CAO system?

hokusai

I'm in 6th year right now and have been reading the CAO handbook and there is just something I want to clarify

If someone want to study, say, Law with French at Trinity, they do their Leaving in 2013 and the required points for that year are something like 575 and they manage to get 575 points. So everyone in Ireland who put down Law with French at Trinity as their first choice and got at least 575 points qualifies for the course... BUT according to the prospectus there are only 15 places available to study Law with French at Trinity. So obviously the students who put down that course top of their list and got 625 points, or 600 or whatever will definitely get in. Say for example the first 12 places are filled by people who got 580-625 points... there are 3 places left to fill but 5 people all got 575 exactly, the same amount of points, but as only 3 places are left to study that course at Trinity the CAO assigns each candidate a number and picks the remaining 3 at random like a lottery... then the other 2 who got high enough points for the course end up having to go with their 2nd choice?

Is that the way it works or am I wrong?
cheers

BrownBear11

You're spot on. Random selection decides who gets the place in the case of equal points. Seems like a cruel way to miss out on a course but it's the fairest way I suppose

hokusai

Thanks for clearing that up! Cruel indeed, better up my game

BrownBear11

Good luck, hope you get what you want

Smiley Laura

Just another questions about the CAO- in the section under qualifications, there is a box that says leaving cert 1987-2013. We don't tick this box, do we? Is this just for people who have already done the leaving cert and are reapplying? Sorry, this is probably a stupid question

BrownBear11

Nope, that is the one you click If you're reapplying you edit your qualifications after you fill out the form normally