James O'Connor (Cork East, Fianna Fail)
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69. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the university courses that put on additional places to meet demand of demographics and grade or point inflation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49830/21]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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In recognition of the particular circumstances faced by leaving certificate students in 2021, the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science worked with the HEA and the Higher Education Institutions to identify where additional places could be provided in the higher education system. As a result of this, together with the additional places created under the Human Capital Initiative, 4650 places were specifically created across a wide range of courses.

A breakdown of these additional places by subject area is in the table below.

Nonetheless, there were fluctuations in CAO points this year, as there are every year. The changes in points depend on the grades received by applicants in addition to the number of applicants, and the number of places available.