CAO Courses

DavidDaly

I'm not entirely clear on something if I put down a course with ambitious points and don't get it does it reduce the chances of getting your second choice based on people putting what would be my second choice as their first. If your curious My "ambitious course is Genetics in UCC with 465 points and my second choice is Food Science In UCC with 405 points. (However I am bearing mind that Food science could go up hugely like last year and gentics could decline or vice-versa

Canard

Nope. If you don't get your first choice, and you get, say, 430, you'll get it over someone whose first choice was your second who got 410 points.

BrownBear11

You'll get the highest course on your CAO to which you are entitled, meaning the one you have the entry requirements and the points for, if that makes it any easier Keep in mind you'll get offered two courses in August, one on your level 8 side, on one on level 7

Eurovisionmad

No, if your 2nd choice is Food Science and you get 410 you've a better chance of getting in than someone with 405 and it as their first choice and an equal chance as someone with 405 and that as their first choice also.

As always if in doubt consult the CAO Handbook!

rainbowtrout

DavidDaly wrote: »

I'm not entirely clear on something if I put down a course with ambitious points and don't get it does it reduce the chances of getting your second choice based on people putting what would be my second choice as their first. If your curious My "ambitious course is Genetics in UCC with 465 points and my second choice is Food Science In UCC with 405 points. (However I am bearing mind that Food science could go up hugely like last year and gentics could decline or vice-versa

No it doesn't affect your chances.

Imagine that you put down the courses on your CAO as follows:

1. Genetics in UCC
2. Food Science in UCC
3. General Science in UCC


In reality what happens behind the scenes is that you are entered onto the CAO list for each course. To keep it simple imagine that there are 20 places on each course.

So you get 450 points in the LC in August.

The CAO organises each applicant in order of points for each course. The first twenty people (with the highest points) on each list are to be offered a place. You are on all three lists. You end up in position 21 on the Genetics list, and for arguments sake you are top of each list for Food and General Science. The 20th person on the list for Genetics had 455. You are No. 21 with 450 and for argument's sake the person in position No. 22 is on 445.

As you are on all three lists, the CAO then looks at what your preferences are. They see that you are currently ineligible for Genetics as you didn't make the top twenty. They then see that you are eligible to be offered a place in Food Science and General Science.

As you put Food Science higher on your list you are offered this place and you are crossed off the General Science list and the place that has been freed up is given to person No. 21 on that list.

So you get an offer of Food Science in Round One and you decide to accept it. So Round One offers close and the CAO then finds that one person out of the 20 offered places on the Genetics course didn't accept their place. As you had that course higher than Food Science, you will now be made an offer of the place in Round Two as you are next on the list points wise. You can now accept that place or reject it as you have decided to do Food Science.

This offer can still be made to you if the place becomes availabe, even if you reject the offer of Food Science.




Remember the points for a course (e.g. Genetics 465 like you said) does not indicate the points you 'need' to get into the course. They just tell you the points the person achieved who was the last person on the list to be offered a place.

If the entry requirments for UCC are 2 HL subjects and 4OL subjects (e.g. 2 HC3s and 4OD3s ) which would equal 60 + 60 +5+5+5+5 = 140 points and only 20 people apply for genetics next year and the last of those 20 people have the minimum requirements 2C3/4D3 then the points displayed on the CAO website for the course would be 140. It's not an indication of the difficulty of the course, it's an indication of the popularity of the course and the number of applicants.


Courses with high points have high points because there is a high demand for them and few places so if there are a lot of applicants those on the tops of the list with the high points will be offered the places.

internet_user

i was confused about the CAO before looking at this thread but somehow im even more confused now:pac:

11Charlie11

This is probably a weird question but does the CAO office add up everyone's points the way we do or what?

Geo10

11Charlie11 wrote: »

This is probably a weird question but does the CAO office add up everyone's points the way we do or what?

I'd say they have some automated way of automatically calculating everyone's points who have applied that year. There are certainly no stressed people left with the responsibility of calculating everyone's points manually... there'd be a lot of human error there!

LostBoy101

Whats the difference in the DARE scheme? do they take into account that a hard of Hearing Student would top the list than a person with dyslexia?

DavidDaly

LostBoy101 wrote: »

Whats the difference in the DARE scheme? do they take into account that a hard of Hearing Student would top the list than a person with dyslexia?

No I am actually applying via this scheme and it's basically "first come first served" basis regardless of your disability

ella.cole

When I put down a level 8 course and i get offered that will it cancel out my level 6/7 offer, and vice versa?

BrownBear11

ella.cole wrote: »

When I put down a level 8 course and i get offered that will it cancel out my level 6/7 offer, and vice versa?

Nope, you get offered two courses, one from either list and you can accept either

randylonghorn

Try here.

Folks, take an hour or two over Christmas and READ the CAO handbook. It may be the most useful "study" you do all year!

Every year, some people half-kill themselves getting maximum points and still don't get what they want because they didn't understand the process correctly.