Today is the big day that Leaving Certs from the Class of 2023 have been waiting for, the Round One offers from CAO.
Tens of thousands of students across Donegal and the rest of the country will be anxiously waiting until 2.00pm to learn if they have received an offer to the courses they have applied for.
Donegal Career Guidance Counsellor Rory White has this advice for students and the many opportunities available:
The Leaving Certificate results were issued last week and many students will be hopeful that they have gained enough points to secure their offer, others may have been disappointed. Again this year, the points gained by students were quite high when compared to pre-Covid years. This may have an effect on the points required for certain courses. In recent years we have unfortunately even seen examples where students who had achieved a perfect score of 625pts did not get their first choice offer, and this was deeply unfair.
For the majority of students there will be joy and relief as they check their CAO account to see the offer in their inbox. However, there will also be some students who did not receive either their first choice or maybe even any offer at all. This can be very disappointing, especially if you had put all your eggs in the one basket for a course that you really wanted. It is very important for these students to understand that there are still so many options available to you. There are many different pathways that can help you get to where you want to go and it is very worthwhile checking out some of the following options.
The CAO offer season is more than just one day!
Although for many it seemed like Wednesday 30th August is D-Day, the fact is that there are still several rounds to go. Colleges want to fill all of the places on their courses. There are always students who do not accept an offer for a variety of reasons and it is these places that then get re-offered in rounds 2, 3, 4 & 5. So, in the event that you may have missed out on your preferred course in Round 1, you may well get offered it in a later round, so don’t write it off just yet! It is important to note that if you accept a lower offer than your preferred one, you can still yet be offered a higher one if it becomes available in a later round.
Available places
Every year the CAO publishes lists of courses that have places available, the day after the Round One offers (Thursday 31st 12.00). Sometimes these can be new courses that colleges had only added quite recently onto the CAO system. Very often there may also be Level 6 or Level 7 courses which can lead onto a Level 8 that you missed out on. You may also be lucky and come across something very suited to you that you hadn’t previously considered. You will still need to meet the minimum entry requirements for these Available Places courses. For those who have already made a CAO application, apply through the ‘Existing Applicant’ link, there is no charge. If you have NOT made an application already you can apply through the ‘New Applicant’ link for a €45 charge.
The FET options
I have written before on the merits of Post Leaving Certificate courses (PLCs), as well as Apprenticeships and Traineeships, and there is still time to apply for a place. There are so many benefits to the FET pathways, not least in the financial sense. The ability to earn as you learn and the tailored links that many of the courses have to industry make a lot of sense. PLC courses qualify for SUSI. Find more information on FET courses by visiting the Donegal ETB website or www.fetchcourses.ie.
New Non-CAO pathways into Higher Education courses
This year sees the introduction of a number of Tertiary Degree options that have been introduced in a collaboration between Donegal ETB and Atlantic Technological University. There are four different degree options available in these areas-
NFQ Level 8 in Business
NFQ Level 7 in Industrial Laboratory Science
NFQ Level 8 in Sustainable Engineering Technologies
NFQ Level 5 Access route into General Nursing
These are exciting new opportunities and unlike other degree courses, applicants do not need to wait for CAO points as they can apply directly. Shortlisted applicants will be invited for an interview when they will be required to show evidence of their eligibility based on the information provided in the application process. The first year of these degrees are FREE with Donegal ETB and you are eligible to apply for a SUSI grant.
Re-sit the Leaving Cert next year
Although it may not seem to be a very attractive option sitting the Leaving Cert exams again, it does provide you with the opportunity to improve upon your results from this year’s exams. Repeating your Leaving Certificate can be quite a drastic step and all other options outlined above should be explored first before going back. Things to consider are the fact that some course material will have changed from last year, new English texts, practical projects etc, and you may have to catch up on these to get up to speed with the 6th year students. So think long and hard about the repeat option and do your research on other possibilities before committing.
Take some time out to decide and sample the world of work
Finally, there is always the option for you to get into the world of work. Again there are many benefits to this option that can help students and give them the time to figure out what direction they really want to go. It can be an opportunity to earn some money for going to college, while at the same time gathering many transferable and valuable life skills. Stepping away from education for a time can also allow the Leaving Cert ‘fog’ to lift and allow you to see things more clearly. Perhaps the road you were hoping to take just might not have been the right one for you in the first place.
Sometimes things happen for a reason!
The important thing for you to remember is that your Leaving Certificate results will not define you, they are certainly not the be all and end all. It is how you apply yourself afterwards that will determine how successful and fulfilled you become. We can all think of someone who did not get the results they wanted or maybe school wasn’t suited to them, yet they have gone on to become very successful people. The world is your oyster! Good luck.
Rory White is a Ballybofey-based Guidance Counsellor currently working with CareersPortal.ie, Ireland’s National Career Guidance Website. He works with Donegal ETB in Finn Valley College, Stranorlar and is a member of the Donegal Branch of the Institute of Guidance Counsellors. For more than ten years he has been helping Leaving Cert and PLC students as well as adults choose a college course or decide to change their career journey to start something new. Rory’s columns on Donegal Daily share advice on making informed career and education decisions.
– Rory White BA/H.Dip in Guidance & Counselling
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