Institute of Technology, Sligo has recorded a 3 per cent increase in the number of CAO first round offers made to students in the region.
Nationally, 52,289 applicants received an offer from one of Ireland’s third level institutions in round one on Monday with a noticeable surge in applications for course programmes linked to the economic recovery.
The number of students choosing IT Sligo as their first preference is up 2.3 per cent with courses in Business, Engineering and Science all faring well. There has been a surge in applications for particular courses linked to the construction industry such as Architectural Design, which again reflects the national trend, while several of the Institute’s new honours degree courses Health Science & Physicality and Agri-food Science have also attracted strong interest.
Despite this, 20,000 people who applied to CAO this year are still without an offer in line with numbers in recent years, but they still have the possibility of receiving an offer in subsequent rounds.
And according to IT Sligo’s Registrar, Colin McLean, the CAO’s Available Places list, which goes live this week provides genuine alternatives for students to access their preferred career paths.
“The Available places system is operated by the CAO and provides great opportunities in a wide range of courses across Business & Social Sciences, Engineering and Science,” he said. “These programmes offer students a clear pathway to progress onto full honours degrees using the ladder system.”
For people who have not applied through the CAO system, they can still make an Available Place application at this late stage through the CAO website on payment of a fee of €40.00.
“People sometimes think that if they’re not in the system at this stage in the year, they’ve missed the boat for another year but there’s still time to get aboard,” adds Colin.
To assist prospective students as they weigh up their third level options, IT Sligo is holding a CAO Drop-In Clinic this Friday, August 26th from 10am to 4pm in Room B1201 of the Institute’s main building. This event will provide valuable advice and insights for prospective students and their parents, on all aspects of IT Sligo’s academic and living experience.
The Institute’s location in the North West of Ireland means it is uniquely positioned to offer ample, affordable and high quality student accommodation within walking distance of the campus. The college is also situated close to Sligo town centre which is a designed Purple Flag urban area. This prestigious international award recognises Sligo as an area of excellence in providing a safe and well-managed evening and night time environment.
Applicants can check if they have received an CAO offer by going online at cao.ie.
To see the list of Available Course Places at IT Sligo, click here.