Maynooth University makes record number of CAO offers

Maynooth University has made its largest ever number of CAO Round 1 offers, issuing more than 4,400 offers for the coming school year, marking a significant milestone in its growth and appeal to students.

This year’s Round 1 offers reflect the strength of the University’s reputation as a progressive, student-centred institution and the continued expansion of programmes across Arts, Sciences, Social Sciences and Health Care.

Importantly, Maynooth University continues to ensure that all students with the same CAO points are offered places fairly and transparently, avoiding random selection.

There was strong demand again this year for courses in key STEM disciplines such as Engineering, which recorded a notable increase in offers, while Physics with Astrophysics also attracted keen interest with additional offers made this year.

Psychology, long established as a highly popular programme at Maynooth, has been further expanded with additional places offered this year.

In the Social Sciences, Economics has grown steadily, supported by the University’s reputation as a leader in economics teaching and research.

Student demand for legal education at Maynooth University strengthened once again, with more places offered in Round 1 to meet increasing interest.

As Ireland’s most applied-to Level 8 degree, Arts again recorded remarkable growth in applications and offers.

The flexibility of the Arts degree, with over 30 subject choices, continues to make it one of the most attractive undergraduate options nationwide.

The introduction of two innovative new Bachelor of Arts degrees generated significant interest this year, resulting in an additional 100 offers to students for both programmes.

The BA in Creative Writing and English issued its first set of Round 1 offers, demonstrating strong demand for humanities programmes that combine creativity with academic rigour.

The BA in Criminology also proved extremely popular, reflecting growing student interest in careers linked to justice, policy and social impact.

Maynooth University introduced a BSc in Nursing this year, which has already prompted strong interest following official approval by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland this summer.

Applications for this important new programme, which will play a vital role in meeting Ireland’s growing demand for skilled healthcare professionals, opened on Thursday, 28 August via the CAO.

“The scale of this year’s Round 1 offers reflects both the confidence of students in Maynooth University and our commitment to providing an outstanding educational experience,” said Professor Eeva Leinonen, President of Maynooth University.

“Our expanding portfolio of programmes, including new offerings in Creative Writing, Criminology, and Nursing, show that Maynooth is both responsive to student demand and proactive in shaping the future of higher education in Ireland.” One of four constituent universities of the National University of Ireland, Maynooth University in 2024 ranked in the top 90 global Times Higher Education (THE) Young Universities, placing 86th in the world.

Tracing its origins to the foundation of the Royal College of St Patrick in 1795, Maynooth University was formally established as an autonomous university in 1997.