CAO reminders and restrictions ahead of February 1st.
As the first significant deadline for CAO 2024 deadlines approaches on February the 1st at 5pm, it is very important that applicants and parents/guardians are clear on application process, dates and deadlines. There are lots of helpful resources on www.cao.ie including video guides and a recording of the recent CAO webinar for applicants and parents/guardians. February the 1st is only the first deadline and there is plenty time to add in, take out and change the order of course choices when the Change of Mind Facility opens on May 7th up to the final deadline on July 1st at 5pm. Some restrictions do apply after the February 1st deadline.
Restrictions for the February 1st deadline
‘Restricted’ courses must be added in by February the 1st as they require some other form of assessment apart from Leaving Cert points such as an aptitude test or a portfolio. Students who are applying for Medicine must apply to do the HPAT by January 20th on https://hpat-ireland.acer.org/. Any students applying for the HEAR (Higher Education Access Route) or DARE (Disability Access Route to Education) schemes must have applied to CAO by February 1st. Applicants then have until March the 1st to complete those applications and up to March 15th to have supporting documentation sent to CAO (see www.accesscollege.ie) . In the case of mature applicants, most HEIs (Higher Education Institutions) require applications to be in by the February 1st deadline.
Language Exemptions
Students who have language exemptions must process those exemptions for college applications when applying to colleges/universities which have Irish and/or a third language as an entry requirement. If applying to TCD, University of Limerick or Mary Immaculate College contact the relevant Admissions Office directly. In the case of NUI institutions which include UCC, UCD, Maynooth University, NUI Galway, RCSI, NCAD and associated colleges, the exemptions are processed online on www.nui.ie.
Course choices
Applicants have the option of including 20 courses on CAO applications – 10 choices at level 8 (Honours Bachelor Degrees) and 10 at level 7/6 (Ordinary Bachelor Degrees / Higher Certificates). Filling in as many courses as possible gives applicants the best chance of being offered a place on a course at offer stage. It is essential to research course content carefully for all the courses to ensure that all choices are a suitable fit in terms of the genuine interest in modules, learning styles and assessment, work placement, study abroad options and career/ further study opportunities. The majority of level 7/6 courses have progression routes onto level 8. The lists operate independently of each other so, by filling up choices on both lists, applicants have a great chance of getting two offers, the top one for which they qualify for from both lists.
Order of Preference
This is the golden rule of the CAO and a very common mistake made by students every year. Courses must be ranked in genuine order of preference, not in the order of the points from the previous year. Points for courses change each year and no one knows the points for 2024 until the day that the Round 1 offers are issued by CAO. ‘Order of Preference’ simply means placing the favourite course in as number 1, second favourite course as number 2 and so on down to choice number 10. It is essential to research the content of each course on both lists from choice 1 to 10 carefully.