John Connolly (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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1082. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the proportion of applicants to the CAO for 2025 completed the Leaving Certificate between 2020 and 2024; the efforts he is making to ensure equity in the CAO application process for Leaving Certificate candidates of 2025 who will not benefit from the same level of grade inflation as candidates who sat the leaving certificate between 2020 and 2024; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17530/25]

James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail)
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While the CAO is a private not-for-profit company, not an agency of my Department, I understand that applications for places in Higher Education Institutions in 2025 will not be complete until May. Consequently I am not in a position to answer the first part of the Deputy's question. Any queries on CAO applications are a matter for the CAO and HEIs.

I understand that the Leaving Certificate can be a stressful time for students and their families. This includes the decisions for students in determining their pathways into work or continued education through the Further Education and Training or Higher Education systems.

My officials are continuing to engage with colleagues in the Department of Education and State Exams Commission (SEC) on this matter. I am supportive of my Cabinet colleague Minister McEntee and her officials as they commence the phased and gradual return to normal Leaving Certificate outcomes, which will begin in 2025. It is widely recognised that it is appropriate to return over time to normal arrangements for Leaving Certificate outcomes in line with the announcement made by the Minister for Education last year (17 April 2024), that the return to normal Leaving Certificate outcomes would begin in 2025.

It is my understanding that this is being done gradually in line with the commitment that there would be no “cliff edge” in overall results so as to minimise, in so far as possible, the impact on students. I am aware that the SEC will again apply a post-marking adjustment after all marking is complete, which, this year, will bring results in the aggregate to a point broadly midway between 2020 and 2021 levels. The Department of Education and SEC will review the process for the following year. The examinations and assessment adjustments that have applied in recent years continue to apply for students in 2025.

My Department has been working tirelessly with the higher education and further education sectors to provide increased opportunities and pathways, helping to reduce pressure and open doors to a bright future. I am committed to supporting students, as evidenced by the creation of additional places in high-demand courses such as medicine, nursing, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and others. This year will see the commencement of new programmes in dentistry and pharmacy, as well as the further expansion of existing programmes in medicine, physiotherapy and pharmacy. Engagements are ongoing regarding further expansion for 2025 and beyond.

Additionally, new veterinary programmes are being established in Atlantic Technological University and South East Technological University. At full rollout, it is expected that these programmes will have an annual intake of 80 veterinary medicine students, nearly doubling the current intake. These programmes are expected to commence in September 2026.

I am also continuing to expand pathways into higher education through Tertiary programmes, part-time supports and new apprenticeships. This will reduce the stress of the “points race” and CAO application process for thousands of students across the country.

This is a complex issue and there is no simple solution. But on balance, the gradual approach to returning Leaving Certificate results to normal is as fair as possible. This approach has been taken in other jurisdictions, including Northern Ireland.