The CAO is one of those systems that everybody in Ireland has an opinion about and very few parents have actually read. It is not complicated, but it has dates that matter and a handful of features that catch families out every single year. I run Study Skills Ireland and I put this in front of parents every autumn, so here is the version I give them.
How does the CAO actually work?
You list courses in genuine order of preference, you are offered the highest course on your list that you have the points for, and you are never penalised for putting an ambitious course at number one. That last point is the single most misunderstood feature of the system in Ireland, and misunderstanding it costs students places every year.
There are two lists, one for degree level courses and one for the shorter higher certificate and ordinary degree courses, and you can use both. A student can be offered from either, and many strong routes into a career start on the second list.
Order matters enormously, but only in the sense that it should reflect what your child actually wants. Strategy, in the sense of second-guessing points, is not only unnecessary, it is actively harmful.
When do the deadlines fall?
Applications for the following autumn open in early November, the discounted application fee deadline falls in late January, and the normal closing date is the first of February. Change of mind opens in early May and closes at the start of July. Results and first round offers come in August.
For the 2027 cycle, applications opened on the fifth of November 2026, the discounted fee deadline is the twentieth of January 2027, and the closing date is the first of February 2027. Check cao.ie for the fee amounts and for anything that has moved, because the details do change.
The date families most often miss is the January one, because it is only a money saving deadline and therefore feels optional. It is worth putting in the calendar anyway, because families who apply by then have usually also had the course conversation by then.
What is change of mind, and should we use it?
Change of mind lets a student reorder or replace their course choices, free of charge, between early May and the start of July. Almost everybody should expect to use it, because a student in November knows less about themselves and about the courses than the same student in June.
This is the reason the February deadline should not feel terrifying. The list submitted in February is a first draft. Getting something down is more important than getting it perfect, and there is a whole spring in which to think again.
There are two exceptions worth knowing. Restricted application courses, which have tests, portfolios or interviews, generally cannot be added at change of mind, and applications for DARE and HEAR have their own earlier deadlines. If either might apply, check the detail in the autumn rather than in May.
Should my child put their dream course first?
Yes. The system offers the highest course on the list that the points allow, so placing an ambitious course first costs nothing at all. Leaving it off, or burying it, is the only way to guarantee not getting it, and I have met students in August who did exactly that.
The fear behind it is understandable but mistaken. Parents worry that a high first preference somehow uses up a chance. It does not. The list is read from the top down and the first course the student qualifies for is the one offered.
What does deserve thought is the bottom of the list. A list with seven very high points courses and nothing else can leave a student with no offer at all. A sensible list has range.
How do we research courses properly?
Read the actual module list rather than the course title. Two courses with the same name in two colleges can be very different in content, contact hours and structure, and the title tells you almost nothing. Open days, and conversations with people doing the job at the end of it, are worth more than any ranking.
The other question I would ask is what the course leads to and how many directions it keeps open. Seventeen is early to be certain, and a course that leaves several doors open is a reasonable hedge against a change of heart at nineteen.
Entry requirements need checking course by course, particularly where higher level maths or a laboratory science is needed. That is a thing to know in November, not in February.
What about the points themselves?
Last year’s points are a guide, not a target, because points are set each year by demand against the places available. A course can move by twenty or thirty points in either direction depending on how many people applied for it, which is why fixating on a single number is a poor use of a family’s worry.
The 2026 round showed how that works. Grades fell, yet points held broadly steady, because applicant numbers rose by more than six thousand. Meanwhile individual courses moved sharply where demand shifted, with reported increases in applications for veterinary, physiotherapy, medicine and engineering.
So use points ranges rather than a single figure, and pay more attention to whether interest in a field is rising than to what the cut-off was two years ago.
What is the parent’s job in all this?
Keep the dates, ask good questions, and stay out of the choosing. The student has to live the course, and a young person who is doing somebody else’s degree usually finds out in second year. Your value here is administrative and emotional rather than editorial.
The practical version is one evening in November with cao.ie open, a list of the dates on the fridge, and a diary note for early May. That is most of it.
And keep the whole thing in proportion out loud. There are more routes into most careers in Ireland now than there have ever been, including apprenticeships, post leaving certificate courses and transfer routes, and a student who believes their life hinges on one number in August is carrying something they should not have to carry.
Frequently Asked Questions
When does the CAO open and close for 2027?
Applications opened on 5 November 2026, the discounted fee deadline is 20 January 2027 and the normal closing date is 1 February 2027. Change of mind runs from early May to the start of July. Check cao.ie for fees and any changes.
Should my child put their dream course first on the CAO?
Yes. The system offers the highest course on the list the student has the points for, so an ambitious first preference costs nothing. Leaving it off is the only way to guarantee not getting it.
Can course choices be changed after February?
Yes, free of charge, during change of mind from early May to the start of July. Restricted application courses and DARE or HEAR applications have earlier deadlines and generally cannot be added later.
Are last year’s points a reliable guide?
Only as a range. Points are set by demand against places each year, so a course can move by twenty or thirty points in either direction. Use ranges rather than a single number.
What should parents actually do?
Hold the dates, help with research by reading module lists rather than course titles, and leave the choosing to the student. A young person doing somebody else’s degree usually finds out in second year.
The part that decides the points
The CAO decides where the points go. The work between now and June decides what the points are. Study Skills Ireland runs study skills seminars for secondary students and talks for parents in schools across Ireland, covering planning, revision method and exam technique, delivered by Enda O’Doherty.
You can see what the student study skills seminar covers, read about the parents seminar, or get in touch about bringing a session to your school.
The Secondary School Survival Guide for ParentsFirst Year to the Leaving Cert and the CAO, with 26 printable worksheets included.€19, see the guide
The Big JumpA parent’s guide to First Year: settling in, homework, phones, sleep, study and the Junior Cycle.€19, see the guide
The Phone BattlePhones, sleep, social media and gaming. Experiments instead of arguments, with 17 fillable family worksheets.€19, see the guide
