Jack Leahy
News Editor
With up to 11,000 applicants eligible to benefit from a bonus 25 CAO points for passing the reformed higher level mathematics exam, the points requirement for courses heavily associated with mathematics accordingly rose this morning as the first round of CAO offers were distributed. In total, a record 56 per cent of all higher degree university courses register an increase in points
The impact of the incentive to study higher maths was largely concentrated on those courses, however, with some humanities and teaching courses reporting a fall in points requirements or a standard rise. This year’s offers process saw a record number of students offered a place in higher education: 49,862 applicants received an offer this morning.
Many courses in Trinity College Dublin saw a dramatic rise in requirements, with a single-honours degree in Mathematics rising to 565 points from a final minimum requirement of 485 in 2011. Theoretical Physics records a rise to 565 from 2011’s minimum requirement of 495, while Medicine (5-Year) rises five to 746 combined Leaving Cert and HPAT points.
Five points translate to one Leaving Cert point when a student’s points are above 550, and the rise in points requirement for Ireland’s most sought-after third-level course is likely to be explained almost entirely by the large proportion of those applicants sitting honours mathematics. HPAT scores are not altered by the new system.
The 25 bonus points were introduced as a pilot measure in accordance with the government’s stated aim of developing a smart economy, but Minister for Education Ruairí Quinn has indicated that the incentive may be reconsidered.
In all, 416 honours degree courses saw a rise in points, predominantly those in science, computing, engineering, and mathematical sciences. Points fell for a further 281 courses and remained at the same level for 101.
That Ireland’s teenagers have indicated so clear a preference for courses that offer ‘smart-economy’ skills at the expense of humanities courses reflects a growing awareness of limited graduate employment opportunities. To further this suggestion, Computer Science in Trinity rose to 450 points minimum having accepted students with below 365 points in 2008, while the generic Arts Omnibus course in UCD – the country’s largest third-level course – remained low at 355.
At level 7/6 (ordinary degree/higher certificate), points rose for 125 courses, dropped for 180, and remained the same for 69.
