Digital Desk Staff

Over 55,000 people have received a CAO offer in the past few minutes.

Half of students who were offered a Level 8 college place today received their first preference course, while 79 per cent were offered one of their top three.

A number of courses in medicine and business have risen to over 600 points, due to grade inflation and a high number of CAO applicants.

The minimum number of CAO points required to guarantee a college place this year is expected to rise.

A number of courses are expected to surpass 600 points, due to a larger number of CAO applicants and record-high Leaving Cert results

First round offers will be available at 2pm and applicants have until Monday to accept their place.

Although the points increases may mean some students will not receive their first option, the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) president Clare Austick says it is important to take time to consider your options.

"Try and approach the results with understanding and not being too hard on yourself," she says.

"There are always different options. The main thing is not to panic and not to worry – sometimes the second or third choice works out better for some people.

"Look at the different options: would you prefer to take the second offer, or would you prefer to defer?

"It all comes down to the individual and what works best in that situation," Ms Austick adds.

More to follow...