EXPLAINER: All you need to know as thousands of students to receive CAO offers

Almost 60,000 CAO applicants are expected to receive an offer for a college place on Wednesday afternoon as the first round of offers will be released. 

Around 83,500 people have applied to the CAO this year, over half of which have completed their Leaving Certificate in June.

Additionally, almost 19,000 applicants have sat their Leaving Certificate in previous years, with some applying who have obtained a Further Education qualification. 

In some good news for those applying to health sciences courses, additional places have been created on such courses as part of the efforts to combat staffing shortages across the health system.

This includes extra places at the University of Galway and the University of Limerick. 

How to access offers:

Applicants can expect to start receiving offers from around 2pm Wednesday. Offers for Level 8 courses will arrive first, followed by Level 7/6 courses. Applicants will receive an email and text message to let them know if and when they have received offers. They can then log into the website to view their offers.

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How long you have to consider offers:

Students will have until Tuesday 3 September at 3pm to accept their offers. Applicants are advised to take the time to consider their options. Communications officer for the CAO Eileen Keleghan says: "You can accept an offer if it’s a lower preference, and you may still be considered for a higher preference offer in a later round if a place becomes available and you’re deemed eligible for it." 

Where to find support:

This can be a stressful time for students and parents and so a free helpline has been set up to offer support for those facing such important decisions.

The number you can call if you need help is 1800 265 165. The helpline will be staffed by professional guidance counsellors who will give one-on-one support to those in need.

It will be in operation from today until Saturday 31 August, excluding this coming Sunday.

In the meantime, answers to some frequently asked questions can be found at the CAO website.