The final CAO Change of Mind deadline is on July 1st at 5pm and it will not be possible to make changes after this deadline!

It is really important that you take some time to look at the details of your CAO application, particularly your course choices. To use the Change of Mind facility you simply log on to www.cao.ie, click on ‘My Application’ and log in with your CAO number, date of birth and account password.

You can add, take out and amend your course choices with the exception of ‘Restricted’ courses which can’t be added in at this stage.

There are exceptions to this in that you may be permitted to introduce a restricted course which shares the exact same assessment procedures with a course you had applied for by 1st February at 5pm - you should consult with the relevant Higher Education Institution (HEI) before introducing such a course.

At this stage work through the following guide when reviewing you details in your CAO application

Check that all your details are correct including personal details, qualifications & assessments (including educational and exemption) details and course choices.

Include courses on both categories, Level 8 & Level 7/6. This gives you the best chance of getting 2 offers when the Round 1 Offers come out (the top choice that you qualify for on each list). You will then have to choose which one you prefer.

Fill in as many of the 20 choices as you can. You have the option to fill up 10 on both sides which gives you 20 chances of getting a college place.

Check the Alert Lists on www.cao.ie. Some very interesting new courses have been added in several colleges since the CAO Handbook was published last September.

Take out courses that you are no longer interested in.

Research the detail of every course that you are including on your CAO application – take particular note of entry requirements and modules so that you choose courses which you are able for and interested in and that suit how you learn. This cuts down on the chance of making the wrong choice.

List your courses in ORDER OF PEFERENCE. This is the golden rule of CAO. No one knows what the points will be for 2023 until the day the Round 1 offers come out on August 30 and equally you won’t know your Leaving Cert results until they are issued on August 25.

My advice is don’t try to second guess either of them and before 5pm on July 1st make sure that your course choices are list in ORDER OF PREFERENCE! This means listing your favourite course in your favourite college first, your second favourite next and so on down to number 10.

Include courses that you are confident of getting – ‘banker courses’, but make sure you are interested in the course content. There is no point in filling all your choices with courses that tend to come in over 500 points if your target is 400 so be sensible about your choices. In 2022, a total of 1,203 courses came in at 400 points or under and 1,034 came in at under 350 points so there are plenty of options available.

An Exceptional Late Application deadline applies only to existing 3rd level students who want to change courses and re-apply for new course choices through CAO. The closing date for such applications is July 22nd at 5pm.

Niamh Dwyer is a Guidance Counsellor in Scoil Phobail Sliabh Luachra, Rathmore and a member of Kerry Branch of IGC. See www.mycareerplan.ie or follow @mycareerplan on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.