Carl O'Brien: ‘Third level's best kept secret?'
It sounds too good to be true: a route to a college degree with no need for CAO points and at a fraction of the cost.
Tertiary degrees were announced in a blaze of publicity three years ago by then minister for higher education, Simon Harris
They were, he said, a 'game-changer' and had the potential to lift the stress on students forced to compete in a highly competitive CAO points race for college places.
Simon Harris after announcing tertiary degree programmes three years ago.
'With these courses I want to send a clear message to young people and their parents when considering options after school: you can be an engineer, a nurse, study business or work in ICT without ever having to worry about those archaic and stressful Leaving Cert points.'
READ MORE
A total of 38 tertiary degrees are on offer this year across business, ICT, arts, engineering, social sciences, early learning & care, agricultural science, sport, construction and nursing.
Details on all courses and how to apply are available at the
National Tertiary Office
.
What's the catch?
The courses start in a further education course and then progress to the technological university. It means students a nominal cost at the start of the course and regular fees when it moves to university.
Yet, three years into the operation of the initiative, the numbers taking part are fairly disappointing.
A total of 152 students started courses during the first intake in 2023 across 14 different degrees. Last year the number climbed to 224 tertiary students.
By comparison, the CAO this year received a record 83,000-plus applications, up from almost 77,000 last year.
Slow take-off
So, why haven't tertiary degree options caught the imagination of school leavers?
One reason is that quite a number of degree for courses which weren't exactly in high demand in the CAO system
The most popular tertiary degree routes so far are for courses in nursing. While it used to attract high points, it has fallen to between 340 and 420 points in recent years. Some tertiary courses have not had any participants.
There are signs of change, however. University College Cork (UCC) is the first traditional university to offer tertiary degrees. One of its offerings is a BSc in occupational therapy, which had CAO entry points in excess of 500 points last year.
More programmes are now being designed in partnership with industry to tackle skills shortages and equip students for careers in sectors that need them.
Today's exams:
Thousands of students were again completing Leaving Cert exams in
Spanish
and
chemistry
- both exams were broadly well received, but had their challenges.
Up tomorrow:
Physics (9.30-12mdday) and accounting (2-4.30pm)
How are we doing?
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Maybe you have a personal story to share, have a burning question or want to comment on the exams, CAO and further education applications process.
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