Leinster
Maths Grinds Westmeath
Westmeath has two very different student populations. Athlone and Mullingar are substantial towns with real schools and some local tutoring, while Moate, Kinnegad, Castlepollard and the rural parts of the county have much less.
Get in touchAthlone is the strongest case in the county. It sits on the Shannon with Roscommon on the other side, has TUS on its doorstep, and sends a steady stream of students into engineering and science courses that require Higher Level maths. Those students usually do not need rescuing, they need the gap between a H4 and a H2 closing, which is a different and more technical job.
Mullingar students have reasonable access and a fast commuter line to Dublin, which cuts both ways: the connection is good, but a lot of parents are commuting and evenings are tight. Online tuition fits into a short evening in a way a drive does not.
The rest of the county is where the difference shows. Moate, Castlepollard and the smaller towns have the same syllabus and the same CAO deadlines with a fraction of the local support. Westmeath also has close to 96 per cent gigabit fibre coverage, among the highest in the country, so online works everywhere in the county that matters.
What Westmeath students are up against
These are national figures. The State Examinations Commission does not break results down by county, so nobody can honestly tell you how your county compares.
- 11%
- got a H1 in Higher Level maths
- Down from 12.6% in 2024, and well up on 6.4% in 2019
- 27.3%
- got a H1 or H2
- Of the 23,450 students who sat Higher Level maths in 2025
- 36.3%
- of students now sit Higher Level
- Up from 15.8% in 2011, a 130% rise since bonus points came in
- 25
- bonus CAO points for Higher Level
- Awarded for 40% or above. 22,183 students earned them in 2025
National figures, 2025 exam sitting. Sources: RTÉ, Leaving Cert 2025 results, RTÉ Brainstorm, 2025. The State Examinations Commission does not publish results by county.
Which exam are you sitting?
Students across Westmeath
Online grinds mean the distance from Athlone to anywhere else stops mattering. Westmeath has around 15 secondary schools, and students come from all over the county.
- Athlone
- Mullingar
- Moate