I need to maximise my CAO points. Which is the easiest Leaving Cert subject?

I’m in transition year and have to make my final subject choices for the Leaving Cert shortly. I’m interested in geography, but I’m told it is one of the hardest subjects to get a H1 in. Could you advice on what the easiest subjects are so I can boost my chances of maximising my CAO points?

There are two underlying assumptions in your question: firstly, that there are easy or difficult subjects at Leaving Cert level and, secondly, that career progression is determined mainly through the CAO points score that a student achieves in their Leaving Cert.

Both assumptions are commonly held – and both are, in fact, inaccurate.

Having engaged with thousands of students over my career, I can assure you there is no such thing as an easy or difficult Leaving Cert subject.

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Yes, it is true that consistently certain subjects seem to deliver higher proportions of top grades than other subjects. Music and art consistently return high scores, as do chemistry and physics.

Biology, business and geography, on the other hand, tend to provide lower levels of high grades.

Do these facts not refute my argument? They don’t, in fact, because the higher levels of grades achieved in certain subjects are determined by the ability levels of the cohort who select them each year.

Music and art students tend to be passionate about their subjects and to have engaged in musical and artistic expression since childhood. The numbers taking the subject tend to be small, drawing the most skilled students.

It’s a similar story with science subjects. A relatively small number take on chemistry and physics as Leaving Cert subjects. These students tend to excel in science and are often also highly proficient in maths. Biology, on the other hand, is the science subject of choice for about two-thirds of each year’s Leaving Cert cohort, drawing students from right across the ability spectrum.

A key factor to bear in mind when selecting a Leaving Cert subject is how it is assessed. For some students, securing a significant proportion of marks before the written papers in June is a very attractive option.

In art, for example, 70 per cent is awarded for practical work, with 30 per cent awarded in the visual studies exam. In geography, history, religious education and home economics, 20 per cent is similarly awarded for pre-submitted project work.

Finally, let’s dispense with the fallacy that everything stands or falls on the basis of the Leaving Cert.

Annually, in early August the CAO offers thousands of places to applicants who may have secured modest CAO points in their Leaving Cert the previous year, but who went on to take a PLC course in their local ETB college; having done well, they secure offers in their dream CAO courses, unrelated to their previous points.