You didn’t make the cut for your first-choice course – UCD’s business and law – falling short by 12 points in the offers announced last Wednesday. You do have an offer in hand for a business degree from a Dublin-based institution but your heart is set on UCD’s business and law programme. You’re wondering if your chances stand to improve in the subsequent rounds?
Based on past records, it’s unlikely that the requirements for the business and law programme at UCD would come down by such a large margin. The less preferred offer given to you last Wednesday comes with an acceptance deadline of 3pm, Tuesday, September 3rd. Post that, the offer becomes void.
In case you have voiced an objection against your Leaving Cert grade this year, earning 12 extra CAO points for business and law would require an upgrade from H2 to H1. Smaller upgrades won’t suffice as you’re behind by 12 points.
If you’re determined to get into UCD’s business and law programme and choose not to take the existing offer, you have other alternatives:
1. Re-attempt the Leaving Cert with a target to earn better scores next year. Though once a preferred choice, there’s been a decrease in the number of students opting for this route in recent years.
2. Pursue a business or law programme from a further education college in the upcoming days. Information on post-Leaving Cert (PLC) programmes available at level five are listed online (Qualifax.ie). These programmes require submission of modules/assignments (total eight in number) from October through May.
These PLC courses, as a gateway to university, are less-known treasures of the education field. Unfortunately, they’re not widely familiar among students and parents, despite offering a stress-free alternative to achieving higher education via the strenuous CAO points system. In reality, over 1,000 CAO course programmes of all types do accept PLC students.
In instances known to me, some further education students secured a place in UCD’s business and law programmes after completing their level-five business or law programme. However, every single one of them managed to score distinctions in all eight course modules. This could be a viable pathway for students needing a year to brace themselves for university learning.
PLC courses are structured in such a way that students are afforded the chance to acquire more autonomous learning abilities, promote team working skills and ensure timely project deliveries at exceptional quality.
If you are passionate about studying business and law at UCD, consider opting for a local PLC programme in business promptly. Take Blackrock Further Education College as an example; it provides standalone level-five courses in both fields.
Despite the slim chances, should there be an increase in your Leaving Cert grades, or a decrease in the point prerequisite for business and law courses at UCD in the approaching weeks, there’s a possibility of getting a late offer from the CAO, which can be accepted.