Watch out Harvard, here comes John Collison!
CASTLETROY entrepreneur John Collison will head off to Harvard University in a little over a week from now after scooping an incredible eight A1s in his leaving certificate exams.
Castletroy College student John, 18, who hit the headlines last year after selling the company he and his brother Patrick founded for €3.2m, was one of just 11 students across Ireland who took eight A1s in the state exams.
Monaleen-born John scooped A1s in English, Spanish, Maths, Physics, History, Economics, Design and Communications, Graphics and Applied Maths, while he took an A2 grade in Irish and Chemistry.
And although he was heading out for a well deserved celebration on Wednesday night, he admits he had to "head out responsibly".
For this Thursday morning, he is in Dublin in a bid to secure his Visa which will allow him to study Science at Harvard University in Boston.
Speaking to the Limerick Leader, a delighted John admitted he was aiming for the 600-point maximum mark.
But, he added: "After the exam, you just remember one question and niggling doubts start playing with you. I remember talking to a friend (during the exam] about dreams you have around the leaving certificate. I dreamt that I woke up on the morning of a history exam not having missed it, but having to do it with no study done which is even worse. You go through a lot of dreadful scenarios in your head."
Upon opening the envelope which revealed his sparkling result, John said his reaction was mainly "a feeling of relief, and obviously in this case, elation."
Castletroy College principal Martin Wallace was one of the first people to congratulate John.
He said he "had not seen the like of" John's eight A1s and two A2s before.
"I was aware he was doing ten subjects. That's a daunting enough task in the concept of a two and a half week series of examinations. I would put these results down to John's innate intelligence. He is a very level headed fellow, he likes school, and likes studying. I think he really enjoyed his six years here. He had a wide range of interests outside the academic, and there is a good discipline there in relation to following his interests," Mr Wallace said.
One of these interests is flying - just hours before he picked up his results, John jetted in from Vancouver where he had been taking lessons.
During his final year at Castletroy College, John also squeezed in enough time to take part in the Science Olympiad.
Asked what advice he would give to students heading into the leaving cert, teenager John said it is important to tackle subjects you enjoy.
"If you are going to be working on something for two years, you might as well do some that you enjoy, to dilute the ones that you do not as much. There is this idea that people only get extra classes for things they are weak at, whereas getting a speaking class in Spanish, when you are heading for a B1 to bring it up to an A1 makes so much sense," John - who will now study a mix of sciences and Spanish at the American university - said.
And he added that he will finish the four year course at Harvard, saying: "Its a running joke me and my brother have. My brother Patrick dropped out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology after one semester to start the company (Auctmatic]. Hopefully I will get a bit further in college than that!"
More than 2,500 students from across Limerick city and county say the leaving cert exam this summer.
Gardai reported a quiet night in Limerick on Wednesday, with both Roxboro and Henry Street stations reporting no arrests in relation to Leaving cert revellers.
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