Ireland · Country guide
Most pupils attend state-funded schools. Start with programme, ethos and the annual admissions notice before deciding whether fees or boarding add something your child needs.
Dublin’s options include Irish Leaving Certificate, IB and French routes, with day and boarding schools. A religious ethos and a familiar school name do not replace admissions checks.
PBC and CBC are fee-paying Catholic boys’ day schools following the Irish curriculum. Compare their admissions rules, current costs and practical journeys before choosing.
Coláiste Iognáid and The Bish offer the Irish secondary curriculum without tuition fees. The main differences are coeducation, school ethos and admissions priorities. For entry in 2027–28, both have an October 2026 application window, but their acceptance deadlines differ.
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.
Limerick’s secondary-school choice is not simply fee-paying versus free. Teaching language, single-sex or co-educational provision, and the need for boarding produce different shortlists. First Year day applications share a local system; boarding and transfers need separate enquiries.
Clongowes is a Catholic Jesuit boys’ school with full seven-day boarding. Check the closed main admission window, later-place process and complete fee conditions.
Alexandra 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.
DublinBlackrock College is a fee-paying Catholic Spiritan school for boys in Dublin. First Year is at Willow Park Senior School; Blackrock College teaches Second to Sixth Year and offers day and boarding places.
CorkChristian Brothers College is a fee-paying Catholic boys’ secondary school at Sidney Hill in Cork. It follows Junior Cycle, compulsory Transition Year and the Leaving Certificate.
ClaneClongowes is a Catholic Jesuit school for boys aged 12–18 where every pupil boards full time. The 2027 First Year notice offered 75 residential places, including eight bursary and two scholarship places. Its main application window closed in April 2026, but completed later applications can still be considered for unfilled places.
GalwayColáiste Iognáid is a non-fee-paying, co-educational Jesuit secondary school on Sea Road. Applications for First Year 2027–28 run from 1 to 22 October 2026. The annual notice lists 104 First Year places and one place in the autism class.
LimerickCrescent is a co-educational comprehensive day school in Dooradoyle, Limerick. Its policy describes a Catholic Jesuit identity, while the Department records an interdenominational ethos. First Year uses Limerick’s shared application system.
DublinGonzaga College SJ is a Catholic Jesuit day school for boys in Ranelagh, Dublin. It follows Ireland's Junior Cycle and Leaving Certificate route, with a compulsory Transition Year. The school has published 96 First Year places and an October application window for 2027 entry.
KilkennyKilkenny 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.
DublinThe King’s Hospital is a coeducational Church of Ireland secondary school in Palmerstown. It offers day and boarding places; international applicants must board seven days a week. The 2027–28 Form 1 notice lists 120 places. Fees below apply to 2026–27, not the next intake.
LimerickLaurel Hill Coláiste is a Catholic girls’ day school in Limerick where teaching is through Irish. It is separate from the English-medium Laurel Hill Secondary. First Year admission uses Limerick’s common application system, with specific priority and oral-Irish provisions.
LimerickLaurel Hill Secondary is a Catholic girls’ day school on South Circular Road in Limerick, teaching through English. It is separate from the nearby Irish-medium Laurel Hill Coláiste. First Year admission uses Limerick’s common application system; the school’s published 2026–27 intake information is historical.
DublinLFI Samuel Beckett follows the French curriculum across two Dublin campuses. Younger pupils attend Foxrock; secondary pupils study at the Clonskeagh Eurocampus, with some classes shared with St Kilian’s. The final qualification remains French.
CorkPBC is a Catholic, fee-charging boys’ secondary school on the Mardyke. For September 2027 it advertises 112 First Year places and an application window from 1 to 21 October 2026. If oversubscribed, family and Presentation-school priorities apply before a supervised random allocation.
DublinSt Andrew’s is a co-educational, fee-paying day school in Booterstown. It follows Ireland’s curriculum and offers either the Leaving Certificate or IB Diploma in the final two years.
Whitechurch, Dublin 16St Columba’s in Whitechurch offers day, day-boarding and seven-day boarding places. Its Church of Ireland ethos, Saturday school, chapel commitments and compulsory Transition Year are important fit decisions. Published intake figures below concern 2026/27, not the following year.
GalwaySt Joseph’s Patrician College, known as the Bish, is a Catholic all-boys voluntary secondary school on Nun’s Island. Applications for First Year 2027–28 run from 1 to 22 October 2026. The annual notice lists 125 First Year places and no new places in its two autism classes.
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.
DublinSt Kilian’s combines Irish qualifications with German teaching in a coeducational day school. It shares Junior Cycle classes with the French lycée on its Dublin campus, but the schools offer different upper-secondary qualifications. Junior Infants entrants must be four by 31 May.
LimerickVilliers is a coeducational Protestant day and boarding school in Limerick, offering the Leaving Certificate and IB Diploma. First-year day applicants use Limerick’s shared application system; boarding applicants apply directly. Fees differ by programme, residence category and boarding arrangement.
DublinWesley College is a co-educational, fee-paying Methodist school in Ballinteer. It offers day places and five-day or seven-day boarding from a Preparatory class through Sixth Year.
Cities: Dublin, Cork, Galway, Kilkenny, Limerick, Clane
“Private school” is an imprecise starting point in Ireland. Many voluntary secondary schools have a religious heritage and receive state funding, so families do not pay tuition. Fee-paying schools charge for education, while independent primary and international schools form smaller groups.
I would investigate the recognised local schools before assuming that fees buy a better education. A fee-paying school may be right for its boarding, programme or ethos. Those are specific benefits; the label alone is not one.
This guide covers selected schools in six areas. It does not rank them or represent every option in Ireland.
The Department of Education and Youth says education is compulsory from six to sixteen, or until a pupil has completed three post-primary years, whichever is later. Most children begin primary school at four or five. The Department’s education overview explains the stages.
Primary school has eight year groups, from Junior Infants to Sixth Class. Post-primary education normally begins at twelve or thirteen.
Junior Cycle covers the first three post-primary years. It includes classroom-based assessments and state examinations, and leads to the Junior Cycle Profile of Achievement. The Department’s current Junior Cycle page is more reliable than older references to the phased-out Junior Certificate.
Transition Year, or TY, is an optional year between Junior and Senior Cycle in the national system. Its programme may include work experience and activities without formal state examinations. Schools can make it compulsory within their own programme; others may not offer it or may limit places.
Senior Cycle normally leads to the Leaving Certificate. Schools may also offer the Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme or Leaving Certificate Applied. These are distinct programmes, not informal versions of one certificate. Ask which subjects and levels your child can enter, especially after a transfer.
An international qualification such as the IB Diploma does not replace every requirement for Irish university entry. Check subjects, grades, English requirements and any course-specific conditions with the intended university.
Recognised schools must publish an admissions policy and an Annual Admission Notice. The notice gives that year’s application dates and number of places. The Department’s admissions guidance says schools cannot begin the normal process before 1 October in the preceding school year.
Residential boarding applications can open a year earlier. Alexandra’s admissions page illustrates the distinction: August 2027 day applications open in October 2026, while boarding applications opened in October 2025. An expression of interest outside the permitted window is not an application.
Where a recognised school has places, it should admit eligible applicants. If it is oversubscribed, it applies the published selection criteria. A school’s old waiting list or last year’s notice does not establish your current position.
Download the notice for the year you need and record four things: application window, places, oversubscription criteria and response date. If an application is refused because the school is full or its policy was not followed, the Department page explains review and appeal routes.
This statutory process applies to recognised schools. International and non-recognised schools may use different admissions arrangements. Ask them how a later move into a recognised Irish school would work.
Voluntary secondary schools, community schools, comprehensive schools and community colleges are state-funded post-primary options. Their patronage and ethos differ. Do not infer tuition from an old building, a religious name or a rugby programme.
Fee-paying schools publish their own charges. Ask whether the quoted amount covers meals, transport, devices, examinations, trips and compulsory activities. For boarding, separate tuition from accommodation and establish whether weekends and holidays are included.
Gaelscoileanna are Irish-medium primary schools; Gaelcholáistí provide Irish-medium post-primary education. The language is used across the curriculum, not taught only as a subject. Ask about support for a pupil entering without comparable Irish and the language expected at the intended year group.
Educate Together and other multi-denominational schools are another state-funded choice. If religious ethos matters, read the policy and ask how pupils who do not participate in religious instruction are accommodated.
St Andrew’s College is a co-educational day school in Booterstown offering the Leaving Certificate and IB. It suits a family that wants both programmes within one school, but the available route depends on the child’s entry point and subjects.
St Columba’s College in Rathfarnham is a Church of Ireland school with boarding and day places. Its academic programme leads to the Leaving Certificate, not IB, and Transition Year is compulsory. Compare it with St Andrew’s if you are choosing between day schooling and residential education, rather than expecting identical qualifications.
Several Dublin schools are single-sex and fee-paying. Belvedere College is a Jesuit boys’ day school in Dublin 1; its current material listed 168 First Year places for 2027/28. Gonzaga College, in Ranelagh, is another Jesuit boys’ day school and listed 96 First Year places. Each provides fees during its own information process, so obtain the current total before treating a deposit as annual tuition.
Blackrock College is a Spiritan boys’ school with day and boarding places. First Year is associated with Willow Park on the same campus. Its live notice reviewed here still concerned 2026/27 Second Year, so it cannot serve as a new First Year timetable.
Wesley College, in Ballinteer, is a Methodist co-educational day and boarding school. Its 2026/27 EU fee document lists €8,125 for secondary day pupils. The King’s Hospital, in Palmerstown, is a Church of Ireland co-educational day and boarding school. Its 2026/27 day fee is €9,360, with additional lunch and device costs to consider.
Alexandra College, in Milltown, is a Church of Ireland girls’ day and boarding school. Its 2026/27 senior day fee is €9,302. The table adds €700 for TY and €1,500 for international students’ English classes. Its admission notice still carried the same academic-year title, so use the next notice for a later intake.
Lycée Français International Samuel Beckett offers French education leading toward the French baccalauréat and Baccalauréat Français International. Its primary and secondary sections occupy different locations. The Clonskeagh secondary campus is shared with St Kilian’s Deutsche Schule, a German-Irish school leading toward the Leaving Certificate. St Kilian’s 2026/27 table listed €7,685 for kindergarten, €8,175 for primary and €7,870 for secondary.
St Kilian’s admissions page allows primary entry without prior German. First Year entry without German may be possible if places remain, but later secondary entry requires German at the class’s level. Its €795 TY supplement is additional to tuition. Sharing a campus does not make the French and German-Irish programmes equivalent.
Use the Dublin school-search guide to compare locations. A school across the city is not a practical alternative merely because its programme looks similar.
Clongowes Wood College, in County Kildare, is a seven-day Jesuit boys’ boarding school. Its 2026/27 basic fee is €26,550. The school lists a 15% premium for entry from Fourth Year and a 15% premium for English as a second language. Ask how they apply if both conditions are relevant.
Clongowes’ €3,000 deposit is not all additional tuition: half offsets the first bill; the remainder is returned after the final Sixth Year account is settled. Cancellation or earlier withdrawal can forfeit it. Ask separately about holiday accommodation, guardianship and medical or learning support outside lessons.
The Clane school-search guide gives the local context. Compare Clongowes with St Columba’s only if both the single-sex and co-educational models could genuinely work for your child.
In Cork, Presentation Brothers College is a Catholic fee-paying boys’ school on the Mardyke. Christian Brothers College Cork, on Sidney Hill, is also a fee-paying boys’ school. It states that there is no entrance examination and describes progression from its own preparatory school. Neither public page reviewed here provided a 2026/27 tuition figure, so request one directly. See the Cork guide.
In Galway, Coláiste Iognáid is a co-educational Jesuit school that has been non-fee-paying since 1967. St Joseph’s Patrician College, “The Bish”, is a boys’ school on Nun’s Island. The Galway guide helps with their separate programmes and admissions notices.
In Kilkenny, Kilkenny College is a Church of Ireland co-educational day and boarding school. Its boarding pattern should be confirmed for the current year. St Kieran’s College is a non-fee-paying Catholic boys’ school. Use the Kilkenny guide for the local comparison.
Limerick’s Common Application System, or CAS, covers Sixth Class transfers into First Year at participating schools. Limerick Education Support Centre says the 2027/28 portal opens at 9am on 1 October 2026. Transfers into other year groups are made directly to the school. Each school’s notice and selection criteria still apply.
Villiers School is a Protestant co-educational day and boarding school offering the Leaving Certificate and IB. Day First Year applications use CAS; boarding applications go directly to the school. Its 2026/27 fee documents distinguish Irish-resident, EU/EEA/UK and non-EU categories.
The Irish-resident figures are €5,120 for day Junior Cycle/Leaving Certificate and €9,970 for day IB. Corresponding seven-day boarding totals are €20,700 and €25,550. Non-EU IB boarding is €32,800. A €750 development contribution applies per new family. Obtain the applicable category in writing; these are not interchangeable quotes for every overseas applicant.
Crescent College Comprehensive is a non-fee-paying co-educational Jesuit school in Dooradoyle. Its 2026/27 notice listed 150 First Year places. Laurel Hill Secondary School FCJ is an English-medium girls’ school whose notice listed 116 places. Laurel Hill Coláiste FCJ is its Irish-medium counterpart and listed 72. Use the Limerick guide and the new annual notices for a future application.
For each school, put the programme, teaching language, annual admission notice, journey and full family cost on one page. If boarding is involved, add weekend arrangements and the name of the adult responsible after lessons.
Ask these questions:
Visit if possible, but do not treat a staged open evening as evidence about daily support. Ask who will know your child, how concerns are raised and what changed in the school after recent parent or pupil feedback.
My preference would be the school whose ordinary timetable, admissions policy and next qualification all fit. If a state-funded school meets those needs, a fee is not a reason to reject it. If boarding or a distinct programme solves a real problem, price that benefit carefully and compare it with the alternative.
Friendly orientation, not formal admissions advice. Always confirm dates with the school.