Laois teenager wins place in European secondary school
A Laois teenager is preparing to immerse himself in a foreign language, after winning a chance to study in another European country.
Luke Carrell, 15 from Mountrath will got to secondary school for three months this Autumn in either Germany, Austria or Switzerland.
It comes after Luke entered a Study Abroad scholarship through EIL, a non-profit organisation helping people interact with other cultures.
A son of Eithne and Finbarr Carroll from Ballyfin, Luke is in Transition Year at Mountrath Community School where he studies German.
He will stay with a host family from late August to early December, and he is hoping he will be sent to Germany.
"I absolutely love languages and the opportunity to live and study in a German speaking country for three months would be a dream come true," Luke said.
"I applied for the Study Abroad scholarship and I had to write an essay outlining why I wanted the scholarship, how it would benefit me and why it would suit me. I was shortlisted and had to go to an interview at Marino college, Dublin.
"They liked my attitude at the interview so I got chosen to receive the scholarship. So I will now spend three months going to school and living with a host family in a German speaking country and all expenses are paid for except everyday spending money.
The EIL scholarship is for people aged 15 -16 years on 1st June 2022. It covers fully-funded secondary schoolv enrolment, living with a host family for three months. Language options are French, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Danish, Czech, Latvian, Serbian and Slovak. A Youth Citizenship Camp will follow in Brussels in December 2022.