Hundreds of Leaving Certificate students may be disappointed when they get their CAO offers today because the courses they applied for have been cancelled - some as a result of official tardiness.
Information supplied by the CAO shows that no offers have been made on up to 15 certificate, diploma and degree courses. The CAO notified students that some of these courses were cancelled, back in April, although they were listed in the CAO Handbook.
A number of colleges say they wrote directly to applicants well before the closing date for change-of-mind forms (July 1st) to inform them of cancellations. Other courses, however, were cancelled at the last minute, because of a lack of qualified applicants.
That left a number of students using up their first choices on courses that are now unavailable, although, of course, they may receive other CAO offers. No offers were made on five courses at Carlow IT - office information systems/German, office information systems/French, computing (Kilkenny), computing (Wexford) and process instrumentation and control. According to Ms Mary Jordan, Carlow IT's admission officer, office information and languages applicants were contacted in May to alert them to the fact that the courses were cancelled.
"Courses 029 and 038 are not popular with applicants," she says. "People with languages want degree courses. We will be offering two courses in international business with French or German next year. We have revised courses to meet demand." Carlow's computing courses, which are offered on an outreach basis in Kilkenny and Wexford, have run into difficulties because the outreach centres have to be approved annually by the Department of Education and Science.
"We don't have approval in time for the courses to be included in the CAO handbook. Because the courses are offered late (in April this year), we don't get sufficient applicants," Ms Jordan notes. "We have asked the Department to give us approval for a longer term."
Carlow's three-year diploma programme in process instrumentation and control has also been cancelled due to a lack of applicants. "The course has been developed to meet the skills shortage, but students are insufficiently aware of its content. We intend to do a full marketing programme on the course to highlight its content." Athlone IT's bachelor of engineering in polymer engineering has also been cancelled due to a lack of qualified candidates.
The course requires candidates to have obtained a C grade at higher level maths. The college also offers a bachelor of science in polymer technology programme which requires only a B grade at ordinary level. Athlone's admissions officer, Ms Norrie O'Callaghan, advises students who have not made the BSc course their second choice to apply to the CAO under its vacant places procedure.
Tralee IT also reports that its aquaculture programme has been cancelled due to a shortage of qualified applicants.
At LSB College three degree courses have been cancelled. The degree in business and computing was cancelled at the last minute. According to Dr David Slattery, dean of LSB, NCEA validation for this course was applied for in August 1998. However, the college was informed only in mid-July that the NCEA would make its final decision in December.
Two other courses - in psychoanalytical studies and business (computing) - have been cancelled because the college is changing direction, Dr Slattery says. At undergraduate level psychoanalytical studies is offered with psychology, while in business the college will concentrate on marketing and business psychology. Students were informed in April of these changes, Dr Slattery says.