Record 74,000 seek college places
The figure for submissions to the Central Applications Office (CAO) up to its main February 1 deadline compares to 73,091 this time last year. Even discounting 336 applicants for entry to second or subsequent years of some courses, a system operated by CAO for the first time in 2015, there are 1,000 — or 1.4% — more people seeking college places.
The rise comes amid growing pressure on colleges to squeeze in over half of all school leavers, as numbers sitting the Leaving Certificate continue to surge.
