these options in context. Keep the application year, intended entry year and type of place explicit in every enquiry.
Friendly orientation, not formal admissions advice. Always confirm dates with the school.
Kilkenny College is a co-educational Church of Ireland school on Castlecomer Road. It offers day places and five-and-a-half-day boarding, with boarders going home each Friday. Applications for Form 1 entry in 2027–28 run from 1 to 22 October 2026.
KilkennySt Kieran’s College is a Catholic all-boys voluntary secondary school on College Road. Applications for First Year 2027–28 run from 1 October until 4 p.m. on 22 October 2026. Its annual notice needs clarification because the place-count section carries the wrong school-year heading.
DublinAlexandra College is a fee-paying girls' day and boarding school in Milltown, Dublin. Day places run from Preschool to Sixth Year; five-day and seven-day boarding begins in J5. The Senior School follows Junior Cycle, compulsory Transition Year and the Leaving Certificate.
DublinBelvedere College SJ is a Catholic Jesuit day school for boys in central Dublin. It follows Ireland's Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate route, with a compulsory Transition Year. For 2027 entry, it has published 168 First Year places and a defined October application window.
Start with the qualification your child would actually receive. Then check its subjects, language demands, and recognition in the countries where they may study next.
7 minStart with your child and the family's likely plans. Define the non-negotiables, verify the school's claims, compare three realistic options and visit with specific questions.
7 minTuition is only one line of the budget. Separate charges from advance payments, record what each figure includes, and ask the school to confirm your calculation in writing.
7 minA useful visit should help you picture your child’s school day and resolve the questions that matter to your family. Ask for concrete examples, then separate what you observed from what you were told.