The first round of CAO offers were released Wednesday morning, with a record number of offers given by Trinity at 3,897: nearly two-thirds (61.97%) of offers were for first-preference courses. 10,013 students chose Trinity for their first preference application, up from 9,960 last year.
Points required for courses generally dropped across all disciplines, with only one course (Dental Science) requiring the maximum 625 points. There was an average decline of nine points for Single Honours courses and six points for Joint Honours courses.
Vice-Provost Orla Sheils said that the late release of Leaving Certificate results, which resulted in a later release of CAO offers, will contribute to ongoing issues for students in their first year, including accommodation.
“While we are delighted to welcome a new tranche of students to Trinity, it is unfortunate that, because of the late release of Leaving Certificate results, our incoming students are placed under even more pressure to start a new phase of adult life while trying to navigate scant opportunities for accommodation,” Sheils stated.
There are also concerns about the continued post-pandemic grade inflation impacting the Leaving Cert; Minister for Education Norma Foley has said that a gradual deflation of grades will begin in 2025.
“In Trinity we are pleased to have been able to offer the largest number of student places ever – due to expansion in intake in certain areas. However, grade inflation seriously disadvantages those students from Northern Ireland and abroad who are left competing in an uneven playing field, given their results have returned to pre-pandemic levels,” Sheils said. “The increased number of students who achieve or exceed the required points for popular courses also introduces a lottery system for allocation of places. This is a cruel arbiter when students have worked so hard.”
Six courses featured random selection for offers in the first round: Global Business, Mathematics, Integrated Engineering, Management Science and Information Systems, Dental Science and Integrated Engineering with Management.
