LEAVING CERTIFICATE APPLICANTS Maynooth University Undergraduate Handbook 2022 APPLYING THROUGH THE CENTRAL APPLICATIONS OFFICE (CAO) CAO POINTS SYSTEM If you are under 23, and sitting the Leaving Certificate in 2022, you must apply for your choice of Level 8 bachelor’s degree through the Central Applications Office (CAO). For a list of important dates see page 218. All applicants (except occasional and non-EU students) must apply through the Central Applications Office. Apply online at www.cao.ie or request details from: Irish Leaving Certificate Subjects Central Applications Office, Tower House, Eglinton Street, Galway  + 353 91 509800 /  + 353 91 562344 On your CAO application you are invited to enter your choice of courses in ‘order of preference’. It is essential that you list your selected courses in order of choice. Put your first choice in the number one position, followed by your second and third choice, and so on. The main deadline for submission of applications is 1st February 2022 but you may apply from early November 2021. A standard fee applies (apply by January 20th for a reduced fee). Late applications are accepted up to 1st May 2022, on payment of an additional fee, however certain degree courses are no longer available for application at this stage. See Restricted Application Courses opposite for more details. A change of mind facility is available up to 1st July 2022. Applicants already in third level education, who were admitted via the CAO, may submit applications up to 22nd July. The University offers places to applicants in order of merit, once they meet the minimum entry requirements (see page 5 for details). The order of merit is calculated based on a points system (see table opposite). Places are allocated to applicants with the required points according to their list of CAO preferences, with applicants who meet the points requirements being offered their course in order of preference. For this reason it is essential that you list your CAO course choices in your genuine order of preference. The University distinguishes between applicants who have equal points by appending a randomly generated number to each score. The combined score/random number is the final determinant of position in the order of merit. AGE RESTRICTIONS In general, students must be 17 years or older by 15th January in the year after entry to the University. If you are younger, you must make a special application to the University’s President. A mature student is someone who is 23 years or older by 1st January in the year of entry to the University. For part-time degrees the mature age is 21 by the 1st January in the year of entry. For more information on applying as a mature student see page 208. Leaving Certificate Vocational Programme (LCVP) Link Modules Points are awarded as follows: Distinction Merit Pass 66 46 28 Applicants can use their points allocation for the Link Modules as one of their best six subjects for the purpose of calculating points, but the Link Modules do not qualify as a subject for minimum entry requirement purposes. Higher Level Ordinary Level New Grades % Marks New Points Awarded New Grades % Marks New Points Awarded H1 90 - 100 100 H2 80 < 90 88 H3 70 < 80 77 H4 60 < 70 66 H5 50 < 60 56 O1 90 - 100 56 H6 40 < 50 46 O2 80 < 90 46 H7 30 < 40 37 O3 70 < 80 37 H8 0 < 30 0 O4 60 < 70 28 O5 50 < 60 20 O6 40 < 50 12 O7 30 < 40 0 O8 0 < 30 0 All Leaving Certificate subjects carry equal points with the exception of *Mathematics (details below). Points are awarded for your six best subjects in any one year. These do not have to include subjects needed to meet general minimum entry requirements. Minimum entry requirements and course requirements may be satisfied by an accumulation of subjects over more than one year. As well as achieving the required points, you must have a minimum of six subjects in your Leaving Certificate, with two Higher Level papers at grade H5 and four Ordinary or Higher Level papers at grade O6/H7. The requirements for each course are shown in the table on page 5. * 25 bonus points will be added to the points score for a Leaving Certificate Higher Level Mathematics grade H6 or higher. The bonus points are included in the overall points calculation only when Mathematics is one of the applicant’s best six subjects following the addition of the bonus. RESTRICTED APPLICATION COURSES MH103, MH116 and MH802 are Restricted Application courses at Maynooth University and have early assessment procedures which normally commence in March. An application for a Restricted Application course will not be considered unless it has been included among your original course choices by 1st February (in some cases a Restricted Application course can be added up to 1st March - see www.cao.ie for details). Restricted Application Courses which are included in Late Applications are invalid choices and will not be considered. 205