Exam students will get further good news this morning when 75 per cent of them will be offered third-level places by the CAO. This year CAO points have dropped on a range of degree and certificate/diploma courses, including traditionally high points courses such as medicine. The largest drop in points requirements was registered in science and computer courses.
A sharp fall in the youth population has been cited as the reason for this year's reduction in points. The admissions officer at NUI Maynooth, Mr John McGinnity, said that while Leaving Cert grades were up, the fall in applications cancelled this out.
Poor grades in physics and chemistry were blamed for declining numbers opting for science at university level. Mr McGinnity said many students simply were not eligible for science courses. In this year's exams, 22 per cent of students failed biology at ordinary level. The majority of these courses require fewer points this year. One of the most dramatic examples was UCD's science course which fell 45 points to 300.
Despite the prevalence of computer firms in the Republic, students are now less likely to choose a computer-related course.
Points for Trinity's computer science degree have been reduced by 45, and its computer/German course was down a dramatic 110 points. Two-thirds of CAO computer and IT courses were down this year.
This year's CAO figures show that students and their parents are getting better at choosing their courses.
Almost 50 per cent of those who applied for a degree course were offered their first preference, while 70 per cent of those who applied for a certificate/diploma course were offered their first preference.
However, the number of students not getting a CAO offer was up marginally to 25 per cent. One of the reasons behind this is understood to be the high failure rate in ordinary level maths this year (17 per cent).
Nursing places, administered for the first time this year by the CAO, require very high points, over 400 in some cases.