IB Pathways
This is a picture of the University College Dublin campus, It shows the O’Riley building and the lake.

Dublin · Ireland · Research university

University College Dublin

Big suburban campus at Belfield in south Dublin: over 130 undergraduate courses, from Commerce and Engineering to Veterinary Medicine, through CAO.

Alvarez Garrido · CC BY 4.0

In English
Every degree
City
Dublin
Apply via
CAO
Next deadline
1 Feb 2027

Deadlines

  1. 5 November 2026, 12:00 Irish time

    CAO application facility opens for 2027 entry
    Details

    Published twice: the last line of the CAO Timetable of Events reads "5th November 2026 - CAO application facility opens for 2027 applications", and the CAO Handbook 2027 gives "CAO online application facility opens on 5 November at 12:00 noon". Nothing can be submitted before midday.

    Source

  2. 1 February 2027, 17:00 Irish time

    Normal closing date - the one that matters
    Hard deadline
    Details

    The last day to apply at the normal fee, and the last day to apply at all for restricted courses such as medicine. A late window, 5 March to 1 May at €65, takes other courses only, and an institution may refuse a late application.

    CAO publishes this as "1st February (17:00) - Normal closing date for applications". Confirmed for 2027 entry by the CAO Handbook 2027 (Timetable of Events and Table 1.1); on 24 September 2026 the Timetable of Events web page still showed the 2026 cycle. The fee at this point is 50 EUR. Restricted-entry courses - those with a test, interview, portfolio or audition, including undergraduate medicine - must be on your course choices list by now, with one narrow escape: the handbook allows them to be "added to your application using the facility to amend course choices (for a fee of 10) before 1 March at 5pm". They cannot be introduced during the free Change of Mind window in May and June, except where a restricted course shares the exact same assessment procedures as one you already listed. The CAO Handbook also advises applying online before this date and time if you need to sit HPAT or GAMSAT.

    Source

  3. 1 July 2027, 17:00 Irish time

    Change of Mind closes - your final order of preference
    Hard deadline
    Details

    The last chance to change what you are applying for, five days before IB results. The list you hold on this date is the list that is scored.

    CAO publishes this as "1st July (17:00) - Change of Mind closes". Confirmed for 2027 entry by the CAO Handbook 2027 (Timetable of Events and Table 1.1); on 24 September 2026 the Timetable of Events web page still showed the 2026 cycle. This is the date the whole Irish system turns on, because offers follow your stated order of preference exactly and this is the last moment you can change it. It closes a few days before IB results are released in early July, so the order you submit is an order you choose without knowing your score. Decide it against your predicted grades and against last year’s points for each course, not against a result you do not have yet.

    Source
All dates for this school (3 more)

  1. 20 January 2027, 17:00 Irish time

    Discounted application fee ends - 35 EUR becomes 50 EUR
    Details

    Applying after this costs more. Not a barrier, and a needless cost.

    The discounted online fee ends at 17:00 (CAO Handbook 2027, Timetable of Events and Table 1.1). Missing it costs 15 EUR, not your place: you can still apply at the normal 50 EUR until 1 February. The fee ladder is in Table 1.1 of the CAO Handbook 2027 and is the part most often got wrong: early online (discounted) 35 EUR by 20 January, normal online 50 EUR by 1 February, late online 65 EUR by 1 May, Change of Mind nil. Amending your course choices between 5 February and 1 March costs a further 10 EUR. Application fees are non-refundable and CAO states that no extension to any closing date is allowed.

    Source

  2. 5 May 2027, 12:00 Irish time*

    Change of Mind opens - free, and unlimited
    Details

    Free, and it lets you rewrite the list entirely — which is why the 1 February deadline is less frightening than it looks. CAO Handbook 2027 gives 5 May at 12:00 as the "expected date".

    CAO publishes this as "5th May (12:00) - Online Change of Mind facility becomes available (Free)". The CAO Handbook 2027 gives this day and time but marks it "(expected date)", so treat it as provisional. You may use it as many times as you like to introduce, remove or reorder courses, but each Change of Mind "cancels and supersedes all previous course choices in any category in which changes are made", so the list you leave behind is the list that is read. Restricted-entry courses cannot be introduced here.

    Source

  3. 6 July 2027*

    IB results released
    Details

    After Change of Mind has closed. An IB applicant straight from school competes in Round One, with Irish school leavers.

    Source

* Last year’s date, not yet confirmed.

Every date in Ireland

What you could study here

Every degree here is taught in English. What it is known for:

Engineering

BE · 4 yrs

33 points with HL Maths 5 and a lab science (Physics, Chemistry or Biology) at HL 4.

Engineering

Veterinary Medicine

MVB · 5 yrs

40 points with Chemistry HL 5 and Maths SL 4 or HL 3; 60 hours of animal-handling experience is also required.

Veterinary

Search all its degrees

10 faculties: what each looks for
  • Arts and Humanities: Humanities (DN530) and Joint Honours (DN520) are multi-subject entries: you apply once and choose subjects within them.
  • Business: Four business degrees, from Commerce to Business & Law; pick the one that fits your quantitative or language strengths.
  • Engineering: One common-entry engineering degree, then a free choice of specialisation; HL Maths 5 and a HL lab science 4.
  • Science, Computer Science and Actuarial & Financial Studies: Science is common entry with streams; Actuarial & Financial Studies asks IB 42 with HL Maths 6.
  • Health Sciences: Medicine, Radiography, Nursing, Midwifery, Physiotherapy and Sports Science; Medicine adds HPAT-Ireland.
  • Veterinary Medicine: DN300 asks IB 40, Chemistry HL 5 and 60 hours of recorded animal-handling experience.
  • Agriculture, Food and Nutrition: Agricultural Science, Food Science, Forestry, Horticulture and Human Nutrition, taught in one School.
  • Architecture, Planning and Environmental Policy: Architecture, Landscape Architecture and City Planning are taught together in one School.
  • Law: Law (BCL) alone, or paired with Business, History, Irish, Philosophy, Politics, Economics, Social Justice or French.
  • Social Sciences: Degrees on how societies work, from justice and sustainable cities to economics and big data.

What it asks of IB students

Six subjects including English; courses add Maths, a lab science or a third language. Strictest: Actuarial HL Maths 6; Engineering HL Maths 5 and HL science 4; Medicine a third language and HPAT.

Where it says so

Where it says so

Its IB recognition statement

Worth knowing

Irish is part of UCD's entry rule, but you are exempt automatically if you were born outside the island of Ireland, live abroad and present the IB.

All 3 notes
  • Irish is part of UCD's entry rule, but you are exempt automatically if you were born outside the island of Ireland, live abroad and present the IB.
  • Where one exam system dominates a course's applicants, UCD may share its places out by system and rank IB applicants among themselves.
  • Veterinary Medicine asks for 60 hours of animal-handling experience, recorded with UCD by early July (2026 rule; 2027 dates not yet published).

Sources
  1. UCD Registry — EU applicants — checked 2026-09-26
  2. UCD Registry — Minimum entry requirements (matriculation) — checked 2026-09-26
  3. UCD Registry — General requirements (undergraduate) — checked 2026-09-26
  4. myUCD — A–Z course list — checked 2026-09-26
  5. UCD — Actuarial & Financial Studies (course page) — checked 2026-09-26
  6. UCD — Engineering (course page) — checked 2026-09-26
  7. UCD — Medicine (course page) — checked 2026-09-26
  8. UCD — Veterinary Medicine (course page) — checked 2026-09-26
  9. CAO — Entry requirements for EU/EFTA/UK applicants, 2026 entry (IB Table 1: subject grade comparisons) — checked 2026-09-26
  10. UCD — Free Fees Initiative — checked 2026-09-30
  11. UCD — Fees and funding for EU undergraduates — checked 2026-09-30
  12. UCD — Courses by discipline (Arts & Humanities) — checked 2026-09-30
  13. UCD — Courses by discipline (Business) — checked 2026-09-30
  14. UCD — Courses by discipline (Engineering) — checked 2026-09-30
  15. UCD — Courses by discipline (Science, Computer Science, Actuarial) — checked 2026-09-30
  16. UCD — Courses by discipline (Health Sciences) — checked 2026-09-30
  17. UCD — Courses by discipline (Veterinary Medicine) — checked 2026-09-30
  18. UCD — Courses by discipline (Agriculture, Food & Nutrition) — checked 2026-09-30
  19. UCD — Courses by discipline (Architecture, Planning & Environmental Policy) — checked 2026-09-30
  20. UCD — Courses by discipline (Law) — checked 2026-09-30
  21. UCD — Courses by discipline (Social Sciences) — checked 2026-09-30
  22. CAO — Important dates for 2027 entry (normal closing 1 February 2027) — checked 2026-09-30