Stands to deliver on questions

If you're wondering which stands to visit, try and zone in on your interests and visit a selection of colleges which offer relevant courses. Demand is always high for certain courses such as medical, paramedical, law and actuarial studies so points are invariably high also. Try not to invest all of your hopes in a single highpoints course.

And remember to visit the institutes of technology which offer a substantial range of certificates, diplomas and degrees and where points may be more reasonable.

This is your chance to ask questions and collect literature. Find out if courses include work experience or a placement abroad. If you're interested in a certificate or diploma, is an add-on degree available? What specialisms do the various colleges offer under the omnibus labels of art, business, commerce, science or engineering? Are there quotas for particular subjects in second year, or can you choose freely?

Colleges in Britain and Northern Ireland also offer a wide range of options but, remember, you may have to pay fees. And courses which are popular in the Republic are equally popular in the UK - ask about entry requirements.

Medical and paramedical courses

There is a limited number of places on these popular courses. Pick up all of the literature, advice and information you can lay your hands on. Ask plenty of questions. The following is a selection of medical and paramedical courses which always attract strong interest among applicants.

Optometry: Offered by DIT Kevin Street, is a four-year degree programme. Ulster University offers a three-year BSc in optometry.

Medical lab sciences: You must have an appropriate degree to work as a medical lab scientist. A certain confusion arises as medical lab sciences is offered as a three-year certificate in Galway-Mayo IT, Cork IT and DIT Kevin Street. This certificate includes a year's work experience. A two-year follow-on degree is offered by Cork IT in conjunction with UCC and by DIT Kevin Street (graduates of all three certificate courses may apply for these degrees). Students may also apply to UU's degree programme.

Physiotherapy is one of the most sought-after degree courses in the CAO system. UCD and TCD offer four-year degree courses. The RCSI is also offering physiotherapy but there are a limited number of places on offer to school leavers from the Republic. UU offers a physiotherapy degree, so it's worth checking out this stand.

Radiography: Diagnostic radiography is offered by UCD while TCD has a course in therapeutic radiography. While both courses include the use of X-rays, there are significant differences in emphasis. Now is the time to ask questions.

Pharmacy is a four-year degree course available at TCD.

Medicine is offered by NUI Galway, UCC, UCD, TCD and the RCSI, where some places are fee-paying and others are offered on the basis of competitive scholarship.

Veterinary medicine is a five-year programme only on offer in UCD while clinical speech and language studies and occupational therapy are both four-year degree programmes offered by TCD. UU also offers occupational therapy and speech and language therapy courses.

TCD has a new medicinal chemistry degree, which was offered for the first time last year, and attracted a lot of interest.

Applied physiology and health science is a popular course offered by Carlow IT. Many of the graduates have found places on other paramedical-type courses, such as physiotherapy.

Science

All of the Irish universities and the institutes of technology offer science programmes. They range from certificates to diplomas to degrees, and in most cases, you can progress from one level to the next. If you know which area of science interests you, then there are lots of direct-entry courses. The advantage is you begin work in your area of interest from day one. For those less sure of their future direction, there are omnibus science degrees offers by UCD, TCD, DIT, NUI Galway, NUI Maynooth and DCU. It is important to research the subjects offered by each of these colleges. Ask the staff at the stands about particular specialisms.

Engineering

One of the main concerns among engineers and the colleges offering engineering courses is the gender imbalance. Very few women opt for engineering although it offers excellent career prospects.

Omnibus programmes, such as those offered by UCD, TCD, NUI Galway and DIT, allow students time to sample the various disciplines before specialising. If you know what you want, you should check out the various direct-entry options offered by the institutes of technology and the universities.

Arts

There is an incredible range of options available under the umbrella term arts. Many people associate the humanities with the older universities. However, there are courses on offer in some of the institutes of technology, the private third-level colleges, PLC colleges, DCU, UL, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, St Angela's College, Sligo, St Patrick's College, Drumcondra, and St Patrick's College Maynooth as well as in UCD, TCD, UCC, NUI Galway and NUI Maynooth.

Business

A broad-based approach is taken by programmes such as commerce at UCD, UCC and NUI Galway and business studies at UL. TCD's BESS degree has a common first year which includes economics and management. All of the ITs offer business programmes.

Increasingly, colleges are offering business studies combined with a language or other subject. So, for instance, DCU offers European Business (French/German/Spanish) while IT Blanchardstown has business, information technology and French/German or Spanish. More exotic offerings include business studies with Russian or Chinese at TCD while UCD offers commerce (international) with modern Irish among other languages.