Illustration: GettyQuestionMy son is growing more anxious about the fact that he only has two weeks to select his CAO courses choices in time for the February 1st deadline. AnswerFirstly, the February 1st initial deadline for CAO course choices is, in many ways, an administrative carryover from a bygone era when students posted off their CAO course choices. More than 90 per cent of Leaving Cert applicants make changes to their course choices in May/June each year. So, your son has nothing to fear in terms of the February 1st course choice “deadline”. And remember, there is no need to fret: he has months to go before he must select his final CAO course options.

Source: The Irish Times January 13, 2026 03:19 UTC