Our founder and managing director, Lisa O’Connell, joined Claire Byrne on Newstalk to unpack a question that’s dividing Irish households. With a third of parents now saying they’d rather their child head straight into work than go to university, and almost two-thirds fostering an entrepreneurial mindset from as young as 13, is the traditional college path losing its grip?
Lisa’s answer, in short: it’s not college or entrepreneurship. It’s both, and the order you do them in matters less than what you do with them.
Listen back to the full segment here: https://link.goloudplayer.com/s/pGw6fDKWIb5U
The numbers behind the debate
The conversation was prompted by new survey findings showing:
- A third of parents would now rather their child start working than go to university.
- Two-thirds of parents think an entrepreneurial spirit is more valuable in the long run than a college degree.
- 40% of parents say a degree mattered far more 20 years ago than it does today.
- Almost two-thirds of parents are actively encouraging entrepreneurial thinking in their children from age 13.
Against that backdrop, Claire asked Lisa the question so many Irish parents are quietly wrestling with: if the points race isn’t the be-all and end-all anymore, what actually is?
“You still need to know how to make the French fries”
Lisa’s first point was that an entrepreneurial mindset isn’t just for people planning to start a business. Largely because of AI, an entrepreneurial mindset is now essential even within large organisations.
“Any kind of knowledge question can now be answered, but it’s applied thinking and problem solving and understanding that creates value.”
Her advice to parents is not to abandon third-level education, but to make sure their children go in with a plan, and come out looking for ways to apply what they’ve learned differently.
As Lisa put it: “People are working on businesses rather than in businesses now. But fundamentally, you need to know how to make the French fries. You need to know how things are done, and then you can build things, like AI, on top of that.”
Making mistakes on someone else’s money
Lisa was candid about her own entrepreneurial path. She moved from primary school teaching into starting her own business at 23. Looking back, she said, spending time inside other organisations first, making mistakes “on somebody else’s money,” would have made that transition easier.
Her advice for young people is not to rush into founding something the moment they finish school, but to:
- Get inside an organisation and watch how it works.
- Make mistakes in a lower-stakes environment.
- Build critical thinking by observing what works and what doesn’t.
- Use that experience to decide whether starting a business is genuinely right for them.
Ireland’s apprenticeship gap
The conversation also touched on how narrow Ireland’s non-college pathways still are. Lisa noted that Ireland currently has around 87 apprenticeship options, compared to over 320 in Germany. She argued that the real problem is a lack of transparency about what you’ll earn after college, what employers are hiring for, and whether it adds up to a life you can afford.
A degree needs “commercial currency”
Going to college for the experience alone, the friendships, the social skills, “having a good time”, isn’t enough anymore.
“You can’t go to college at 18 without a plan just because it’s an expected path. Whatever you end up with after college needs to have commercial currency on your CV.”
Graduates are now left staring at job listings and wondering who will actually pay them for what they’ve studied. Her advice is to stay in college, but only alongside a real plan for translating that experience into something tangible.
Fostering entrepreneurship early, without the pressure
Lisa shared an example from her years as a primary school teacher in the 1990s. Her First Class ran a small newspaper selling each copy for 10p. The money was pooled to buy books from a catalogue. Today, she suggests something similar, such as a class YouTube channel. No faces are needed. Children could use voiceovers or animation instead.
The idea is simple. Let children develop a skill and use it in a meaningful way. They can then decide if it is something they enjoy and want to continue.
The takeaway for parents
For parents of children approaching their Leaving Cert, Lisa’s message was one of balance:
- Encourage genuine interests through third level, but go in with a plan.
- Build an entrepreneurial mindset early. It pays off whether or not your child ever starts a business.
- Expect, and welcome, a pivot after college. The degree is a foundation, not the finished product.
- Explore alternative pathways, such as apprenticeships. College is not the only serious option.
As Lisa summed up, it is not about choosing between university and entrepreneurship. It is about making sure that whichever path a child takes, there is a point where learning becomes something real and practical.
