A is for audacious as top student sells notes

A STRAIGHT-A student gets another 'A' for audacious as he attempts to sell his handwritten Leaving Cert notes online for the starting price of €40 a subject.

Cillian Fahy (18), from New Quay in Co Clare, got an impressive 7 As in the Leaving Cert this year and is trying to start a bidding war on eBay for his subject notes.

The notes from each subject are to be auctioned separately and are mostly handwritten notes on foolscap paper.

'They are of a wide variety, most of which have been drawn up by myself and cover all aspects of each subject,' Cillian said.

Cillian, who got four A1s, in maths, physics, history and music and three A2s, in English, Irish and French, believes anyone who buys his notes will get an A.

'These notes were the only ones I used and they got me an A-grade in my subjects so naturally they should do the same for any student.

'If they can gain me an A-grade then it can do the same for you,' he said.

'Thousands of euros are spent on grind classes in Ireland. Much of the time the value of these classes are simply for the quality of these notes. These notes are of the same standard, they're tried and tested A-grade standard,' he added.

Mr Fahy is off to Trinity College Dublin this year to study English and maths and will find out where his strength lies before choosing what career path to go down.

The main reason for the auction is for the budding entrepreneur to earn some money for college.

'With the economy as it is, I think students in particular need to be resourceful and clever in making money,' he said.

Gary Redmond from the Union of Students in Ireland warns students to be careful when purchasing notes online and to be aware of changes to syllabus in English and Irish where new poems and novels are used every year.

'But certainly it is not a new thing. Students have passed down their notes to others for years and grind schools sell notes all the time.

'In most cases people who pay for Leaving Cert notes and grinds will do better. It shows, in a way, the Leaving Cert can be bought,' he said.

The auction started yesterday and as of yet has one bid.

It will be featured on eBay for the next six days.

- Fiona Ellis

Irish Independent