Guides
The CAO, explained without folklore. Every guide is grounded in six years of published points data.
CAO offers, the rules: quick FAQ
Ten questions forums answer wrong, each in three sentences, each linking the full guide.
Will CAO Points Rise in 2026?
Nobody can call August in June. The two forces that move points, what six years of data shows, and the one leading indicator worth checking.
The Parent's CAO Checklist: Help Without Taking Over
The deadlines that matter, the correspondence that gets missed, and the one rule worth repeating at the kitchen table.
Change of Mind: Free, Powerful, and Closing 1 July
The free window to fix your January list. What you can change, what you can't, and a checklist before the 5pm deadline.
The One Number That Hints Where Points Are Going
CAO first-preference statistics are the only leading indicator. Where to find them and how far to trust them.
Build a List That Can't Strand You
Dreams up top, a real anchor at the bottom, and a filled Level 7/6 list. List architecture that survives a bad results day.
Applying With a 2005 Leaving Cert: Old Points, New Rules
Your old grades still work, converted to the current scale. The dual mature-plus-points route costs nothing to use.
Same Course, Two Colleges: How to Pick
Points trend, commute, placement year, course structure. A framework for the UCD-or-DCU decision.
The CAO Courses That Took Every Qualified Applicant (2025)
All 25 AQA courses: meet the minimum requirements and the place is yours, no points race.
Six Years of CAO Points: What Moved and Why
The pandemic bump, the slow ease-back, a course that rose 264 points and one that never moved. Single-year points are weather; the trend is climate.
The 25-Point Maths Bonus, Explained in Two Minutes
Who gets it, what each grade is worth with it, and the H7 cliff that makes the Higher-vs-Ordinary call sharper than it looks.
Level 8 University Courses Under 300 Points (2025)
The full list of anchor courses a safe CAO list is built on, lowest first.
Rank by Dream, Not by Points
The mistake counsellors see year after year. The offer engine only moves up your list, so genuine order costs nothing and points order costs plenty.
Missed the Points: Every Route That Still Gets You There
Repeat, PLC links, available places, the UK route. The map for a results day that went wrong.
HEAR and DARE: The Access Routes Forums Get Wrong
No published discount exists; colleges allocate quota places at reduced points. Who qualifies and the early deadlines.
Portfolio Courses: Why the Points Go Above 625
A 960-point cut-off makes sense once you know the scoring: portfolio out of 600 added to your Leaving Cert points. Deadlines come months early.
AQA, #, Midpoint: The CAO's Code, Decoded
Every symbol on the points list explained, and why the midpoint tells you more about your chances than the cut-off does.
The 10 Highest-Points CAO Courses of 2025
The toughest cut-offs of the year, from the official points charts.
Accepting an Offer Never Kills Your Higher Choices
The most repeated CAO myth, dismantled with a worked example. Accept your Round 1 offer; your top choices stay live.
The Level 7 Route Nobody Puts on Their List
A separate list of ten that most students leave half empty, and the add-on years that turn a Level 7 start into the same Level 8 degree.
The 10 Biggest CAO Points Drops of 2025
The cut-offs that fell furthest from 2024, and what a drop signals for next year.
Random Selection: Why 625 Points Sometimes Isn't Enough
When applicants tie at the cut-off, the CAO draws lots. The mechanism, the * on the points list, and what you can do about it.
The 10 Biggest CAO Points Rises of 2025
The courses whose cut-offs climbed most from 2024. Rising points mean more competition, not a harder course.
Five Points Short: Your Real Round 2 Chances
Forums guess; the historical record answers. How Round 2 works and how to read your course's after-Round-1 history.