Between now and 5.15pm on February 1st, more than 60,000 applicants will register with the Central Applications Office in Galway, hoping to secure a third-level place in August.
Over the next three weeks in this column, I will be mainly addressing the options open to school leavers, through the CAO and further education or Fetac routes.
In selecting CAO options, school leavers are not in the main choosing a career - other than in a small number of disciplines. You are choosing to continue studying subjects in which you excelled and have enjoyed in school.
The difference now is that while at college, you will be developing a range of self- management skills. These will enable you to select a suitable postgraduate programme in three to four years, or allow you to enter the jobs market. The key to your CAO choice is to ensure that your options reflect your own skills and aptitudes.
Finding the course for you
A national database of educational options is available at www.qualifax.ie, detailing more than 16,000 courses available throughout the State.
If you are considering a CAO application or you have another educational interest, simply log on to the courses section of the site, enter a search word and you will immediately have a wide range of choices.
Once you have thoroughly researched your options, studied the subject content of the courses you have explored, examined the entry requirements, the duration of the course, the progression options onwards following successful completion of the programme, you can then draw up a short list for further exploration.
Detailed work on your college option
This may involve a visit to the college in question or logging on to the college's own website. It might also involve a phone call or visit to the faculty or department offering the programme that interests you. Take time to discuss the course with a relevant staff member.
It has been my experience over many years that colleges are very pleased to attend to inquiries from prospective students.
Other CAO applicants:
This column will over the next three weeks hope to help different types of applicants, including:
- repeat Leaving Certs;
- those completing post-Leaving Certificate programmes at Fetac level 5;
- those who received sufficient points for their preferred course, but who failed to meet a specific subject entry requirement in 2006 (such as maths) and are now repeating that subject to secure their place;
- those who deferred a place offered in August 2006, but who must now submit an application in 2007 to the CAO, listing only the deferred place;
- those over 23 years of age, who are applying to enter higher education for the first time, and
- those who are considering applying from outside the State, presenting A levels mainly from schools in Northern Ireland, but also students from other EU states and from outside the EU.
Non- school applicants
If you are considering applying for a place on a course through the CAO, are not currently in school and do not have access to a guidance counsellor, you can find details of qualified guidance counsellors, working outside schools, on the Institute of Guidance Counsellors website, www.igc.ie
Adult learners
If you are an adult there are thousands of courses available to you both in your local education colleges and further afield. Log on to Qualifax and keep an eye on the supplements in this paper.
The Irish Times publishes regular supplements, aimed at adult learners of all types, throughout the year.
The new national guidance plan 2007-2012, due to be published this month, will put a major emphasis on the need to support all in employment or seeking employment, to further enhance their skills and levels of educational attainment.
The achievement of this aim is central to both our individual and collective economic wellbeing. I hope that the plan will provide targeted resources to facilitate potential learners in accessing opportunities to enhance their skills and qualifications.
Tomorrow: your CAO questions answered.
Brian Mooneywill be guiding you through the CAO process each weekday until the CAO deadline on February 1st.
You can email Brian Mooney on bmooney@irish-times.ie
Are you confident you will get your CAO option? Join the discussion forum on Skoool.ie - Ireland's leading eduction website developed by The Irish Times, Intel and AIB.
