Over 4,400 (4,411) second-level students across Kerry are expected to begin sitting their state exams today.
That's according to the State Examinations Commission (SEC), which administers the nationwide exams of third and sixth years.
Over 2,000 (2,054) students in the county are due to sit their Leaving Certificate exams, which begins at 9:30 this morning with English Paper 1.
149 students in Kerry are to sit the Leaving Certificate Applied (LCA), with the English & Communications paper starting their written exams at 9:45am.
Meanwhile, English is also the first subject to be examined in this year's Junior Certificate, which gets underway at half-past-nine this morning.
2,208 junior cycle students in the kingdom are expected to sit these exams.
The examinations will run until Tuesday, 23 June for Leaving Cert. students, until Thursday, 11 June for LCS students, and until Monday, 15 June for Junior Certs.
The SEC reports that the number of candidates due to sit state examinations has reached a new record level nationally, surpassing 146,000 for the first time.
The exam timetable was extended to a 15-day schedule in 2019 to alleviate pressure on candidates, by reducing the chance that some would have to take three exams in one day.
Over 42,000 (42,152) students nationwide have been afforded so-called reasonable accommodations this year, which include supports such as recording devices, reading assistance, a scribe, a word processor, visually modifications, component or subject exemptions, or spelling or grammar waivers.
