Ursuline Secondary School
Tipperary
Key facts
- Girls
- Pupils enrolled
- 895 larger than the median Irish post-primary school (585 pupils)
- Ethos
- Catholic
- Teaching through Irish
- No subjects taught through Irish
- Roll number
- 65470F the Department of Education reference for this school
School details
Location
About
Ursuline Secondary School is a Catholic secondary school for girls in Thurles, Co. Tipperary. It has a long tradition of educating girls, with the school stating this tradition spans almost 250 years. Enrolment is approximately 895 students. The school describes its core principle as "care for the individual" and states its aim as developing students spiritually, academically, physically and socially. The school offers the Junior Cycle, Transition Year and Leaving Certificate programmes. First year students study the full range of subjects as part of a sampling programme, with no choices required before enrolment. Core subjects include English, Irish, Maths, History, Religion and Wellbeing (CSPE, SPHE, P.E., Choral), with Digital Literacy in second year. Students choose five subjects from a list including Applied Technology, Business, French, Geography, German, Graphics, Home Economics, Music, Science and Visual Art. The school also operates a boarding school. Extra-curricular activities include athletics, basketball, camogie, Gaelic football, hockey, rounders, rugby and soccer, as well as music through St. Angela's Academy of Music.
Applying to Ursuline Secondary School
For a September 2027 place, a school's formal admissions process cannot begin before 1 October 2026. The school sets its own opening and closing dates in its annual admission notice.
National term dates 2026/27
Irish schools follow a standardised school year, so these nationwide post-primary school dates apply broadly to Ursuline Secondary School. Individual schools set their own discretionary closure days, confirm exact dates with the school.
- October Mid-Term Break: Mon 26 Oct – Fri 30 Oct 2026
- Christmas Holidays: Wed 23 Dec 2026 – Tue 5 Jan 2027
- February Mid-Term Break: Mon 15 Feb – Fri 19 Feb 2027 (primary schools: Thu 18 Feb – Fri 19 Feb 2027)
- Easter Holidays: Mon 22 Mar – Sun 4 Apr 2027
Primary schools close for the last two days of the February mid-term week and may use discretionary days to take the full week, so their break can be shorter than post-primary schools'.
Frequently asked questions about Ursuline Secondary School
How many pupils attend Ursuline Secondary School?
Ursuline Secondary School has 895 pupils enrolled. That makes it larger than the median Irish post-primary school, which has 585 pupils.
Is Ursuline Secondary School a DEIS school?
No. Ursuline Secondary School is not part of DEIS, the Department of Education programme of additional supports for schools serving communities at risk of educational disadvantage. Not holding DEIS status says nothing about how good a school is, only about the profile of the community it serves.
What is the ethos of Ursuline Secondary School?
Ursuline Secondary School has a Catholic ethos. It is a girls' post-primary school.