Comparison

North Monastery vs MSC Guide

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

North Monastery

Features
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The North Monastery Secondary School App gives parents a single point of contact to receive news, updates, and notifications from the school. The calendar allows you to view and copy school events to your personal calendar. The app also provides quick access to the school's social media accounts and direct contact information. History The North Monastery CBS is an all-boys mainstream secondary school incorporating an autism unit, in the north side of Cork city. Founded in 1811 when Brother Jerome O’Connor and Brother John Baptist Leonard were given charge of a school in Chapel Lane by the Bishop of Cork, Rev. Dr. Moylan. Seventeen students attended on the first day. In 1814 a fourteen acre sloping site was acquired from a wealthy Catholic businessman, Sir George Gould Bart, and a new school was built. The North Monastery had found its permanent home. An outbreak of typhus fever in the city in 1816 saw the school being used as a temporary hospital. Br. Gerald Griffin, the celebrated poet and novelist became a member of the North Monastery in 1839. He was a sick man before he arrived and died on 12th June 1840 in his 37th year. His remains are interred in the cemetery in the grounds of the North Mon. It was shortly after the death of Gerald Griffin that Daniel O’Connell visited the ‘Mon’ with the Founder of the Order, Br. Edmund Rice. Ethos From this early stage the ethos of the ‘Mon’ was established and was based on the core values of Edmund Rice, the founder of the Christian Brother’s Schools. Our ethos is one that values and prizes each student as an individual created and blessed by God. Ultimately, the ‘Mon’ is dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in all areas of teaching and learning by means of developing the child’s self esteem and allowing their gifts to flourish, in an environment that promotes personal growth and self accomplishment. Throughout the history of the ‘Mon’ past students have excelled in areas of politics, science, engineering, business, sport and the arts. Just to name a few: In politics, the Mon has had several former students taking the role of Lord Mayors with two of them, Tomas MacCurtain (1884-1920) and Terence MacSwiney (1879-1920). The North Mon is also one of only ten schools that can boast a Taoiseach among its alumni, Jack Lynch (1917-1999). Also prominent, in academic life is Professor Finbar Bradley, Dean of Engineering NUI Maynooth and former professor at both DCU and UCD. Professor Tadhg Begley (past winner of the BT Young Scientist) who is professor of Chemistry at both Cornell University and Texas A & M University; Professor Patrick Fottrell, former Professor of Biochemistry at NUI Galway who between 1996 and 2000 was president of that college, and Dr. Neil Buttimer, lecturer in Irish at University College Cork are all ‘Mon’ past students. In business, Paddy Hayes, who has served as Chairman of Aer Lingus, Waterford Wedgwood, and Ford Ireland. In 2007 John Mullins was appointed CEO of Bord Gais. Dick Lehane, another former student was the senior vice-president of EMC. Joe Crockett, city and county manager in Kilkenny and Seamus Parker, former head of Revenue in Dublin City. In all the North Monastery is very proud of the success students have attained and is fully committed to their students in realising their full potential in an environment that values each and every student both academically and their own personal development.

About

MSC Guide

Features
Read full description

Functions 1. Latest news 2. Opening time 3. Visit information 4. Exhibition Hall and Exhibits

Screenshots

North Monastery4 screens
MSC Guide4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is ads: MSC Guide at none against North Monastery's shown. MSC Guide also leads on update cadence (every 3 weeks vs every 19 months) and iOS requirement (12.4 vs 14.0). On price, in-app purchases and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

North Monastery ships an update every 19 months, MSC Guide every 3 weeks. The most recent releases landed on September 17, 2026 and September 19, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 3 level
North Monastery versus MSC Guide: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterNorth MonasteryMSC Guide
PriceFreeFree
Update frequencyEvery 19 monthsEvery 3 weeks — better
AdsYesNo — better
In-app purchasesNoNo
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPod
Requires iOS14.012.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size40 MB25 MB
Age rating17+4+
DeveloperNorth Monastery Secondary SchoolRegion Computer

In-app purchases

None

North Monastery

No in-app purchases

None

MSC Guide

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is North Monastery free?
North Monastery is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is MSC Guide free?
MSC Guide is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Do North Monastery or MSC Guide have ads?
North Monastery shows ads; MSC Guide does not.
Which is updated more often, North Monastery or MSC Guide?
North Monastery ships an update every 19 months, and MSC Guide every 3 weeks. Most recently, North Monastery was updated on September 17, 2026 and MSC Guide on September 19, 2026.

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