This month, Leaving Cert students are being asked to choose from the widest ever menu of third-level courses available in the history of the State. January is a time of opportunity for these students. It should be an optimistic month, as they look forward to life after school.
Instead of taking hope from this and researching interesting new options such as mechatronics, forest management or heritage studies, many students spend their time worrying about points levels and juggling course choices accordingly.
The hype and tension that surround college entry and the socalled points race is just that. Take a look at the figures. Last year, more than 77,000 offers of college places were made through the Central Admissions Office. That is 7,000 more than the previous year. And this year, we can expect even more offers to be made.
However, what happened last summer after the offers were made was truly startling. In all, 32,674 students took up their offers and are now mid-way through their first year of study. Compare that with the previous year when 34,311 students accepted college places. In other words, about 1,600 fewer students accepted college places through the CAO. So, even though the number of college offers was increased, the number of students who are actually in first year is down.
What happened? At degree level, 17,016 students took up college places, an increase of more than 300 on the previous year. At cert/diploma level, there was a dramatic drop in acceptances with 15,658 students beginning certificates and diplomas compared to 17,644 the year before. So, this is where the big drop in college acceptances occurred as students spurned certificate and diploma courses. The "degree or nothing" syndrome is becoming even more pronounced.
And, as the CAO offers were being made to individual students, the CAO was also advertising courses with vacant places which were open to everyone. In all, by the time the three main rounds of CAO offers were made, there were 42 courses advertising vacant places.
Yes, these were mainly certificates and diplomas in the regional technical college/institute of technology sector. No, medicine, veterinary and dentistry were not included. But courses such as mechanical engineering, applied chemistry, polymer engineering and business studies were on the list.
Undoubtedly, the most soughtafter qualification is the degree. However, many students miss the point. Certificates and diplomas are often the first rung on a much-trodden ladder to a degree. (Certificates and diplomas are also valid qualifications in their own right.)
The number of add-on degrees available in the regional technical colleges and the institutes of technology increases each year. But, you will not find them by reading the CAO handbook. You must trawl through the college prospect uses. We will carry a full list of add-on options in College Choice.
This will not interest students who do not really care about the course content or the prospects it offers. They want to go to a university, not a regional technical college or an institute of technology. They would never be able to face their friends if they had to admit to packing a bag and heading to college in the midlands. If snobbery is the guiding reason for your course choice, naturally you are wise to avoid the certificate/ diploma list on the CAO form. However, if you have the maturity to consider all third-level options, then both lists deserve equal attention.
Geography is also a compounding factor when it comes to college choice. Home is the cheapest place to spend your college years. With a quarter of the Republic's population living in the Dublin area, competition for college places is steepest there.
Students with their sights set on third level should use this month to read the college prospectuses. Find out about the subjects on offer each year of the courses. Inquire about future prospects. Go to college open days and see the campus for yourself. Meet the staff and ask those burning questions.
The CAO handbook should be the definitive guide to third-level application but it is printed early in the year and colleges add and cancel courses. If you do not keep up with the changes you could squander one of your choices or miss the very course for you. Already, the CAO has issued guidance counsellors with a list of changes.
The following are new courses which are not in the handbook, but for which application may be made using the CAO application form:
DN026 Economics and finance in UCD (degree);
GY407 Management engineering with a language in the University of Galway (degree);
TR037 Information and communications technology in TCD (degree);
WD076 Forestry in WIT (diploma);
WD079 Administration in WIT (degree);
WD080 Business with German in WIT (degree).
There may be specific subject requirements for these courses, so check tomorrow's College Choice supplement.
While notice of the above courses has been sent to guidance counsellors, there is one more course for which students can apply through the CAO - CR116 BSc in software development and computer networking in Cork Institute of Technology.
And, to further complicate matters, Athlone RTC is offering three courses outside the CAO system:
National diploma in engineering (mechatronics);
BSc in computer software and software engineering;
BSc in polymer technology.
Students should apply directly to the college, using the CAO closing dates.
Cancelled: WD004 in WIT, Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (replaced by WD079 above). SG106 Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland in Sligo RTC.
Subject requirements: There is now no science subject requirement for the national diplomas in science (nautical science) and engineering (marine) in Cork Institute of Technology. While the college prospectus states that both of these courses (CR094 and CR095 respectively), require a pass in a science subject, this has now been changed.
The diploma in art in Sligo RTC (SG231) no longer requires a pass in Leaving Cert art as is stated in the current prospectus.
Open days: DIT's annual open day will take place on Saturday, January 24th, in DIT Bolton Street. Parents, guidance counsellors, principals and teachers are particularly welcome. No prebooking is necessary. There will be presentations covering fulltime courses in 20 areas. UL will open its doors on January 13th and 14th while Mary Immaculate College will have its annual open day on January 13th.