For those who have just finished secondary school, this summer is a time of fun, relaxation and freedom after a year of intense study and stress. However, as the end of summer looms ever closer, stress can often begin to resurface, as with the end of August, comes the arrival of results.
But regardless of the outcome of a person’s Leaving Certificate results, not everyone takes the traditional CAO route to third-level. There are often alternative entry routes to university. Here is a breakdown of some of the options available to prospective students who are seeking to further their education at third-level:
Maynooth University
The Maynooth University access programme, known as Map, encourages underrepresented groups to enter third-level education, providing them with support throughout the programme. These groups include underrepresented school leavers, mature students, students with disabilities and members of the Irish Traveller community. Under the programme, there is an annual schedule of outreach activities aimed at schools, parents and communities that face the greatest barriers to participating in higher education.
Set up in 1998, the initiatives include campus and school visits, open days, programmes and camps relating to science and technology, the Mathematics Support Centre second-level drop-in service, and college awareness week. There is also a foundation certificate programme in science and engineering, a pathway for mature students to prepare academically for a career in this area.
Additionally, Map provides ongoing academic, financial and personal post-entry support to students from the target groups, among them, a student budgeting advisory service and student laptop loan scheme.
maynoothuniversity.ie/access-office
University of Galway
The University of Galway has a one-year access programme that can be completed either full or part time, depending on the programme and location chosen. The course is specifically designed for students who have a real desire to study at third level but are unable due to financial or social reasons.
It aims to provide students with an opportunity to prepare personally and academically for an undergraduate course of full-time study of at least three years. Students who complete the access course receive a Diploma in Foundation Studies from the university. They are also eligible to apply for direct entry, via the CAO, to full-time undergraduate degree courses.
Prospective students are eligible if they have been resident for one or more years in the Border, midlands and western region and Co Clare. Applicants are assessed according to their socio-economic status.
Applicants must supply evidence of a full year’s household income for the previous calendar year with their application. Income limits are consistent with the Higher Education Access Route (Hear).
Access Course costs for those selected are borne by the university, contingent upon funding. However, there is a cost to complete the part-time Diploma in Foundation Studies (Business), and the part-time Diploma in Foundation Studies (Science, Technology and Engineering).
If employed, the cost for the year is €380; if unemployed, the cost is €60.
Dublin City University
The Dublin City University (DCU) Access Service provides students from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds with pathways to gain direct entry to the university through Hear and the Access DCU Entry Route (Ader).
Students must be under 23 and have completed their Leaving Certificate to be eligible. A combination of financial, social and cultural indicators is also evaluated by the university to determine a students’ eligibility. Prospective students can apply for the Hear programme through the CAO, while Ader opens for applications in April.
Under the Ader scheme, there are reduced-points places at university and on-campus subsidised accommodation scholarships. The university said its access programme is the longest-running and largest in Ireland. There are more than 1,000 undergraduate access students currently studying in DCU, with 272 entering last year. It boasts excellent prospects for those on the programme, with 97 per cent of Access students being awarded a higher honours degree in 2023, and 75 per cent achieving a first-class or second-class – grade 1 honours degree.
Trinity College Dublin
Trinity Access Programmes, known as Tap, offer a range of alternative entry routes to undergraduate programmes, including the university’s foundation programme, and the Trinity-City of Dublin education and training board partnership.
Tap offers young adults and mature students a full-time, year-long foundation course for higher education. The course provides another way into Trinity for those whose social, economic and cultural experiences have prevented them from going to college. Students can choose from two broad areas of study – arts and social sciences or science – and take part in a professional development and mentoring programme with chartered accountants and management consultancy firm Grant Thornton.
To be eligible, prospective students must be from a secondary school in Dublin that has Deis status, or that is linked to an access service. They must also meet socio-economic criteria and be 21 years of age or younger on January 1st in the year of application.
For mature students, applicants must be 23 years or older, be a resident in Ireland from an underrepresented socio-economic background, be eligible for the Government free-fee scheme and have a desire and ability to pursue full-time third-level education.
One place is reserved each year for an applicant from the Traveller community who meets the above criteria and who scores 25 or over at interview, while another place is reserved each year for an applicant who is in the care of the State or who was once in the care of the State, and who meets the course criteria.
There are also further places available to students through Trinity’s partnership courses in CDETBs colleges: Pearse, Plunket and Liberties College.
University College Dublin
UCD’s access courses are one-year, part-time programmes that seek to prepare adults who do not have formal qualifications for successful third-level study. The courses are level-six, special-purpose awards to equip mature students with the skills and confidence to take the next step towards university.
Primarily designed for people who do not meet existing entry requirements, the courses also cater for individuals who have qualified for a place in university but who are not yet ready to commit to a course. There are no formal educational requirements, with applicants being permitted to apply using prior educational qualifications or life experience.
There are two different courses of study under the programme: access to arts, humanities, social sciences and law; and access to science, engineering, agricultural science and medicine (Seam). The arts and humanities course costs €850, while the Seam course costs €1,800 for the year. However, there are scholarships available that could reduce the cost of these courses, or result in no fee for entrants.
On completion of the access course, chances of being accepted to a university degree are high, UCD says, though participants will need to achieve the required grade point average in assessment to be guaranteed entry.
University College Cork
University College Cork (UCC) does not have a foundation access programme like some of the other universities but does allow individuals to access its third-level courses through the Hear and Disability Access Route to Education (Dare) schemes, as well as via the Quality and Qualifications Ireland (QQI) route.
The university believes this pathway allows more students to use further education as a stepping stone to higher education. Further education also offers a student the opportunity to study their area of interest for a year before committing to a full degree.
There are several large further education colleges in Cork city and county and the wider Munster region. UCC encourages students to undertake a QQI course at Post Leaving Certificate level, and then use their level-five or level-six qualification to gain entry to a level-eight programme in UCC.
The university has also developed a dedicated programme with the Cork Education and Training Board, in that an access staff member works with further education students from Deis backgrounds to support them on their course and through the transition into higher education.
University of Limerick
University of Limerick’s Access to University Course is specifically aimed at students from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds. It is a full-time, 13-week pre-entry course that leads to a place on your chosen undergraduate programme at UL. The course runs from January to June, with the aim of preparing students to succeed academically, personally and socially at third level.
To be eligible, students must be under 23 on January 1st in the calendar year of proposed entry, and must not be currently studying at a university. Applicants using their Leaving Certificate results must meet the university minimum subject requirements and undergraduate subject-specific requirements to be considered.
The course has a range of modules, including informatics, transition to university, personal development, study skills, logical problem-solving, life skills and a module from the degree course that prospective students would like to pursue in the autumn.
The course requires students to be able to attend class Monday to Friday from 9am to 6pm. Attendance is compulsory and students must pass the course to attain their pre-agreed position in September.
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