Simon Harris met the presidents of the country's universities today to discuss the implications of the errors in the system.
An external review is expected to be completed at the weekend, which would allow the CAO to start processing the revised results next week, with Minister Harris saying he expects the overwhelming majority of students to be offered the course they are entitled to.
However, despite the assurances from Mr Harris and Minister for Education Norma Foley, many students have been left confused as to whether they will be affected by the errors and what the knock-on effect will be on third-level places.
What was the issue?
The issue was to do with the computer coding used to calculated the Leaving Cert grades. The coding, provided by Polymetrika International, had an error in one line of code, which was discovered following an independent review by the company.
The Department of Education was informed of the error by Polymetrika, prompting them to carry out their own checks, in which they discovered a second error.
The issue related to Junior Certificate results, which were taken into account as a measure of each student's past performance in school. The first issue saw Junior Cert results from Civics, Social and Political Education (CSPE) being taken into account for some students, despite it being decided that this grade would not be considered.
The second issue related to the consideration of non-core subjects, the core subjects being English, Irish and Maths. Each student's best two non-core subjects were supposed to be factored in by the system, however the error caused some students' two worst non-core subject results to be taken into account, causing them to be marked down in some instances.
How many students have been affected?
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Minister Foley said the errors have impacted somewhere in the region of 6,500 students. Ms Foley said the students concerned have received one grade lower in at least one subject.
More students have been impacted by the errors, but as the resulting grade achieved was the same or higher, the students will not be penalised and will be allowed to maintain the calculated grade given to them on September 7th. Therefore, no student that already has a college place needs to worry about losing their spot- they will maintain it regardless of the error.
The real issue is now how the grading errors will impact on college places. With two rounds of the CAO already closed, thousands of Leaving Certificate students have already accepted college places, with classes having resumed in the majority of third-level institutes.
As the correction of the grade will see the 6,500 students receive at least one higher grade, that may impact what course they were entitled to in the CAO, i.e. if their points increase, they may qualify for a course higher up on the CAO preference list.
Many third-level courses have already been filled in the earlier rounds of the CAO, meaning there is not room for additional students who may now be entitled to a place in a full course because of the grading errors.
How will a student know if they have been impacted?
According to Minister Foley, students affected by the errors will be notified by text message in the coming days. They will be instructed to go to the online portal to view their amended results.
How will the students be offered the places they are entitled to?
Minister Foley ensured students that if they are entitled to receive an offer for a course higher up their CAO preference list, they will receive an offer.
If a student has been impacted but is subsequently offered a place in a different course, they can decide to turn down the offer and stay in their current course.
Checks are currently being run to determine what students have been impacted and in what way. Once the finalised results have been corrected, the information will be passed to the CAO, who will contact students as required regarding any offers they may be entitled to.
However, due to limited numbers of spaces available in some courses, some students may need to defer as there will not be room for them in this year's class.
Earlier today, Ms Foley said the maximum number of places will be made available in order to ensure as many students can start their studies this year as possible, estimating that up to 1,000 extra places will be needed in third-level institutes around the country.
When did they know about the errors?
Speaking at Wednesday's conference, Minister Foley confirmed that she was made aware of the errors on Tuesday of last week.
Ms Foley said she then informed the Department of the Taoiseach last Wednesday.
Green Party leader Eamon Ryan said he was made aware of the issue last Friday, while many other members of Cabinet were only briefed on the topic on Tuesday.
What about the written exams?
The postponed Leaving Cert is still an option for all of this year's students, who may chose to take the written exams regardless of whether they received calculated grades.
If a student received calculated grades and also chooses to sit the written exam, they will receive the higher mark of the two.
The deadline for applying to sit a written exam was due to be October 2nd, however this has been extended, but the Department of Education is yet to announce the new deadline for applications.
What may be to come?
The issue will have a far-reaching impact on the CAO system and college places, with many third-level institutes already operating at a higher capacity level due to the 5,000 extra place announced by Minister Harris over the last few months.
Students who may have to defer college for this year due to courses being full may have a case against the State, having missed out on their third-level entitlement through no fault of their own.
The issue may also be worsened by grade increases that may come due to the appeals process and any grade increases achieved in the written exams in November.
Also, the number of students deferring their college places until next year will impact the number of places available for the Leaving Cert class of 2021, continuing the saga.
