Even though most of the focus for college is on the CAO system, there are alternative career paths. The further education (FE) sector has opportunities for students who may not secure the points they want through the CAO, but who may do very well in a post- Leaving Cert (PLC) course in the area they want to study.
If students get distinctions in all eight modules of a PLC programme, they have a good chance of securing a reserved place in their preferred CAO course for 2017.
A database of such linked programmes is available on careersportal.ie. The most comprehensive source of all CAO and PLC course information is qualifax.ie.
In some areas, such as nursing, there are a very small number of CAO places for such students, so many successful PLC students end up in British nursing programmes. (Up to 500 Irish students choose this option to qualify as nurses each year.)
Practical skills
PLC programmes also offer opportunities to gain practical skills for employment in a trade or craft, such as hairdressing, beauty, fire and ambulance services. Students interested in a course offered through local PLC colleges should fill out an application form from the college in the next few weeks.
Places are offered on a first- come, first-served basis in most cases and may be impossible to secure later in the year.
If, however, you are interested in getting a place through the CAO system for a course in an Irish university, institute of technology, teacher-training college or private college, now is the time to act.
Register your intention to seek a college place through the CAO's website (www.cao.ie) and be prepared to pay a €25 charge by credit or debit card. You don't need to know what courses you want to study yet; you can amend your course choices up until the July 1st final deadline.
The exception is for courses listed as “restricted” in the CAO handbook . You need to apply for these by February 1st.
Between February 5th and March 1st, any CAO applicant may change a restricted course choice for a fee of €10.
Restricted application
If you are a mature student or if you have applied for a restricted application course, or if you want to apply for one you have not yet listed, and wish to correct or amend your application record, you must report any errors to the CAO by March 1st (fee €10). If you are not in these categories, you do not need to correct any course errors at this stage.
You may use the change-of- mind facility between May 5th and July 1st to make any changes, at no financial charge.
Before the end of May, all applicants will be sent a statement of application record as a final acknowledgment and to verify that all information has been recorded accurately.
If it does not arrive by June 1st, contact the CAO immediately. Accompanying this statement will be a change-of- mind form, which you can use up to the closing date, 5.15pm on July 1st.
