Wise choices in change of mind needed as CAO demand soars
Last year there were 83,369 first round offers made. 51,934 were Level 8 and 56% got offered their first preference. 83% got offered one of their top 3.
For Level 6/7 applicants, 92% got offered their first choice at the top of their list, and 99% were offered one of their top 3. If the trend is repeated this year, a student who fills the Level 6/7 list with courses offering progression routes to the Level 8 degree qualification they want will take a slightly longer road, but will still get there, even without a Level 8 course offer in August.
Collette Twomey, vice president of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors sees the high number of CAO applications as a positive sign that more people are seeing higher education as an option that is of benefit to them.
She also highlights that the high numbers and competition for places make it all the more important for students to be strategic and research all pathways to the qualification that they want.
'Check the National Tertiary Office and QQI courses that offer entry to degree programs. Also, feedback we're getting from the Technological Universities is to encourage students to complete the Level 6/7 list where relevant to the Level 8 list so that they can start at Level 7 and progress to Level 8.' The TU's are noticing that students lose out on getting the degree they want because they don't put a course in the Level 6/7 list where they could start and progress on to Level 8 later on.
Finding the links can be done via the CAO website ( www.cao.ie) or ask your guidance counsellor for help.
There is still time to research progression options and make changes to the CAO application using the Change of Mind Facility.
Over 60% of CAO applicants will use the Change of Mind facility before the July 1st deadline. It is used to add, remove or change the order of course choices in the CAO application.
There are simple guidelines around filling the course lists designed to avoid the problem of students being offered 'the wrong course.' This can occur when a student is offered their first preference but they put their dream course further down the list, or they did not meet the subject requirements for the course even though they got the points.
Key advice
List courses in order of preference only and fill both lists.
Check that you have the subject requirements for the courses you apply for.
Use the Level 6/7 list as a backup plan in case you are not offered the Level 8 course that you want. Ask your guidance counsellor for help with this.
Check the Alert Lists on the CAO website listing new courses available and discontinued courses. Some alerts have been posted as recently as April 2025.
At offers stage, you can only accept one course out of the two lists.
If you accept a lower preference offer, you can still be offered a course higher on your list.
If you are offered your top preference course, you will receive no other offers from that list. This is why the dream course should go at the top.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Independent
01-07-2025
- Irish Independent
The Wicklow adult education graduate finding her way in Ireland – ‘Before I did these courses, I felt dependent'
Bray People A woman from Bangladesh who arrived in Ireland less than one year ago, with very little English, was able to stand up in front of a group of her peers and their families and give a speech at her graduation ceremony recently in Bray, Co Wicklow. Surovi Akter qualified from Bray Adult Learning Centre last month with a QQI Level 4 English and Level 4 IT, and although she admitted struggling with the language barrier when she arrived in Ireland with her husband, who is also from Bangladesh but has a Portuguese passport, has now reached a level of proficiency in English and IT to be able to go to the jobs market with a lot more confidence.
Irish Times
27-06-2025
- Irish Times
‘Check your spam': Six things to know ahead of CAO deadline day
For thousands of Leaving Cert students it has been a six-year journey like no other. After starting in the calm of late August 2019, students had to navigate their way through a pandemic, school closures and its aftermath. Now that the exams are finally over, there's just one last box to tick off: what to do after school. Despite the wide range of options on offer to school leavers, the CAO application process will dominate the thoughts of most students. In fact, applications for third-level college courses are on track to reach a record high this year with 83,447 applications at last count, up from 77,049 a year ago. For applicants, there are some important pointers to bear in mind in advance of the CAO deadline next week. READ MORE 1. Deadline day: July 1st, 5pm Other than for a small group of 'restricted application' courses, this is the last chance for any CAO applicant to add, subtract or amend in any way the courses they wish to apply for honours degree (level eight) or ordinary degrees (level six/seven) courses. All such amendments must be completed online by 5pm on Tuesday, July 1st. [ Classroom to college: your essential newsletter with advice on the CAO and study options Opens in new window ] 2. Watch out for discontinued CAO courses Some applicants may decide they are happy with the course list they submitted before the initial February 1st deadline. This would be a serious error. The online handbook available ( ) was compiled this time last year. Since then, some courses have been discontinued, while many new ones have been added by colleges as they progress through their internal approval process. In short, no CAO applicant should allow the 1st July deadline pass without reviewing their course choice lists. 3. Points may drop across many courses With the deflation of exam results, it likely there will be a reduction in points across many courses. So, if you feel a programme is outside your points range, you might be surprised. Another factor involved in driving down entry points is greater supply of places. On June 11th last, the Government approved a significant expansion in training places for health and social care professions which will see up to 320 additional student places created in 2025 (and a further 141 in subsequent years). The immediate expansion will be in nine areas: physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, radiation therapy, radiography, podiatry, social work, medical science, and dietetics. These areas may well see further points reductions. 4. Study locally, commute or secure accommodation? Every year some CAO applicants are thrilled to secure their first choice course in August, only to realise that college accommodation is either extremely scarce or outside their budget. Remember, you cannot move down your list of CAO course preferences, so choose carefully. It is worth checking with individual colleges about how to join the list of applicants for on-campus accommodation, if there is any. The reality is that our housing crisis continues to play a very significant role in the choices of those seeking third level places throughout the country. Some technological universities – which are closer to many people than the traditional universities in big cities – are an option too. 5. Check your spam Every year some students achieve excellent results but do not receive any college offers. Why? It often turns out that they missed a crucial 'statement of application' email from the CAO, seeking to confirm their personal details. In many cases, these emails end up in applicants' spam folders. In these cases, the student's exam number may be missing – so the CAO has no way of connecting their results with their applications. This year the CAO began sending out 'statement of application' emails to Leaving Cert candidates from May 7th onwards asking them to confirm their details. On May 29th, the CAO sent a reminder email to those applicants who had not yet confirmed their account information, and a 'final reminder' on Thursday just gone. It is up to the candidate to spot and correct these details. 6. Further education and training opportunities It's not all about the CAO and there are now more pathways than ever for school leavers. Further education and training courses are an excellent option ( ). For some, they are a destination; for others, they are a stepping stone to third level. Places on all further education programmes are allocated by each individual college and applications are available online on each of their websites. There is no deadline, but all places are allocated on a first come first served basis, based on suitability. Tertiary degrees are another option ( ): students begin their studies at a local further education college before seamlessly progressing to higher education, without the need for any CAO points. More than 40 of these degree courses are available for students starting in September 2025. Apprenticeships, too, are well worth exploring ( ). In addition to traditional options, there are lots of degree-level options in areas such as biopharma, engineering, finance and insurance.
Irish Times
26-06-2025
- Irish Times
Carl O'Brien: ‘What every student (and parent) should know ahead of CAO deadline day'
Late last August I received a phone call from an upset mother. Her son achieved excellent Leaving Cert results – but no CAO offers. She was at a loss to know what had gone wrong. It turned out he had never spotted a crucial email from the CAO in May, requesting that he confirm personal details such as his examination number. The email lay, undiscovered, in his spam folder until after the CAO first round offers. Despite securing the points for his first choice, the CAO had no record of his exam number so was unable to process a college offer. It is harsh – who among us has not missed emails stuck in spam folders – and surely there is a better system. Nonetheless, it happens every year. Hundreds of students are often in the same boat. READ MORE So, what can you do to help make sure your child is on the right track? Photograph: Nick Bradshaw 1. Check the spam folder This year the CAO began sending out 'statement of application' emails to Leaving Cert candidates from May 7th onwards asking them to confirm their details . (You can find the instructions for the statement of application process at: ) On May 2 9, the CAO sent a reminder email to those applicants who had not yet confirmed their account information. The CAO sent another 'final reminder' email earlier today. It is up to the candidate to spot and correct these details. Often, however, these emails can end up in students' spam accounts. So, be sure to check those details with your son or daughter. 2. Look into accommodation options – now Many students are thrilled to get their first choice college offer, but a panic begins when they realise accommodation is nowhere to be found. Some end up deferring as a result or taking alternative pathways. If your son or daughter hasn't started, now is a good time to see if they can either book accommodation or join the queue for on-campus accommodation. Some colleges reserve a proportion of accommodation for first years once CAO offers are made. Student unions are also helpful. Either way, it's worth checking out these options now. 3. List your courses in order of preference – not points requirements Everyone knows this, of course – but you would be surprised how many don't practice it. It should be all about what your child wants to study – not the prestige of a course or where their friends are going. So, students should list the only courses which they have a real passion for – and will get them out of bed for lectures on a wet Tuesday morning. 4. Don't undersell yourself Your child may feel the exams didn't go as well as expected. Maybe they're tempted to take a course off their list? If they're passionate about it, our advice is to leave it there. There is a good chance CAO points will fall this year due to moves to 'deflate' exam results. Also, supply and demand can lead to a drop in points. For example, the Government approved a significant expansion in training places for health and social care professions recently which could see points drop further in areas like physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy, radiation therapy, radiography, podiatry, social work, medical science and dietetics. There's a good chance we'll see points reductions in these areas. 4. Check minimum entry requirements Points requirements for college course are just part of the picture; there may also be minimum entry requirements for subjects, such as maths, English, Irish or sciences. Check or the relevant college for details. 5. It's not just about the CAO The CAO is not the be-all and end-all. Further education and training offers excellent courses which can also provide a bridge to higher education. There are more apprenticeships than ever, including degree-level options. And tertiary degrees offer a route into college without the need for any CAO points. How were the exams for you? We'd love to hear your feedback on this year's Leaving Cert exams: what were the hardest?; what kind of toll did it take on students?; what changes would you like to see?; are you concerned about grade 'deflation' and its impact on CAO points? Please take a few minutes to complete our survey, below, and we'll share the results soon:
