This document summarizes a presentation given by Mr. Frank Farrell to provide information to students about applying to college through the CAO (Central Applications Office) system in Ireland. The presentation covers topics like career guidance, the CAO application process, the points calculation system, and key deadlines. It emphasizes ordering course preferences accurately and checking application materials for errors.

1. Portmarnock
Community School
Portmarnock Community School
Co. Dublin.
Portmarnock,
Co. Dublin
Tel: 01- 8038056 Fax: 01- 846 0927
Email:office@portcs.iol.ie
CAO Information Night
Monday, 12 November 2012
Guidance Counsellor: Mr. Frank Farrell

2. Presentation
Career Guidance
The CAO System
Leaving Cert Points Grid
National Framework of Qualifications
The CAO Application Process
HPAT - Medicine
Useful Websites –
So where are the Jobs?
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3. Career Guidance
• Take stock of their present
circumstances
• Understand the factors influencing their
decision making
• Appreciate more realistically what they
have to offer
• Review & evaluate options
• Identify preferred options
• Formulate an action plan
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4. The CAO
Organisation founded in 1976 by the
higher education institutes (HEIs) in the
Republic of Ireland.
Purpose is to process applications
centrally and to deal with them in an
efficient and fair manner.
It is the applicant’s own responsibility to
ensure that the application is submitted
accurately and in time.
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5. Irish Leaving Certificate
Examination Points Calculation
Grid
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6. Core Subjects - MATHS
 Fewer than 20% of Leaving Certificate students take this
subject at higher level (nationally)
 If you are capable of studying this subject at higher level,
there are tremendous career opportunities
 Higher Level Maths (C3) is a requirement for Level 8
Engineering Degree Courses and Mathematical Science.
 2012: BONUS points (25 pts for achieving D3 in HL maths or
higher) where students have an honour (C3) in higher level
maths – now awarded in all the NUI’s, TCD, UL, DIT,
teacher training colleges etc
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7. Accompanying conditions:
The six best results, in recognised subjects, in
one Leaving Certificate Examination will be
counted for points computation.
One sitting only of the Leaving Certificate
Examination will be counted for points purposes.
In the case of Foundation Level Mathematics or
Foundation Level Irish, some HEIs may not award
the points shown above. If in any doubt, check
with the Admissions Office of the appropriate
HEIs.
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8. National Framework of
Qualifications
 Level 3 Junior Certificate
 Level 5 Leaving Certificate/PLC
 Level 6 Higher Certificate
 Level 7 Ordinary Degree
 Level 8 Honours Degree
 Level 9 /10 Masters/ PhD
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10. The Application Process
Information on courses is available from
each HEI and the prospectus should be
consulted before making an application
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11. • CAO distributes to schools and
individuals an application pack containing an
Application Form and a Handbook
containing instructions and information
about the application process.
• Every applicant should be familiar with the
contents of the CAO Handbook
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12. Timely Action
In order to be fair to all applicants,
closing dates are strict and therefore
action should be taken in good time.
Do not leave everything to the last
minute.
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13. Choosing Courses
Consult your Guidance Counsellor
Discuss your options with family and friends
Detailsabout courses may be found in HEI
prospectuses and by consulting HEI
websites.
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14. Making an application
Applicants are encouraged to apply online.
The website address is www.cao.ie
Applying online is cheaper and it prevents
many of the errors commonly associated
with completing a paper application form.
Normal online application €40 (1st Feb.
2013 at 5.15 pm)
Discounted rate €25 (20th Jan 2013 at 5.15)
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15. Application Form: Part A
 Part A of the Application Form is mostly self explanatory.
 Information which identifies you is of the utmost
importance.
 Carefully enter details such as your name, address, date of
birth, schools attended etc.
 Upon submission of your appliction form you will be issued
with your CAO number. To effect changes thereafter you
go to ‘My Application’ and amend accordingly.
Mr. Frank Farrell 15
05/11/12

16. Two Applications on One Form
There are two course choice lists and
applicants may make up to ten course
choices on each list.
10 choices may be made on the Level 8 list
10 choices may be made on the Level 7/6
list
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17. ENTRY REQUIREMENTS
These must be satisfied before “points” are
considered.
Minimum Entry Specific Subject
Requirements Requirements
E.g. UCD E.g.s
 Pass 6 subjects Engineering(UCD)
 At least 2 HC3  HC3 Maths
 Pass in:
Veterinary Medicine(UCD)
 Irish
 HC3 Chemistry
 English
 Another Language French Law(UCD)
 Mathematics*  HB3 French
 Science Subject*
If all Entry Requirements are met  applicant is deemed
‘Qualified’ to apply.

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19. Two Applications on One Form
It is possible to receive an offer on both
lists
You may then decide to accept either
your Level 7/6 or your Level 8 offer.
Alternatively, you might not wish to accept
either offer.
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20. Order of Preference
Ifyou learn nothing else from this
presentation let it be this...
Place your course choices in genuine
order of preference!
To do otherwise is a grave mistake.
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21. Supplementary Application Form
(SIF)
 The Higher Education Access Route (HEAR):
A 3rd level admissions scheme for school leavers from socially economic
disadvantaged backgrounds. (see pg. 8 of CAO Handbook)
 Must provide additional info/documentation (income revenue forms,
social welfare benefits ..... by 1st of April 2013
 DARE: Disability Access Route to Education
Asperger’s, Autism, ADD. Dyspraxia, Dyslexia, Physical
Disability ....
 Submit evidence of Disability and second level Academic Reference
to CAO by 1st April 2013.
 Reports should generally be less than 3 years old on submission of
one’s application.
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22. Supplementary Information Form
ctd
Section A of this form is to be completed by the
applicant and asks for information on your disability and
the supports you received in second level.
 Section B is to be completed by a school teacher or
Guidance Counsellor and the school principal. This
section provides information in your educational
experience and helps to determine appropriate
supports at third level.
 Section C is to be completed by a medical
consultant/specialist if you do not already have a report
verifying your disability. Reports must be no more than
three years old.
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23. Your Application Number
 Ifyou apply online your application number will appear on
your Receipt of Online Application.
◦ This number is private and it will be used in every
correspondence between you and the CAO for the
rest of the year.
◦ If you apply online you may change your course choices
free of charge until January 31st.
◦ Online change of mind facility becomes active again from 5
May to 1 July 2013 (free of charge).
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24. Statement of Course Choices
The Statement is important for two reasons:
1. The Statement of Course Choices includes notification of
your CAO application number.
2. The Statement of Course Choices lists the courses that
you have applied for.
If you have made any mistake or omission in
your course choices then now is the time to
rectify your error.
Pay particular attention to restricted courses.
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25. Communicating With CAO
The easiest and most efficient way to
communicate with CAO is by using the 'Contact
Us' facility on the CAO website.
Always quote your CAO application number in
any communication with CAO.
If you post something to CAO, always obtain a
certificate of posting at the post office. This is a
free service and it offers you peace of mind.
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26. Statement of Application Record.
• Check the following carefully, if there is any
error or omission, amend the Statement and
return it to CAO.
◦ Are all the courses shown and in the correct order?
◦ Are all the codes correct?
◦ Are the exam numbers correct?
◦ Are all exams mentioned?
◦ If you do not receive a Statement by 1st June contact
CAO immediately.
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27. Change of mind
◦ It is safer to use the Change of Mind Facility
on the website than to use a paper Change of
Mind form.
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28. Change of Mind
5th Nov to 31 January 2013 (17:15) – no fee
 5th of Feb (12:00) to 1st March 2013- €10 charge
 5th of May (12:00) to 1st July 2013 (17:15) – no fee
 Late application to CAO not later then 5pm, 1 May –
fee (€ 50).
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29. The Offer Process
Inthe week following the release of the Leaving
Certificate results CAO will post a
communication to all applicants.
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30. The Offer Process
Ifyou are entitled to an offer, you will be sent an
offer notice. You should check that all of the
details on the offer notice are correct and that
there are no omissions.
Offers will also be available on the CAO website.
You may check for and accept offers on the
website. In fact, most applicants now record
acceptances online.
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31. The Offer Process
Your offer notice may contain an offer
◦ for a Level 8 course
◦ or a Level 7/6 course
◦ or both
If you receive two offers at the same time you
may only accept one of them.
If you wish to accept an offer of a place you must
carry out the instructions on the offer notice
before 5.15pm on the closing date for acceptance
printed on the offer notice.
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32. The Offer Process
There can be no delays at the
offer/acceptance stage. (one week to
accept or reject once offer has been made)
Any offer not accepted by the closing date
for receipt of acceptance of offers in CAO
will be offered to another applicant in the
next round of offers.
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33. How Places are Allocated
We will look just at Level 8 courses, but
exactly the same process will take place
with Level 7/6 courses, and at the same
time.
The importance of you, the applicant,
placing courses in genuine order of
preference will become apparent in
the following slides.
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34. How Places are Allocated
When examination results are released in
August they are entered into the CAO
computer.
The computer checks each applicant’s
results. For each course the applicant has
applied for, the computer first determines
if the applicant has the minimum entry
requirements for the course.
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35. How Places are Allocated
 Ifthe applicant meets the minimum entry requirements for
the course, the applicant’s points are calculated for this
course choice.
 Some courses have a specific requirement i.e. B3 minimum
in HL English to do journalism in DCU. If I do not achieve
this grade then I do not get offered this course
irrespective of the number of points I obtain in the Leaving
Certificate.
 Alleligible applicants are then placed in a list, in order of
academic merit, for each course that they applied for.
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36. How Places are Allocated
The admissions officers of the Higher
Education Institutions tell CAO how many
places are to be offered on each course
CAO then makes offers to the required
number of applicants on each course starting
with the applicant with the highest points and
working down until enough places have been
offered.
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37. How Places are Allocated
Should some applicants decline to accept their
offers these places become available in the next
round of offers. They will be offered to the next
applicants on the order of merit list.
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38. These are the applicants for CK101 Arts in UCC.
The examination results have not yet been released, so
these applicants are in no particular order.
We are going to trace the progress of the applicant
marked in red.
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39. Applicants are placed in a queue for each course they
applied for, their position in the queue is determined by
their points. The applicant with the highest points is placed
at the top of the queue. The points achieved by the
applicant in red determines his/her position in the queue
for each course he/she applied to.
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40. The applicants marked in green have enough points to be
offered places.
The applicant marked in red has enough points for his/her
second preference.
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41. The applicant in red is offered his/her second preference,
the highest preference course that he/she has enough
points for, and he/she will now disappear from the queue
in all his lower choices. Placing DN201 as his second
preference meant that he/she would prefer to receive an
offer on DN201 than on any other course except CK101 -
which is his/her first preference.
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42. Having been offered his second preference he/she must
now decide to accept it or to do nothing. If he/she does not
accept the offer the place will be offered to another
applicant in the next round of offers.
Regardless of whether he/she accepts or not he will still be
considered for an offer on his/her first preference if a place
becomes available. In the second round, one more offer was
made on CK101 and our applicant is now at the top of the
queue.
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43. In the third round of offers two more offers are made on
CK101 and our applicant, who was at the top of the queue,
now receives an offer.
He/She may do nothing and remain in DN201 or he/she may
accept the offer and begin in CK101.
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44. Genuine Order of Preference
• You do not need to guess what the points are
going to be for the courses you are interested
in.
• Simply list your courses in genuine order of
preference from the highest preference 1, to
the lowest preference 10.
• If you are entitled to an offer, you will be
offered the highest preference that you are
entitled to.
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45.  College Courses (UCD) Required points
2012 2011
 Arts 355 350
 Computer Science 470 410/375
 Sports Studies and Exercise M. 425
405
 Commerce 465 445
 Law 495 485
 Law and French 560 535
 Engineering 460 430
 Architecture 480 470
 Science (Biological and Chemical) 500 455
 Medicine #745 #735
 Veterinary 585 565
 Social Science 405 390
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46. CAO SYMBOLS
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47. Science – UCD -2009 Science – Maynooth - 2009
100 places to be offered 100 places to be offered
Applicant Points Applicant Points
Position Score Position Score
1 560 1 560
2 535 2 535
3 525 3 525
4 520 4 520
5 510 5 510
6 510 6 510
7 505 7 505
8 500 8 500
9 490 9 490
-- -- -- --
-- -- -- --
15 455 15 455
16 445 16 445
17 440 17 440
18 435 18 435
19 420 19 420
20 410 20 410
21 405 21 405
-- -- -- --
-- -- -- --
98 340 98 345
99 335 99 340
100 330  Last 100 335  Random
101 325 101 335 Selection
place to
102 315 102 335 to be used
103 310 be filled 103 315
104 305 104 310
105 295 105 305
-- -- -- --
-- -- -- --
182 265 182 265
Course Cut Off Points = 330 Course Cut Off Points = 335*

48. Acknowledgment of acceptance
 How do I know that my acceptance has been registered?
 For those who have accepted an offer on-line, a print out of an
acceptance receipt can be obtained. Confirmation of this can also
be checked on-line after three working days.
 A formal confirmation receipt of acceptance either on-line or by
post will be sent to applicant within 3 working days of the reply
date.
 The Higher Ed. Institution concerned should also send you details
of registration and annual charges within ten days of the reply
date.

49. Deferral Proceedure
 DO NOT accept the offer in the manner shown in the Offer
notice.
 Write or e-mail immediately to the Admissions Office of the
appropriate HEI. Quote your 2013 CAO Application number and
set out reasons for the request.
 Mark ‘deferred’ entry clearly on the envelope or subject line of e-
mail.
 The letter or e-mail must arrive in the Admissions Office at least
two days before the ‘Reply Date’ shown on the Offer Notice.
 To take up your deferral the following year YOU MUST re-apply
through the CAO in the succeeding year and pay the appropriate
fee again.
 You must also place the deferred course as YOUR ONLY
preference on the application form.
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50. HPAT (Health Professions Admission Test)
 Standard registration deadline – 20 January 2013
 Late registration deadline – 1 February, 2013
 Test Date – Sat 02 March 2013 (2 ½ hr exam)
 Results issued in late June 2013
 3 sections assessed (aptitude test) (total: 300 marks)
1 Logical reasoning and problem solving skills
2 Interpersonal Understanding
3 Verbal Reasoning
 Leaving Cert Pts plus HPAT combined = max score 860pts
 Min LC pts = 480 to max 560 (moderated thereafter up to 560)
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51. Scoring LC + HPat
•If you achieve 600 points in the LCE this will
become 560 adjusted LCE points and if you achieve
a score of 155 in the
HPAT-Ireland test, your overall score will be 715.
• Similarly if you achieve 540 points in the LCE, and
then get a HPAT-Ireland score of 175, your overall
score will be 715.
• Or if you achieve 480 points in the LCE and then
235 in HPAT-Ireland, your overall score will be
715.
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52. Irish language exemptions/SLD
 Contact the NUI with respect to current or desired
exemptions in Irish/specific learning disabilities. Ring
NUI on 01 -4392424 – please submit your current
supporting documentation.
 They will issue then you with a letter which you should
forward to the CAO.
 When filling out page 1 of the CAO application form, if
your child has a specific learning difficulty tick the
relevant box and complete section A of the on-line SIF
(Supplementary Information Form): then print section
B and ask the Guidance Counsellor and Principal to
complete one page of this section and a Consultant to
complete the other relevant page or obtain an
Educational Psychologist’s report (no more than three
years old!)

53. Calendar of Tests / Interviews
for various courses in 2013.

Code Course Title Test/Interview Dates AD101 Art and Design (1st
Year, common entry) Portfolio submission deadline: 08/02/2013 AD202
Design or Fine Art and Education Portfolio submission deadline:
08/02/2013 AD212 Product Design Portfolio submission deadline:
 April 2013 DN517 Music TBD (to be decided)March 2013
 LM030 Irish Music and Dance Auditions: Saturday 20th & Sunday 21st
April, 2013 LM031 Voice and Dance Auditions: Saturday 20th & Sunday
21st April, 2013 LM099 Architecture Deadline for submission of Portfolio
& Statement: Friday, 5th

April, 2013 MH103 Music Test Saturday 23rd March 2013 from 11.30am
to 1.00pm -
Interviews & Auditions to take place during the first week in
05/11/12 Mr. Frank Farrell 53

54. Useful Websites
www.cao.ie
www.qualifax.ie
Careersportal.ie
www.careersdirections.ie
www.studentfinance.ie
www.accesscollege.ie
www.fas.ie
www.hpatireland.ie
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55. Info
CAO Presentation available on school
website:
www.portmarnockcommunityschool.ie
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56. Where are the jobs in
Ireland?
Thriving sectors presently in Ireland, 2013...
‐ ICT
‐ Pharmaceuticals
‐ Food & Drink
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57. Future Jobs ?
Expert group on future skills needs
Forfas report 2010
Sectoral skills – shortages identified by sector
 ICT
 Green economy
 Bio-pharma / pharmachem sector
 Food and beverage sector
 International financial services
 Medical devices
 Wholesale and retail
Cross sectoral enterprise/generic skill
 Mathematical proficiency, foreign language and foreign market understanding,
business acumen and enterprise
Current Occupational skills shortages
 ICT programmers, science professionals, engineering, sales and marketing,
transport and supply chain specialists, financial service, chartered
accountants, food science, biomedical industry,
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58. Let’s look at the industries
in Ireland:
8 of the top 10 pharmaceutical companies.
9 out of the top 10 global ICT companies.
5 of the top global software companies.
15 out of the top 25 medical devices
companies.
More than 50% of the worlds leading
financial services
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59. ICT Companies based in Ireland
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60. Who is recruiting Irish Graduates?
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61. ICT Sector in Ireland
Tech sector is thriving
�approx 70 jobs announced every week since the
start of the year
�Currently there are roughly 4,500 vacancies in
the sector (this needs to be addressed as there is
clearly a skills shortage)
�Not just tech jobs but jobs in marketing, sales,
product management, project management,
multilingual roles, business analytics etc.
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62. Pharma facts
 25,300 people are employed in the Irish
PharmaChemicalsector,
 46% of which are third-level graduates. 25% of all PhD
researchers in Irish industry are employed in the
sector.
 �In 2010 the Irish pharmaceutical and chemical sector
exported products to the value of 50.8 billion
 �Ireland’s pharmaceutical exports are the 7th largest in
the world.
 �Ireland is the largest net exporter of pharmaceuticals
in the world
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63. Food & Drink Industry-The future
is bright
 €24bn turnover
 600 companies
 46,000 and 60,000 indirect employees
 Utilises 90% of agricultural output
 Exports €8.9bn to 120 countries
 Largest net exporter of beef, lamb and dairy
ingredients in the EU
 80% of dairy and 90% of beef exported and produces
 20% of the global supply of infant formula
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64. The world will have to produce 70% more
food to feed another 2.3bn people by
2050 (UN Food and Agriculture Organisation)
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65. Tomorrow’s jobs
“Many of the jobs in 2015 and
most of the jobs in 2030
do not currently exist
and cannot be foreseen yet.”
Expert Group on New Skills for New Jobs – report prepared for the European
Commission (February 2010
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66. Open Forum
Questions??????
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