Leitrim students: CAO deadline is tomorrow, February 1

The CAO application must be completed by tomorrow Wednesday, February 1, at 5pm.

This deadline does not mean time is up for your course choice. By this deadline, the CAO wants you to have your application filled in and submitted, so that’s your personal details and email address, you will receive your CAO number thereafter.

It is vital that the CAO applicant reads all correspondence pertaining to their application from the CAO throughout the process.

The CAO change of mind facility opens in May runs up until July 1, 2023, and allows you to add courses, remove courses, change order and preference.

The only reason you need to have your CAO fully completed by February 1 is if you are applying for a restricted course. This is a course that requires additional aspects such as entrance tests like the HPAT exam for medicine, portfolios for example in art, graphic design or architecture. Important advice is to investigate and check whether you will be applying for a restricted course or not. If you are still in doubt and there may be a possibility, put it on your CAO list before February 1. You can remove it with the opening of the change of mind facility in May, but importantly, you cannot add it at that point in May.

There are two lists on the CAO application. The first list is for Level 8 courses (honours degrees) and the other list is for Level 6/7 courses (Higher Cert./ordinary degree). Each list allows applicants to enter 10 courses, so 20 courses in total. It is important to note that these two lists do not have to be completely full; it is strongly advisable that both contain courses of choice. When offers are made if the student receives their first choice and accepts, they will receive no more offers below this.

There is no need to panic about the CAO form, you have plenty of time to continue on your research, keep researching and investigating. Just make sure you get the first form in by the deadline tomorrow.