COLLEGE 2002: Today marks the end of the CAO process for most of this year's 65,000 applicants. At 5.15 p.m. first round acceptances must be submitted to the CAO offices in Galway.
There is no flexibility in relation to the deadline. It means what it says.
The CAO needs to know whether you are taking your place, because if not, they may want to offer it to somebody else.
Remember, almost 14,000 candidates have not received any offers so far, so the CAO would like to give at least some of them a chance in the second round.
While many students will get an offer in the second round, the majority will not.
Only the colleges know how many there will be this year, but most students will have to get used to their first round offer.
Points drops in the second round will be minimal, although nursing and computer related courses are the most likely to dip.
There might be some slippage in points for arts too.
Deferral
If you wanted to defer your first-round place you have missed the deadline. You needed to have your deferral letter with the college offering you the place two days ago.
If you did not write to the college or the CAO about your first-round offer, the CAO presumes you do not want it.
You will remain in the system, but the chances of getting a further offer are relatively low, especially if the place declined was one of your top three.
If you do get a second-round offer and want to defer it, the CAO will give you a fresh deadline for doing this, usually two days before the second-round reply date. The procedure for deferring is the same. Write to the college admissions office requesting a deferral, not to the CAO.
If the college does not accept your request, the place can still be taken up. The other thing to remember about deferral is that when you go looking for the deferred place next year, the points will be the same as this year. But only for the deferred course. If you decide during the year the deferred place is no longer attractive and you want something else, you have to re-enter the CAO process as a new applicant and be subject to next year's points like everyone else.
Transferring
In answer to several queries this week - there is no formal mechanism for transferring during term from one college to another.
Several students have asked: "What if I do not like the course after a few months?"
As outlined last week, you can re-apply to the CAO to enter a new course the following year, but you will be subject to points in the normal way. In a small number of cases colleges will allow students to transfer from one of their courses to another.
But this is normally only done if you have the points and entry requirements for the new course. A department head will often have to give his or her consent as well.
In regard to fees, if you de-register before January 31st you will pay only half fees the next year, whereas if you leave it until later in the academic term you will pay full fees.
Drop Out
The problem of non-completion or drop-out among students might seem a distant concern at this stage in the CAO process. But it is highly relevant right now.
Each year thousands of students drop out of college due to a variety of factors.
As the HEA pointed out last year, dropping out can often have a serious impact on the self confidence of a young person.
So before you plunge into life at third level, it is worth remembering that hard work and a serious approach to study are still needed. While many students enjoy the new freedoms they gain at third level, others do not enjoy them too much.
You should attend lectures. You should take notes and file them away properly. You should spend at least a little time in the library.
You should do all these faintly swotty things because you could suffer later on if you do not. For those taking courses in the areas of technology and computing this advice is most relevant.
These courses have some of the highest drop out rates in the country and each year students enter them without realising the complex and difficult courses they are. They have a heavy maths content and if you only attend lectures infrequently you can easily get left behind.
Unlike school, because lectures are often attended by hundreds, it is not always possible to pull a lecturer aside and ask about something you missed last week.
The other thing to remember is that in most colleges now, exams are conducted on a semester basis. In others words, within a few months of starting college you face a challenging exam at Christmas.
Some students almost forget this and get caught out. Don't be one of them.
Vacant places
Many students have been tempted by the list of vacant places published here over the last week. The list is longer than last year's and some very good courses are on offer.
A lot of students are interested in taking a vacant place but are unsure how to apply. Others are worried they will not get any more offers if they apply for a vacant place.
The best way to apply for a vacant place is to do it online, but you can do it by post too.
In that case you will be sent a form showing your current course choices and CAO will ask you to insert the vacant place you want.
The key thing to remember is: put any vacant place you want above your current offer in your order of preference. If you insert them below you will not be offered the vacant place.
The other thing to remember is that selecting a vacant place does not prevent you from being offered choices further up your list in the second and subsequent rounds. Like all offers in the CAO, accepting one offer does not rule you out of others.
This column will resume when the second round offers are published on September 4th.