A tertiary degree is one degree taught in two places. You start in a further education college run by your local Education and Training Board, and you finish in a university or technological university. It is a single programme with a guaranteed place in the higher education years, as long as you pass your exams along the way.
You do not apply through the CAO, and you do not need CAO points. You apply directly, through the National Tertiary Office, and each course sets its own entry requirements.
There are 39 of them. They lead to NFQ Level 7 and Level 8 degrees in nursing, primary teaching, social work, occupational therapy, business, computing, engineering, media and agriculture. Every one is listed further down this page.
The difference
How this differs from a CAO application
The CAO route
One application, one closing date, one system.
You are ranked on Leaving Certificate points against everyone else who applied.
Offers come out in rounds in August.
DARE and HEAR operate here.
The tertiary degree route
You apply to each course separately, through the National Tertiary Office.
You are assessed against that course entry requirements, not against a points cut off.
The Education and Training Board processes your application and contacts you by email.
DARE does not apply here. It is a CAO scheme, and the two are separate.
Worth being clear about. A tertiary degree place is not a consolation prize and it is not a shorter degree. You come out with the same NFQ Level 7 or Level 8 award as anyone who entered that university through the CAO. What changes is where you spend the first year or two, and how you get in.
Eligibility
Who can apply
Both school leavers and mature students. There is no age ceiling and no points floor.
School leavers
You apply in sixth year, alongside or instead of the CAO. Some courses ask for specific Leaving Certificate or Leaving Certificate Applied subjects, so read the requirements on the course page early.
Mature students
If you are 23 or over, the entry requirements may be different again. The tertiary manager for the course is the person to ask.
Non EU residents
Non EU citizens with permission to reside in Ireland unrelated to student status, such as Stamp 4, can apply. They are not eligible for free fees and would pay tuition for both parts of the programme.
The process
How to apply, step by step
1
Find the course and open its page
Every tertiary degree has its own page on the National Tertiary Office site. The list below links straight to each one. Read to the bottom, because that is where the entry requirements sit.
2
Check the entry requirements for that course
They vary course by course. You may be asked to show specific Leaving Certificate or Leaving Certificate Applied subjects. Some courses also require a portfolio, an interview, or extra documentation.
If anything is unclear, contact the tertiary manager named on the course page. That is what they are there for, and it is a normal thing to do.
3
Apply directly through the course page
You apply on the National Tertiary Office site itself, or through the contact person listed in the course information. There is no central form and no single deadline covering everything.
If you hit any difficulty, the Education and Training Board Adult Education Guidance and Information Service can help you through it.
4
Watch the email address you applied with
You get an automatic reply confirming the application arrived. After that the Education and Training Board processes it and keeps in touch through that same address, so use one you actually check.
5
Accept, complete the learner detail form, register
Once you are offered a place you complete a learner detail form, which is what registers you and lets the college draw down funding for the course. Your provider will walk you through registration directly.
Timing
When to apply
This page deliberately does not print dates, because they change every cycle and a wrong date here would cost somebody a place.
The usual shape of a cycle
Applications open in the autumn and stay open through the following spring and summer, closing in late September just before the course starts. That is a much longer window than the CAO gives you.
Some close far earlier
A small number of courses close months before the rest. In the last cycle Occupational Therapy and Social Work both closed in spring. If either of those is on your list, check the closing date the moment you start looking, not in the summer.
No tuition fee and no student contribution for the whole time you are taught by the Education and Training Board. That is normally the first one or two years.
The higher education years
The Free Fees Initiative and the usual student contribution arrangements apply, exactly as they would for a CAO entrant. If you do not meet the Free Fees criteria, the standard tuition arrangements apply instead.
SUSI covers the whole programme. Tertiary students can apply for a SUSI grant for both the further education and the higher education parts, subject to the normal eligibility rules. The 1916 Bursary, the Student Assistance Fund and the Fund for Students with Disabilities are also open to tertiary students.
Support
If you need extra support
Supports exist across both halves of the programme, including assistive technology, adapted equipment, and exam arrangements such as extra time, a reader, a scribe or an interpreter.
Say it early, and say it to both. Tell the Education and Training Board and the higher education institution about your needs at the point you are choosing the course, not after you start. That is what lets them work out which supports fit before you arrive. If your circumstances change later, the local Adult Guidance Service can help.
The list
Every tertiary degree, by college
The badge is the college that awards your degree. The tags underneath each course are the further education colleges you can start in. Every link goes to the official course page, which is where you apply and where the entry requirements live.
No course matches both filters. Try clearing one of them.
Before you commit
Five things to ask the tertiary manager
Can I hold a CAO application at the same time as this one? The two systems are separate, and this page does not state a rule either way, so get the answer from the person running the course before you decide anything.
What exactly do I need to pass to move into the higher education years? Progression is guaranteed subject to passing, so it is worth knowing what passing means here.
Which campus am I on in each year, and how do I get there? You are in two places over the programme. Check the travel for both, not just the first one.
Does this course need a portfolio or an interview, and when? Some do, and preparing one takes longer than people expect.
If I already hold a related further education award, do I still start in year one? Worth asking rather than assuming.
Course list and application detail checked against the National Tertiary Office on 5 September 2026. Tertiary degree provision changes every cycle, so every course above links out to the official page rather than relying on this copy being current. Closing dates are deliberately not reproduced here.