At 2pm on Wednesday, 26 August, thousands of applicants will log in to CAO and see one of three things: the course they hoped for, a different offer or no offer at all. Every one of those screens needs a calm response.
Round One replies close at 3pm on Tuesday, 1 September. An offer left unanswered by that time expires. Accepting a place does not prevent CAO from offering a more preferred course in a later round, but accepting that later offer will cancel the place already held.
That last sentence is the rule worth remembering. You can accept a course and remain in the running for choices above it. You cannot accept a later higher choice and then expect the first place to wait in reserve.
The dates below come from the official CAO timetable and 2026 offer schedule.
The dates to put in the phone
Leaving Certificate results are due on Friday, 21 August. Round One follows five days later.
Offer round | Offers available | Reply deadline |
Round One | 26 August at 2pm | 1 September at 3pm |
Round Two | 7 September at 2pm | 9 September at 3pm |
Round Three | 15 September at 10am | 17 September at 3pm |
Round Four | 22 September at 10am | 24 September at 3pm |
Round Five | 29 September at 10am | 1 October at 3pm |
Available Places opens on 27 August. The main offer season ends on 1 October.
Applicants in restricted, mature and other categories may have received earlier communication. Nobody should assume that Round One is the only date relevant to their account. Check the CAO messages as well as ordinary email.
Why preference order still controls everything
CAO works down an applicant’s list and tries to offer the highest course for which the person is eligible and has enough points. Level 8 choices form one list. Level 7 and Level 6 choices form another.
The two lists are processed separately, so a person may receive one offer from each in the same round. Only one can be accepted.
Within either list, an offer removes every course placed below it from further consideration. Courses above remain alive for later rounds. This is why the original advice to rank courses in genuine preference order mattered so much.
Take a simple example. Niamh placed Nursing first, Occupational Therapy second and a general science degree third. Round One brings an Occupational Therapy offer. The science choice has now gone from that list. Nursing remains possible in a later round.
If Niamh would genuinely attend Occupational Therapy, she can accept it. Nothing about that acceptance reduces her chance of a later Nursing offer.
The decision in front of you, not the imaginary one
Students often ask whether they should accept a lower choice “just in case”. A better question is whether they would attend if no higher offer ever arrived.
If the answer is yes, acceptance protects a real option. If the answer is no, accepting may postpone an unavoidable decision and create registration work for a college place that will never be used.
There are practical matters too. Read the course modules again. Confirm the campus because institutions can teach similar courses in different locations. Check accommodation, travel and placement requirements. A course title that looked attractive in January may feel quite different when the weekly commute is priced in August.
Parents can help with the numbers and the deadline. They should not turn the student’s fifth choice into a family verdict on results day.
What a later offer does
Suppose an applicant accepts Business in Round One. Round Two brings the Law course placed above it. There are only two meaningful choices.
Accept Law and the Business acceptance is automatically cancelled. Ignore the Law offer and Business remains accepted. There is no need to press a special decline button to keep the first place.
What the student cannot do is accept Law for safety, think about it for several days and then return through CAO to Business. The earlier acceptance is gone once the later offer is taken. CAO confirms this in its offers questions and answers.
Before switching, compare the course code, institution and campus on the actual offer. Similar names are not enough.
Accepting online
Log in through the official CAO website, open the offer and follow the acceptance steps before the reply deadline. The account should then show confirmation.
Save it. A screenshot or PDF is a small precaution that removes doubt later. If the account does not clearly show the acceptance, log out, return and check again. Contact CAO while the offer is still live if something looks wrong.
The college takes over after acceptance and sends registration instructions directly. CAO does not arrange student accommodation, SUSI or fee payment. Those are separate tasks with separate systems.
Never give an unofficial advice account access to the CAO login. A helpful person can sit beside the applicant without controlling the account.
No Round One offer: what to check first
The absence of an offer can mean that points or minimum entry requirements were not met for an available place. It can also mean that a result, exemption or qualification has not been matched correctly.
Open the account before assuming the outcome is final. Are all examination results visible? Do the course choices appear in the expected order? Is an Irish or language exemption recorded where one was required? Were portfolio, interview or other restricted-course requirements completed?
If the record is wrong, contact CAO straight away and describe the exact discrepancy. A public social media post will not amend an application.
Later rounds remain possible when institutions have places. There is no guarantee that a cutoff will move, but Round One is not the end of the timetable.
It is also the moment to speak honestly about alternatives. A further education course with a clear progression route, an apprenticeship or a planned repeat year may be a stronger choice than accepting any available degree to avoid disappointment.
Available Places without panic
From 27 August, CAO lists courses where institutions still have vacancies. Applicants can add a course that was not on the original form if they satisfy its requirements.
The word “available” does not mean unsuitable. A course may have extra capacity or lower demand in a particular year. Still, it deserves the same checks as any original choice: content, qualification, professional recognition, location, fees and progression.
Preference order continues to matter. A newly added course should be placed only where the applicant truly wants it. Putting it above an existing choice can alter what CAO may offer.
Read CAO’s Available Places guidance when the facility opens because the course list can change.
Asking for a deferral
A deferral is a request to the college, not an option granted by CAO. Do not accept the offer through CAO if seeking one.
Email the institution’s admissions office immediately. CAO advises using “DEFERRED ENTRY” in the subject line and including the applicant’s name, CAO number, course code and reason. The request should arrive at least two days before the offer reply date.
The college decides. It may approve the request, refuse it or attach conditions for the following application cycle. Keep the written answer and follow the instructions exactly.
Starting early preserves choices. If the college refuses while the CAO deadline is still open, the applicant can decide whether to accept the current offer.
Appeals and upgraded results
A Leaving Certificate appeal may eventually produce a higher grade. If the revised result would have put the student above the course cutoff and all other requirements were satisfied, the institution may offer a place in the current year where possible or a deferred place for the following year.
Capacity and timing matter. An applicant should not let a present offer expire because an appeal feels likely to succeed. Make the best decision using the confirmed result, then keep the appeal records and watch for communication from the State Examinations Commission, CAO and the college.
Points are only one part of admission. A course may require a particular mathematics, Irish, English, language or science grade. Restricted courses can include an interview, test or portfolio. Matching the points from last year does not override any of those conditions and it does not predict this year’s cutoff.
The cost question belongs in offer week
An offer can be academically right and financially unworkable. Before accepting, estimate rent, deposit, food, transport, the student contribution and course materials. Placements may create travel costs that do not appear in a prospectus headline.
SUSI is a separate application. A CAO place does not prove grant eligibility. Nor does a pending grant application reserve the college place.
Accommodation fraud becomes particularly aggressive around Round One. Verify the landlord or provider and the property before transferring money. Use the college accommodation office where possible. Urgency is not evidence that an advertisement is genuine.
A sensible hour-by-hour response
On the afternoon of 26 August, first confirm what has actually been offered. Then step away from the screen for a short time. Read the course page and calculate the practical cost. If the student would take the course in the absence of any later offer, accept before the deadline and save the confirmation.
Do not spend six days refreshing rumours about Round Two while leaving a usable Round One place unanswered.
Quick answers
Can two offers be accepted from the separate lists?
No. An applicant may receive a Level 8 offer and a Level 7/6 offer but can accept only one.
Does accepting Round One stop a Round Two offer?
No. Higher preferences on that same list remain in consideration.
Can the first acceptance be kept if a later offer appears?
Yes. Ignore the later offer. The first place is cancelled only if the later offer is accepted.
Does a CAO acceptance include accommodation?
No. Housing must be arranged separately.
The point to remember
Round One opens on 26 August at 2pm and closes on 1 September at 3pm. Accept a course if it is one the student is prepared to attend. That decision keeps higher preferences open without sacrificing the place in hand.
No offer is difficult, but it is not a reason to make a rushed choice. Check the account, watch later rounds and consider Available Places alongside further education and apprenticeships. The goal is not to collect any college place. It is to choose a route that can be afforded, completed and used.
