Should the CAO system change?

EdgarAllenPoo

I think the CAO system is unfair on people and my mother was telling me about the way it was when she finished school and it seems a lot more fair.

In simple terms you applied to as many colleges as you liked and could apply for ten course in each college.
Basically each college had it's own CAO and whatever you got the points for you were offered irrespective of other offers.

That might be a bit more work for the CAO but it's not like they have a hard job for most of the year.

Naikon

Yes.

Mars Bar

I concur!!!

genericgoon

I disagree that sounds far too complicated. The amount of offers youd get would be mind boggling. However if you were to get the same amount of choices as now but were also to get offers for other courses below the accepted one then I would agree. But tbh with the short space of time between offers and uni starting I dont think this is plausible either.

AdMMM

The reason why you can't put down as many colleges as you like is actually to help the applicant. By being limited in the number of choices you can list, it ensures that each candidate gives care and consideration into their actual preferences. If you wrote down 20 odd courses then chances are they would have been haphazardly scribbled down and in no particular order and you say that it would be a bit of extra work for the CAO? How about it being a LOT of extra work for the applicant who would have 2 weeks to decide which offer of the, 20 they received, to accept and then they would be faced with 2nd round offers and around 57 more rounds of offers before eventually the entire process is over and you can finally attend college at the ripe age of 36!

SamHamilton

I think the system is fair. Everyone is a number and is treated equally. The only glitch is random selection.

Lucas10101

The old system brought in student fees.

The old system favored the rich and those that were known to the University.

The old system didn't have the Access System, which made me get into Pharmacy on 465 points.

Lucas.

genericgoon

SamHamilton wrote:

I think the system is fair. Everyone is a number and is treated equally. The only glitch is random selection.

Random selection seems the fairest way to allocate people with the same min course points imo.

Thomas_S_Hunterson

If universities were allowed to choose the students, you'd probably find the process a lot more unfair.

As it is now, it's transparent, it puts everyone on an equal level and it is perfectly adequate for sorting people by their acedemic ability.

Mars Bar

the only people voting for a change are people who didn't get their course...like myself...

Insect Overlord

SamHamilton wrote:

I think the system is fair. Everyone is a number and is treated equally.

This sums it up perfectly.

Naikon

mars bar wrote:

the only people voting for a change are people who didn't get their course...like myself...

Not me:o
Besides, I reckon some people might have a different view if they missed out on their course by something insane like 5 points.

EdgarAllenPoo

I'm not talking about reintroducing fees just the CAO process.

Say someone applies for ten nursing courses but doesn't get the points for those courses, they're sunk unless a vacant place comes up somewhere and usually by the time the next round of offers are out the places are filled.

The old system would allow this person to apply for as many nurses courses as they could and if their main choice were to be unatainable they could get the course somewhere else (compare the points for general nursing in UL 420 to Athlone IT at 355).

AdMMM

think of the big picture here GDM. Say you applied for 30 nursing courses, and you missed out on 29 of them and were offered your 30th choice. Then, because people had been offered so many of the other nursing course, vacant places arise and you're offered the 29th one, then more people change and accept other courses and you're offered the 28th. This process would continue for ages and ages due to the vast amount of offers out there as everyone tries to get a place in their highest preference course. It just wouldn't work!

PeakOutput

the current system is the fairest one. random selection is harsh but it is still the fairest way to do it. when you enter 5th year everyone is on an equal footing(if you leave aside social circumstances that effect education) and the only thing that seperates you from everyone else between then and cao offers time are choices you make.

20 choices is more than enough imo

Mushy

No, it shoudnt change. Sure what does it matter, its behind most of us now:D

JC 2K3

I don't see what's so different about the old system apart from it would have been a lot more bureaucratic, confusing and stressful.

eZe^

Id prefer if they gave bonus points for subjects that apply to the course your going for... Like 150 points for an A1 when you wanna do an engineering/ physics degree... But otherwise I dont really have too many complaints.

Less people in college before meant that the 'old' system could work. UCD can't even publish sensible exam timetables at present, you'd trust them with you getting into college?

There's nothing wrong with the CAO system, bar the downtime in January.

TheInvisibleFie

Myth wrote:

Less people in college before meant that the 'old' system could work. UCD can't even publish sensible exam timetables at present, you'd trust them with you getting into college?

There's nothing wrong with the CAO system, bar the downtime in January.

And even that I think they've worked on. Nothing exploded or decided to stop working this morning.

Gangsta

SamHamilton wrote:

I think the system is fair. Everyone is a number and is treated equally

genericgoon wrote:

Random selection seems the fairest way to allocate people with the same min course points imo.

Totally agree with these above statements. It's fairer than most systems because you do the hard work, get your points and get in. There's no room for discrimination.

ZorbaTehZ

The only thing that I would like to see changed is the final date for making a Change Of Mind - maybe increased by a month to early August of something along those lines.

the flananator

Its an appalling system. I got offered my first choice today, after realising recently that the course I really want is my third choice. Of course its not CAO's fault I've changed my mind, but the system certainly hasn't suited me.

tolosenc

The only problem is the random selection. That should be changed, maybe having the discards having some bearing on it...

Royale with Cheese

The system sucks. I missed my 1st choice by 5 points 4 years ago. Just checked the points today out of curiosity and it's gone down 30 points since I applied for it. Grrrrr supply and demand.

Overheal

Well its certainly a survival of the fittest kind of system but really it makes the Education system here very strong - because people getting into college dont just ride in on a rich bank giro (like America - and dont get me started on that system either, its another topic in itself how ****ed it is)

If there was a reversion of the system it would lead to exponentially mroe paperwork time and energy spent and wasted getting people into courses: imagine the chaos that ensues if someone decides to accept to more than one college for example. Not to mention (someone said it earlier) that it would take forever to sort out the round 2 and 3 courses because of the sheer volume of reqests and change of minds and everything else.

5 points may really suck and I've seen a lot of friends go to drink that week.. best advice is to try your grade appeals and wait for the round 2 offers to show up. Also by next year there may be a fluctuation in the point requirement anyway so just apply again.

EdgarAllenPoo

Well judging by the fact the vacant places still haven't opened on the CAO website it doesn't seem to me like they do very much for the money that 44,000 students have to pay.

Sorry, I've been trying get apply for a vacnt place on the course put you still can't do it yet.