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21
Decisions on Applications:
Basis of the Place-Offering Process
The administration of the admissions process and the
rights of applicants in that process will be based on
the course choices, in order of preference, notified to
the Central Applications Office in due form and by
the due date and time as specified in the Handbook.
Offer and Acceptance of Places:
General
Decisions on applications are normally taken in August
and September following receipt of the results of the
annual school-leaving examinations.
In the cases of a very few applicants, mainly mature
applicants or those living outside the EU, decisions may
be taken at an earlier date.
Normally, however, you should not expect to have
decisions before August.
All offers of places will be sent by post. A “Reply Date”
will be printed on Offer Notices. If you wish to accept an
offer, you must do so by 5:15pm on the “Reply Date”
printed on the Offer Notice.
In addition, offers will be presented online at the CAO
website www.cao.ie and you may record your acceptance
online.
In checking the website, it is important to check for
actual offers and not to rely on points levels.
Absence at Offer Stage
Experience has shown that difficulties can arise if you are
not available at the Offer Stage. It is strongly
recommended that you should be at the correspondence
address in July, August and September when offers of
places are issued, or have another person at the address
briefed clearly on what to do.
IF YOU FAIL TO DEAL WITH AN OFFER
PROPERLY AND ON TIME YOU MAY LOSE THE
PLACE.
Examination Results
During August, CAO receives direct from the examination
authorities the current year results of the Irish Leaving
Certificate, FETAC(Level 5/6) and GCE Northern Ireland
Examinations.
For details of the supply of results of other examinations,
see Pages 12, 13 and 14.
Offer Schedule:
Round A
In early July a small number of offers of places may be
issued to applicants such as :
those who need to make visa or other
arrangements before taking up a place;
deferred applicants; mature applicants;
mature nursing/midwifery code applicants.
Round Zero
In early August there may be an issue of a small number of
offers of places which go to certain categories of applicant
who are not awaiting 2010 examination results or who are
assessed on other criteria, e.g. graduate entry medicine
applicants, mature applicants. (Applicants presenting
FETAC (2002-2010) for consideration for entry to courses
with a quota for FETAC applicants may also be included
at this stage.)
Round One
Issue of the main body of offers takes place as soon as
possible after Irish Leaving Certificate Examination results
become available. This is normally within a week of the
issue of results to candidates, in mid-August.
At the same time as first round offers of places are issued
to successful applicants, notices are sent to those who do
not receive any offer.
Round Two
A second round of offers will be issued, usually in late
August/early September, to fill any remaining vacancies.
After Round Two
Thereafter, offers will be issued as necessary until October
to fill any vacancies which may arise.
Offer Procedures:
General
The procedures for acceptance of an offer are very simple
and very clear. They are designed to ensure fair treatment
for ALL applicants. Requests for special treatment are
unfair to other applicants.
Offers will be issued independently in respect of Level 8
and Level 7/Level 6 courses, so that some applicants may
receive two offers of places simultaneously.
More than one acceptance
If you receive more than one offer, you may make
successive acceptances but an acceptance automatically
cancels and supersedes any previous acceptance(s) - you
may have only one current acceptance in the entire CAO
system.
Lapse of Offers
An offer will lapse unless you accept it within a specified
period - i.e. unless the online or paper acceptance is
received in CAO by 5:15 pm on the "Reply Date" set out
in the Offer Notice.
Offer of Places