Irish Uni Entrance requirements what the feck!?

Original post by thetobbit

I've recently been researching some courses in Irish universities like Trinity College Dublin and University College Dublin and ive notced a strange trend.
For example, to get into physiotherapy, the average candidate does gets 4 A's at A2 (yes four) while in contrast physiotherapy at liverpool or university of ulster needs only 3 B's. (I live in northern ireland)

I mean I would understand if ucd or trinity asked for 3 A's at the most (if they really are amazing uni's) but to ask for 4 A'2s from GCE candidates for a non-high brow course like physio is down right mad :angry:

. The average smart a-level candidate in NI comes out with something around 3 good A2's; people rarely do 4 unless they do further maths or some stuff.

Am i missing something, are people from the republic of ireland friggin genius'? Or is the system just terribly flawed.

Cheers for reading,

Tom

If your applying to Ireland, you need to research the system for college entrance. Its completely different to the UK. All uni applications are handled by the CAO (UCAS equivalent) and every student is allocated a number. The resemblance pretty much ends there. The entire process is anonymous to prevent discrimination on the basis of schools or class, etc. So we have no interviews/tests/personal statement etc. The only thing you'll be judged on is your grades, and each grade makes up a certain no. of points.

The issue your talking about is to do with the points system. The grades (hence points) are calculated, and according to the number of places on the course, say, 30, the students with the top thirty points are offered places. The student who got the last place decides the cut-off points for that course.
This means the grades you need to get have nothing to do with how hard the course is or how good the uni is, it is decided by the popularity of the course and the number of places, hence:
More applicants = higher grades
Less places = higher grades
The universities themselves do not really have a say in picking their students.

With regards physio, it is a very popular course in Ireland, and generally has fairly high points. Hope this helps :smile:

Reply 23

Original post by Oenone

I applied to Marvellous Merton, then got shunted to Oriel which disliked me intensely therefore got sent to Regent's Park. One interviewer was extremely perplexed when I told him that in Ireland, we speak English :wink:

Katy?

Reply 24

WaSaDa

Original post by gozatron

Galway is lovely!

I do love reading about all the student arrests in RAG week; you'd never know if RAG week existed in Dublin... :biggrin:

Ah yeah, RAG week. Or College Week as we're meant to call it these days. I think it's been banned by university authorities at least three times now which obviously isn't working. In final year and had essays due so didn't bother going out for it this year but sometimes it seems people are making it too easy for people in town to hate all the students!

Original post by gozatron

Why is it unfair? :confused:

Not sure how exactly it's unfair?
It's an anonymous system that just relies on how students do in the actual exam rather than what teachers think they'll do. Irish grades are divided up way more than in the UK (if you get a B2 you know it was between 75-79% rather than just a B). You have up to 20 places choices of course as well.

Anyway, I'm fairly sure Ruairí Quinn says the whole CAO system will be changed

Reply 25

i'm an irish student applying to uk universities and i have found the uk unis seem to be asking for higher requirements of me than of uk students. however i think if you contact the cao they count your gcse's (personally i think this is unfair on irish students as their junior certificate is not taken into account for college) in addition to your A levels. good luck

Reply 26

Dusty12

^CAO don't take GCSEs into account, as far as I now. You just need to get the required GCSEs in English, Maths, (possible a language?)

I suppose it's difficult for countries to set reasonable requirements for other systems that they're not so familiar with.

Reply 27

Original post by caien

Katy?

That is me! But hush there, this is supposed to be my dastardly alter ego account, with which I can post in liberated sarcasm, and generally be very silly without having to live up to my stereotype :wink:

Incidentally, who art thou? Be thou a spirit of health or goblin damned? Actually, just tell me your name :P

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 28

Original post by Oenone

Incidentally, who art thou? Be thou a spirit of health or goblin damned? Actually, just tell me your name :P

studying hamlet??? hahah god i'll be glad to be able to stop quoting it in july!!

Reply 29

Original post by Dusty12

well i saw that on one of the colleges websites. anyway may be worth given them a ring, its not going to do ya any harm anyway!

Reply 30

Original post by Ireland6

studying hamlet??? hahah god i'll be glad to be able to stop quoting it in july!!

Yep it is engrained in my brain. Not that I mind, it's really a rather delicious play :colone:

What are you studying for the old LC? Also, what courses did you apply for and where? *Is extremely nosy* You don't have to reply if you don't wish to - whereabouts are you from :smile:

Reply 31

Original post by Oenone

Incidentally, who art thou? Be thou a spirit of health or goblin damned? Actually, just tell me your name :P

Its Claudia, I recognized your combination of colleges :wink:

Reply 32

Original post by Oenone

Yep it is engrained in my brain. Not that I mind, it's really a rather delicious play :colone:

What are you studying for the old LC? Also, what courses did you apply for and where? *Is extremely nosy* You don't have to reply if you don't wish to - whereabouts are you from :smile:

Hamlet as well! "to be or not to be" and all that craic. studying english, maths, chemistry, physics, geography and history,wbu? applied for radiography and have taken offers from liverpool(Firm) and sheffield hallam (insurance). from county mayo where the majority of the people on this site seem to be actually! wbu? :tongue:

curousity satisfied?

Reply 33

Original post by caien

Its Claudia, I recognized your combination of colleges :wink:

Claudia! How odd to see you here :smile:

My actual account is "Ideot" - damn I guess I've blown my cover, but what the hey - and how jolly to meet you on here. How'd you find the Yeats question, incidentally?

Reply 34

Original post by Ireland6

curousity satisfied?

Yes, my curiosity has been slightly appeased :smile:

I'm studying English, Irish, Maths, Music, Biology, French, Chemistry, and planning to learn the Classical Studies course in 4 days flat :borat:

Obviously I'm from Kerry, I just have that aura do I not? The fine stench of cows ...
I'm trying for Trinity - mainly because I love and worship Sam Beckett, and I failed to get into Oxford.

Reply 35

Original post by Oenone

Yes, my curiosity has been slightly appeased :smile:

I'm studying English, Irish, Maths, Music, Biology, French, Chemistry, and planning to learn the Classical Studies course in 4 days flat :borat:

Obviously I'm from Kerry, I just have that aura do I not? The fine stench of cows ...
I'm trying for Trinity - mainly because I love and worship Sam Beckett, and I failed to get into Oxford.

Nice! Trinity england or trinity ireland? I have a grand aunt from kerry and i don't understand a word she says!

Reply 36

StarsAreFixed

Original post by thetobbit

Yes. You are missing something. The 'calibre' of the course does not matter, it is the competition for its places that does. Generally it fits in well, and Medicine, Law, Veterinry etc. all require almost perfect points. However, Nursing, Computer Science and Midwifery are much lower than English and History in TCD. Physiotherapy competition is quite high- I see it ranges from 530-555 in both colleges. They are extremely high points. An Irish student would need A1A1A1B1B1B1 at least, and better to get 555. That isn't easy and is achieved by feck all of those sitting the thing. Less than 1% get 600 or top grades, while several times that get top grades in A-Level because your grades are broader. The systems are very difficult to equate because they're so different but the universities do their best. If the Irish requirements are high, so will the UK requirements be. It is not 'unfair'. The CAO is the fairest system there is! Read up on it. Anyone getting over 500 is going to be very smart indeed as it means doing 6 honours subjects, and getting a few A1's. The system is not flawed if both sets of students require very high grades- stop comparing it to UCAS. If they look for 3 A's, then how fair would that be? The majority of applicants are presenting 6 subjects, (but doing at least 7 in the exams) and although your subjects are more indepth, that is still seriously unequal. If you think 3A's in say English Language, Maths and Biology are equal to a student presenting with English A1 (compulsory subject) Maths A1 (compulsory subject) Irish A2 (compulsory subject) French B1 (compulsory subject-or other third language) Biology B1 and Chemistry A1 then there's no point in trying to explain how the Leaving Cert and CAO and competition course places work and the difficulty in equating that with A-Levels.

Good luck anyway if you apply!

Reply 37

Original post by Oenone

Claudia! How odd to see you here :smile:

My actual account is "Ideot" - damn I guess I've blown my cover, but what the hey - and how jolly to meet you on here. How'd you find the Yeats question, incidentally?

Very predictable of Bulldog, and having read through all the papers, those types of questions are less common than he's led us to believe. Also I made a point of checking and the same poet has NEVER come up two years in a row! :mad:

We got Yeats last year, unfortunately :frown:

As for the question, it was alright, I ran out of time because I was kinda like hmmmm for the first ten minutes, but no matter because we've plenty more time in the exam. I also managed to leave my Yeats notes at home, so I had to use Dylan's :s-smilie:

I'm sure you got an A1 :wink:

Reply 38