CAO Watch: Reduced points for disadvantaged students

The Disability Access Route to Education (Dare) and Higher Education Access Route (Hear) are third level admissions schemes for students with disabilities and students from disadvantaged backgrounds respectively.

Students who meet specific criteria set out by the schemes are eligible to be considered for a reduced points place and extra college support .

Since their establishment, applications to these schemes have risen from just over 6,000 in 2009 to almost 14,000 last year. According to the Association for Higher Education Access & Disability (Ahead), approximately 5 per cent of students attending higher education in Ireland are registered with disability support services.

While most colleges participate in Dare and Hear schemes, not all do. However, colleges outside of these schemes still offer a wide range of supports including disability support services.

Whether you get a place through Dare or not, you are still entitled to avail of disability-related supports once you have a verified disability.

(A list of participating colleges are available on www.accesscollege.ie).

Disadvantaged students Applicants to Hear must meet a combination of financial and social/cultural indicators to be eligible. The income of applicants' parents must be below €45,790 (there are higher income thresholds for families with more than four dependants).

Applicants must also meet a combination of at least two of five other indicators. These are: the applicant or their parent guardian is in receipt of a medical card/GP visit card, the family is in receipt of a means-tested welfare payment, membership of a socioeconomic group which is under represented at higher education.

Note: Susi maintenance grants are there to assist applicants from low income backgrounds, many of whom may not necessarily meet the full Hear criteria. However, applicants to Hear should also apply to Susi.

Students with disabilities Applicants to the Dare scheme need to meet two criteria: they relate to evidence of disability and educational impact.

The Dare scheme has moved away from the exclusive use of medical criteria towards a holistic one which recognises the impact that having a disability can have on a student’s experience of second-level education.

The educational impact criteria involves both an applicant and school statement. This details how the applicant may have been educationally impacted as a result of their disability in secondary school.

If you are interested in applying to the Dare or Hear schemes, you must apply to the CAO by February 1st and complete the online application in the ‘my application section’ of your CAO application by March 1st. Remember: you need to post the required documentation by registered post to the CAO by April 1st.

For anyone interested in applying to Dare or Hear, advice clinics are being held nationwide tomorrow (Saturday, January 16th). For further information and venues please see www.accesscollege.ie.

If you would like further information about access and the supports available, contact any of colleges you are interested in attending. Students with disabilities can also contact Ahead (www.ahead.ie) by phone (01-7164396) or email lorraine.gallagher@ahead.ie.