"THE number of students sitting the Leaving Cert will rise this year - but that does not mean the points will go up for the particular course you would like to study.
The effect of the Transition Year, where students spend an extra year in senior cycle, was to reduce the number of exam candidates last year to 59,176. This year, the numbers should climb back to about 65,000.
For this year's 65,000 students there will be about 35,000 third level places available through the central applications system but not all students will want to go to third level. And keep in mind, there are about 18,000 Post Leaving Cert places also available.
Granted it will probably be a bit more difficult to get a third level place this year, but generalisations don't help - the situation varies radically from faculty to faculty. To get perspective on the chances of being offered a college place, it is useful to look at last year's CAO/CAS statistics in detail.
The accompanying table shows how the chances of getting a place varied in different faculties last year. The first column of figures shows the number of first preference applicants for the course area. The second column shows the total number of places and the third column gives the ratio of first preference applicants per available place for 1996. This ratio is an indication of the degree of difficulty in getting a place.
You can see that students applying for degrees in science and applied science had roughly a one in two chance of getting a place. There were 5,352 first preference applicants and 2,931 places. In contrast, seekers after veterinary medicine had only a one in 10 chance of obtaining a place. There are only 70 places available in veterinary medicine and 695 first preference applicants.
On the certificate/diploma table, you can see that first preference applicants for the health care courses had only one chance in 22 of securing a place while engineering/technology applicants had a one in two chance. There were six first preference applicants competing for each place on agriculture/horticulture courses and four applicants for each architecture cert/diploma place.
The ratio of applicants to places will vary slightly each year but the figures are still a useful guide. The fewer the places, the more likely that points will remain high. Certain areas, such as medicine, veterinary, dentistry and the health sciences, invariably attract large numbers of high quality applicants annually and are always to be found in the "high points" bracket.
Of course, there will be others who have made these subject areas their second, third or tenth preference, but the ratio of first preference applicants for available places is a good guide to the competition you face.
Readers of yesterday's column will know it is possible to virtually guarantee yourself a third level place - provided you pass the Leaving Cert. Last year there were 27 courses which took all qualified applicants and more than 80 which required fewer than 200 points.
This place may not be exactly what you want but it does provide you with a way into the third level world. It gives you the option of going on to third level and working towards your goal. Without this choice, you will be faced with repeating the Leaving or looking around frantically for options outside the CAO/CAS.
Many applicants have tunnel vision when it comes to filling out the form. There is only a limited number of high points courses that they are interested in and nothing else will do. Remember, it's too late to regret this when the offers have been made and you are left empty handed.
If you are interested in medicine, surely you must have some interest in related areas. Yes, you must list all medicine courses as places in three out of four colleges were offered on the basis of random selection (where the computer allocated places to a selection of students with a particular points level) but don't leave the rest of the form blank.
Equally, if you are interested in commerce, some of the certificates and diplomas in business studies must appeal to you. Or, if you'd like a computer degree, a diploma in software development must also fulfil some needs. At all costs, do not ignore the certificate/diploma list - this is where it is most likely that the points levels will be lower.
One of the reasons people tend to opt for the more traditional career areas such as medicine, teaching, law and accountancy, is because they already have role models in these areas. All students have a fair idea of what a teacher's working day entails, while most students will have come into contact with dentists, doctors and nurses. They may not know much about any of the newer career areas, as these areas didn't exist when their parents were looking for a job.
Some extra effort is needed to tease out what, for instance, a degree in mechatronic engineering offers or where a student might end up if he or she studied biotechnology. Equally, you might ask what you could do with a degree in applied computational linguistics or a diploma in heritage studies.
Parents may also, understandably, be inclined to advise their children to opt for courses they know something about. It's difficult to know what to say if your son or daughter has a yen to study leisure management, environmental engineering, industrial design or audio/visual communications. A little research may show that, in fact, your son or daughter is very much in tune with modern employment trends and that he or she is making a sensible decision.If you have done your homework and are very sure what you want to do, then the obvious thing is to opt for a denominated degree where you know exactly what you will study for the next three or four years. The downside of opting for a very specific course is that changing your mind and trying something else may mean repeating first year (and you won't qualify for the free fees scheme if you repeat).
"For the unsure or those who would like to do a more general first year, where they can "taste" the various subjects, omnibus, entry allows you a little more time to think. For instance, if you decide to study science in UCD you will opt to study four first science subjects from biology, chemistry, computer science, experimental physics, geology, maths and mathematical physics. You can then specialise later. On the other hand if you know you want to do industrial biochemistry or applied physics, then a denominated entry course in UL would probably suit your better.
At certificate/diploma level both types of entry also apply. So you must choose between aquaculture, biology, applied chemistry, instrument physics or biochemistry/microbiology if your want to study applied science in Galway RTC. In contrast, RTC Waterford has one course called science where first year students study biology, chemistry, computer applications, maths and physics. They can specialise later in applied biology, applied chemistry or pharmaceutical science.
And remember the CAO/CAS handbook will not tell you exactly what options are contained in a particular course. Spending a few extra minutes on research now cuts your chances of making a costly mistake.
. Schools can get group orders of 10 or more copies daily of The Irish Times during the four weeks of Countdown to College at a reduced rate. To avail of this, call freephone 1 800 798884 between 8.30 a.m. and 4.30 p.m. (including lunchtime).
And for the duration of this column, a telephone helpline will be available from Monday to Friday from 10.00 am. to 11.00 a.m. Students and parents may call (01) 679 8031 with queries about colleges, courses and careers.