The rise in grades achieved by this year's Leaving Certificate students has had a knock-on effect in two ways. For some, they have seen the points for their chosen courses increase beyond the points they earned, meaning they may not have received the offer they were working towards. Others now find themselves with a better Leaving Cert than they had hoped, meeting the minimum requirements to move onto Higher Education, but with no existing CAO application.

Available Places refers to college courses that are now open to All Qualified Applicants. This means that if you meet the minimum requirements for one of these courses, you still have a chance to secure a college place this year.

Existing CAO applicants need pay no additional fee to apply for this courses, but it is also possible to apply if you have not already made a CAO application, for a fee of €45.

Those interested in applying for an AQA Available Place are advised to consult the CAO's own guide, which includes a list of all the courses around the country that now fall into this category.

At National College of Ireland this year, our new, full-time honours degree in Early Childhood Education And Care is open to all qualified applicants. Viewing a sample class for the BA (Hons) ECEC may help you to decide if this is the course for you.