DARE admissions scheme for students with disabilities

The Disability Access Route to Education (DARE) is a college admissions scheme. It aims to support students with disabilities who have experienced additional educational challenges to access college.

There are several support systems for students with disabilities who are undertaking courses at third level. Many third-level colleges have a disability or access service which is responsible for giving support and advice to students with disabilities.

DARE aims to improve access to college for school-leavers with a disability or specific learning difficulty by allocating a number of third-level places to them on a reduced points basis.

Each of the third-level colleges participating in the scheme has reserved a number of course places for school-leavers who are eligible for DARE. You can find details of the places available through DARE on the websites of the participating third-level colleges.

You apply for DARE through the Central Applications Office (CAO) – see ‘How do I apply for the DARE scheme?’ below.

Reduced points places

Once you have been accepted as eligible for DARE, you compete for the reduced point places based on your Leaving Certificate results.

A reduced point place means that you may get a place on a third-level course with fewer than the full CAO points.

For example, if you are eligible for DARE and you get 350 Leaving Certificate points, you may be offered a place on a course that is 360 points through CAO. However, you must meet the minimum college entry requirements and any specific course entry requirements.

Telling the college about your disability

You are not obliged to tell your college about your disability, but if you do, your college can consider what supports you need to help with your education and arrange to put these in place.

You can let your college know about your disability, specific learning difficulty or significant ongoing illness either during the application process or at any time during your course.

If you decide to give this information while applying for college, you should tick the relevant box on your CAO application form. Providing this information on your college application will not negatively affect your application, and it will allow you to apply for DARE if you wish.

Disability or Access Services in colleges

If you have indicated on your CAO form that you have a disability or specific learning difficulty, the college's Disability Service will be informed as soon as you accept a place, and they will get in touch with you to work out what supports they can provide.

Even if you didn't tick this box on the CAO form, you can still access the available supports by contacting the college's Disability Service at any stage during your time in college.

To qualify for DARE, you must have an eligible disability and you must be able to show how this has impacted your education.

To be considered for DARE, you must:

• Be aged under 23 on 1 January of the year the course starts
• Provide information about your disability
• Provide information about how your disability has affected your education

Disabilities which can be considered under DARE include:

• Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Autistic Spectrum Disorder (including Asperger’s Syndrome)
• Blind or vision impaired
• Deaf or hearing impaired
• Developmental Coordination Disorder (DCD) – Dyspraxia
• Dyscalculia or significant numeracy difficulties
• Dyslexia or significant literacy difficulties
• Mental health condition
• Neurological condition (including brain injury and epilepsy)
• Physical disability
• Significant ongoing illness
• Speech and language communication disorder

When you have been accepted as eligible for DARE, you then compete for the reduced point places based on your Leaving Certificate results.

You can apply to DARE with an Irish Leaving Certificate, A-Levels or other EU qualifications.

To get a college place under the DARE scheme, you must apply through the Central Applications Office (CAO). You must submit your application by 5pm, 1 February 2025.

You must disclose your disability in your CAO application and complete Section A of the Supplementary Information Form (SIF) by 5pm, 1 March 2025.

Section B and Section C of the Supplementary Information Form (SIF) must be completed and returned by post to CAO to arrive by 5pm, 15 March 2025.

Late CAO applications are not considered for DARE (see ‘table of key dates for DARE applications 2025’ below).

What is the Supplementary Information Form?

The Supplementary Information Form is used to:

• Confirm that you wish to apply for DARE, and
• Tell higher education institutions about the supports you may need based on your disability.

The Supplementary Information Form is divided into 4 sections.

The relevant closing dates for the sections of the form are:

• Section A – must be completed by 1 March 2025
• Sections B and C – must be completed by 15 March 2025
• Section D, if applicable – must be completed by 15 March 2025

Sections B, C and D can only be sent to the CAO by post. Faxed or emailed documents are not accepted.

Not everyone has to complete Section D (see the ‘Supplementary Information Form sections’ table above).

You should get a certificate of posting when sending documents by post.

What happens if my application is late?

No applications will be accepted after the closing dates.

The closing dates are very strict because DARE is an additional application procedure which needs extra processing time.

When do I hear the outcome of my application?

You will be told whether or not you are eligible for the scheme by the end of June 2025 (after the Leaving Certificate exams).

If you are told you are not eligible, you can ask for your application to be reviewed.

If you are not eligible for DARE, you can still get into college if you meet the entry requirements for your chosen course.

Table of key dates for DARE applications 2025

Can I apply for both the DARE and HEAR schemes

The Higher Education Access Route (HEAR) is a college and university admissions scheme for school leavers from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds and a separate process to DARE.

However, you can also apply to the HEAR if you think this applies to you. You must submit all the documents needed for both schemes. If you are eligible for both the DARE and HEAR schemes, you will be prioritised for an offer at the CAO offers stage.

Can I defer a college offer to the following year and carry my DARE eligibility?

Eligibility for DARE can be carried forward for 1 year provided that you apply to CAO by 1 February of the next year.

The CAO helpline at (091) 509 800 can assist school-leavers with their DARE application. You can also contact the access services of the colleges participating in the DARE scheme.

Find out more about DARE:

• On the Access College website’s list of frequently asked questions
• In the DARE application handbook and information leaflets

You can attend information sessions run by the DARE programme which answer questions that students, or parents or guardians, may have about applying for DARE.

The Association for Higher Education Access and Disability (AHEAD) has information about student services and accessing college.