Applicants for the higher diploma in education may be relieved to find that a central applications system is in the offing - for four colleges at least. NUI Galway, NUI Maynooth, UCC and UCD are participating in the new system which is run by a private company located in the same building as the CAO.

A common application and common selection procedure will be used for the first time. A points rating will be given for qualifications and teaching experience and places will be offered to those highest on the list. So, there is a strong echo of the CAO, which deals with admissions for undergraduate courses in most third-level colleges in the Republic.

The application form will look familiar to those who have already grappled with the CAO form, while the allocation of course codes to the four courses follows the same conventions.

Application literature will be available during October and the closing date for applications for autumn 1999 admission will be December 1st this year. The order of preference in which an applicant lists courses will have no bearing on his or her place in the order of merit for that course. It's likely that an application fee of about £40 will apply. Places will be allocated in early May.

As with the CAO, those who wish to accept places must do so within a specified time. If vacancies remain after the first round of offers, further offers will be made in the last week in May.

A further announcement will be made in early September giving information on how to request application literature. Applications for September 1998 are not affected by this announcement.

The advent of the NUI Higher Diploma in Education Common Selection Project is reminiscent of the birth of the CAO in 1976. Could we be witnessing the beginning of a central applications system for postgraduate courses?

The H Dip in Education project can be reached at Tower House, Eglinton Street, Galway - phone (091) 563318 or (091) 563269. Project co-ordinator is Seamus Mac an Ri.