Kildare student, 17 year old Suzy Farrell, from Maynooth Post Primary school has beaten the whole of Europe in the Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office in Toronto. Suzy came 5th in the world to add to her European title. The competition attracted more than 80,000 student competitors from across the globe. Pictured presenting the award to Suzy is Paul Rellis, Managing Director, Microsoft Ireland.

Irish student, 17 year old Suzy Farrell, from Maynooth Post Primary School, County Kildare, has beaten the whole of Europe in the Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office in Toronto. Suzy came 5th in the world to add to her European title. The competition attracted more than 80,000 student competitors from across the globe.

Microsoft today hosted an award ceremony to celebrate Suzy’s win in Toronto. Paul Rellis, Managing Director of Microsoft Ireland said, “We are delighted with Suzy’s win. She’s a great example to all Irish students, showcasing the skills they should be developing while at school which will greatly help them at third level and beyond when they enter the work place. In the 21st Century Smart Economy technological skills are a necessity in the workforce and the Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office is designed to help students develop those essential skills.”

Prodigy Learning, who manages the Microsoft IT Academy Program on behalf of Microsoft in Ireland, coordinate the Irish heats of the Competition. Speaking at the Ceremony, Kevin Ryan, Marketing Manager at Prodigy Learning said, “Suzy is a credit to her school and represented Ireland fantastically. Students, like Suzy, who embrace IT will be the catalyst to improvements in Ireland’s economic situation over the coming years.”

“This will look great on my CV! Toronto is a beautiful place and I’m lucky to have got the chance to go there. I really enjoyed Niagara Falls. It was amazing,” said Suzy. “I have just finished with the Transition Year programme at school and I had to do a lot of projects. Being able to use Word helped me finish these quickly and easily and also allowed me to play around with their presentation. In future I'm sure that I will use these skills again with essays, projects, etc, especially in third level. I know whatever career I choose, my knowledge of Word will be of great use to me.”

53 countries participated in rounds of local, country and regional competitions - - capped by the Championship Round in Toronto. In order to take part in the Microsoft Office Worldwide Competition, students prepare for, and sit the Microsoft Office Specialist exams in either Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel. The Microsoft Office Specialist exams are online and are performance-based, which means that the students complete a number of tasks in either Microsoft Word or Microsoft Excel in order to prove their skills.

The Worldwide Competition On Microsoft Office is an annual event. The Competition is open to full time students across Ireland and Northern Ireland currently enrolled in second-level schools and colleges who apply for the competition on the http://www.betheworldchamp.com/ website.