However, the scope and ambition of the sector should mean that there will be at least one, maybe more, course that would not only be of interest, but would also significantly enhance that person's future employment prospects. And, what is interesting about the PLC sector is that it has pioneered programmes in some areas which may have been overlooked by other areas of education . . . for example, in childcare, community care, e-commerce, equestrian studies, sport and leisure, tourism and multimedia. But PLC programmes are not only available in newer areas of learning . . . there are also programmes in such traditional areas such as business studies, art and craft, information technology, construction and electronics.

And they should be available at a VEC or other college near you.

For example, County Dublin VEC (as distinct from City of Dublin VEC) offers a wide range of PLC courses available for school leavers and others who wish to continue with, or return to, education in its colleges and centres of education around the county.

Students at County Dublin VEC might wish to learn a skill to enhance their possibilities in the job market, take professional training in a particular area, or retrain in a new area for future employment, while other students may wish to use a PLC as a stepping-stone to further education.

According to a County Dublin VEC spokesperson, there has never been a better time for Post Leaving Certificate education in Ireland. For example, at County Dublin VEC, there are courses offered across a wide range of disciplines, from the traditional and always popular Business/IT courses to new programmes in Holistic Beauty Therapy and Healthcare Assistant. Courses are easily accessible in local colleges around the county and there is little or minimal cost involved.

In keeping with the philosophy of remaining relevant to the people are to industry, County Dublin VEC is committed to responding to the educational needs as they arise in any particular area - and will continue to do so into the future. But, as an education provider, it will also be there for its students, and supports are available for learners in the PLC sector.

For example, guidance and counselling is offered in schools and centres, and course directors are happy to provide information and advice to applicants. Many students are eligible for grants and other supports, and County Dublin VEC administers Student Maintenance Grants on behalf of the Department of Education and Science.

"In this time of life-long learning and employment opportunities, we would encourage more people to consider Post Leaving Certificate courses, " said the college's spokesperson. "The fact that they are local, and the courses are of one and two year duration, makes them easily accessible. Learning is valuable, in the personal as well as the economic sense, and many friendships and contacts are made in our classes around the county."

One of the key aspects of PLC courses around the country is accessibility. Much is often made of the CAO process around the beginning of February each year, but PLC courses avoid all of this hype by accepting people directly through their own applications processes. There is no centralised application, and the ability to secure a place on a course will be down to the individual as a person, rather than as a number floating around in cyberspace.

There are, naturally, some entry requirements, although PLC colleges tend to be more flexible than their third level counterparts when it comes to accepting potential students. School leavers also have more exacting standards which need to be adhered to than mature students, although these are in no way as prohibitive as the entry requirements for universities. But, it could be argued that if a school leaver does not achieve these basic requirements (often no greater than a D grade in three subjects in the Leaving Cert or Pass Level in Leaving Cert Applied), then they should not be bothering with further education, as education in general seems not to feature strongly in their overall outlook on life.

Assuming that minimum requirements are achieved, then most of the admission process is down to interview.

There is a certain cruel logic to the CAO process, which simply benchmarks candidates against hard and fast targets. But there is more humanity with an interview process, where a person gets the opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to a particular area of study.

Indeed, mature students (over 21 years) can apply for interview without the requirements of a Leaving Certificate, and their candidature will be assessed solely through the interview process.

But the freedoms within the selection process should in no way diminish the standards of education that are available . . . indeed, in many ways, by interviewing candidates, the colleges will be able to select the candidates who have proven that they are particularly suitable for a career path through a given subject. The standardisation of awards within Post Leaving Certificate education is another example of how PLC has evolved within the formal educational sector, and, through FETAC (the Further Education and Training Awards Council), PLC qualifications have the stamp of officialdom that comes with standardised certification.

Indeed, as the national awarding body for further education and training in Ireland, FETAC gives people the opportunity to gain recognition for learning in education or training centres, in the work place and in the community. FETAC has responsibility for making awards previously made by BIM, Failte Ireland (CERT), FAS, NCVA and Teagasc and has made over 500,000 awards since it was established in 2001. From a PLC perspective, it took over the awarding of qualifications to students from NCVA, the National Council for Vocational Awards.

But standardised awards are only a part of the reason why students choose PLC as at least the start of their route through education. It is the training that they receive, coupled with the educational experience that they gain, that is making Post Leaving Cert education so popular . . .

and with future developments yet to come, the sector is primed to become even more relevant to greater numbers of students over the next number of years.