With a total of 7,965 students placing it as their first preference in 2016, Trinity have escaped the trend that saw them become one of only two universities in Ireland to see a consistent decrease in first-preference applications between 2012 and 2014.
These first preference figures saw Trinity sit alongside NUI Galway as the only two universities to see a year-on-year reduction in first preference applications in this period. Between 2012 and 2014, the number of students placing Trinity as their first preference fell by nearly nine per cent, from 8,142 to 7,437.
This year’s number of first preferences also marks an increase on last year’s number: 7,876. While this figure marks an increase on previous years, UCD is still leading the way in terms of first preferences — in March 2015 the university received 8,856 first preferences on CAO.
Speaking to The University Times by email last October, Prof Patrick Geoghegan, the former Senior Lecturer and Dean of Undergraduate Studies, warned that too much shouldn’t be read into a decline in first-preference applications. The most important thing, Geoghegan warned, was “admitting students with academic ability and potential from all over”.
Trinity’s first preference figures have also changed slightly from March, when 7,998 students had placed Trinity as their first course.
Geoghegan referenced the tendency for people to change their mind about applying to Trinity during the course of CAO applications. “I think it shows that some people aspire to go to Trinity, but then worry they won’t have enough points after sitting their exams, and they want to feel like they are getting their first choice”, he said.
The overallnumber of students applying to Trinity’s 3,307 offered places also fell slightly, from 18,914 last year to 18,551 in 2016. This latest figure, however, is still a significant increase on the figures for 2013 and 2014, which saw applications to the university fall steadily in during those two years. Indeed, during this period Trinity was the only university in Ireland to see a consistent drop in overall applications.
While the final number of students applying from Northern Ireland is not yet available, in March the university had experienced a 22 per cent increase in students applying from Northern Ireland, as changes to the points available for grade bands for Northern Irish applicants took effect for the first time.
