Advanced Therapeutic Technologies

Irish and EU applicants – School Leaver

To be eligible for consideration for an Irish or EU School Leaver place, you must:

• Meet the minimum entry (matriculation) and specific subject requirements.
• Achieve the minimum Irish Leaving Certificate (ILC) points or equivalent.  

Access and scholarships

• RCSI participates in the Higher Education Admissions Route (HEAR) which supports socio-economically disadvantaged students and the Disability Access Route (DARE) which supports students applying with a disability. Find out more about HEAR and DARE and how to apply here.
• The Takeda Ireland Advanced Therapeutic Technologies Scholarship is a new scholarship available to students enrolling in the BSc Advanced Therapeutic Technologies degree programme at RCSI from September 2024. The scholarship provides educational opportunities for students with a desire to study Advanced Therapeutic Technologies. Find out more about The Takeda Ireland Advanced Therapeutic Technologies Scholarship and how to apply here.
• RCSI's Traveller Community Access Programme (TCAP) aims to increase the participation of members from the Traveller Community in RCSI’s Undergraduate programmes. Find out more about TCAP and how to apply here.

Minimum academic entry requirements

All students who qualify for EU admissions are eligible to apply. The local high school examinations that they have taken will be used to assess competitiveness for admission. European examinations will be converted into the equivalent Irish Leaving Certificate (ILC) points.

The applicant with the highest points score receives the first offer, the second highest receives the second offer and so on until all EU seats are filled. The allocation of School Leaver places is purely based on points.

As a guide, the 2023 Irish Leaving Certificate points score required for admission to the BSc in Advanced Therapeutic Technologies was 443.

The points conversions for some European examinations are shown below. (These points equivalency calculations serve as a guide only. The onus is on the applicant to check entry criteria for the programmes for which they are applying. Eligibility criteria can change from year to year.)

Applicants completing school leaving examinations other than the Irish Leaving Certificate may be required to submit additional documentation as part of their application, or be subject to minimum English language requirements. The below document 'Guideline Entry Requirements for EU/EFTA/UK applicants other than the Leaving Certificate' outlines this in further detail.

If you have additional questions about the application process, please refer to the Application FAQs section.

Irish and EU applicants – Mature Entry

If you are a Mature Entry applicant, you will be considered in the first instance on the basis of how relevant your life, work and educational experiences are to the course you wish to pursue. In addition, you should demonstrate an interest in and knowledge of your chosen course in your supplementary application and at interview stage.

To be eligible for consideration for an Irish or EU Mature Entry place, you must:

• Be an EU applicant (this includes applicants from Ireland, EU, EEA and Switzerland). If you are unsure of your status, please consult the EU vs Non-EU Policy, as outlined in more detail in here.
• Be 23 years of age or older on 1 January of the year of entry to the Advanced Therapeutic Technologies programme.
• Meet the minimum entry requirements in the Irish Leaving Certificate Examination or an RCSI pre-approved Access to Science programmes, as outlined in more detail below.
• Note that Mature Entry applicants are not required to present a third level qualification to be eligible to apply.

Irish and EU applicants – Graduate Entry

To be eligible for consideration for an Irish or EU Graduate Entry place, you must:

• Be an EU applicant (this includes applicants from Ireland, EU, EEA and Switzerland). If you are unsure of your status, please consult the EU vs Non-EU Policy, as outlined in more detail in here.
• Hold (or expect to hold by July prior to entry) a minimum second class honours (2H2) result in your first honours bachelor degree (NFQ level 8). This degree can be in any discipline.
• Meet the following NUI matriculation requirements in the Irish Leaving Certificate if you present with a non-science degree: applicants must present a minimum of six subjects [1 x H4, 1 x H5 and 4 x O6/H7] in the Irish Leaving Certificate to include Irish (unless exempt), English, Mathematics, a third language, a laboratory science (Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Physics/Chemistry or Agricultural Science) and one other recognised subject. Applicants must present a minimum grade of H4 in Mathematics, a H5 in another subject and a minimum of O6/H7 in the remaining four subjects.
• Applicants who present with a non-science degree and are presenting an EU school-leaving qualification other than the Irish Leaving Certificate should contact the RCSI Admissions Office to confirm their matriculation requirements.

Non-EU applicants – School Leaver

The School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences invites applications to the BSc in Advanced Therapeutic Technologies from Non-EU students.

If you are unsure whether you are an EU or Non-EU applicant, please consult the EU vs Non-EU Policy for guidance. You can also contact the RCSI Admissions Office directly to verify your fees status, however, this must be done well in advance of the closing date.

The list below contains the most frequent academic programmes with which Non-EU students apply to RCSI's undergraduate programmes. If your educational programme is not covered on this list, please email the RCSI Admissions Office directly for further information.

Please note: The entry requirements outlined below are relevant for those applying for entry in September 2024 only. These entry requirements are subject to annual review and applicants for 2025 onwards should ensure to check the most up-to-date requirements prior to commencing their application.

Minimum academic entry requirements

Please note

The following information is relevant to all Advanced Therapeutic Technologies applicants. 

Minimum English language requirements

IELTS

Teaching in RCSI is through the medium of English. As a consequence, all applicants are required to demonstrate a high level of English language competence. Applicants whose first language is not English must present a minimum overall average IELTS score of 6.5 with no individual band (reading, writing, listening and speaking) lower than 6.0.  IELTS Certificates must be less than two years old at the time of admission. Equivalent scores in TOEFL are also acceptable.  

Applicants presenting programmes that are delivered entirely through English (e.g. International Baccalaureate or A Levels) are not required to supply an IELTS certificate as part of their initial application. Please note that applicants presenting A Levels must hold a GCSE English grade C or above to meet RCSI's English language requirement. 

Good Standing

Applicants who have been previously discontinued from any academic institution are deemed not to be in 'good standing' and are ineligible to apply to RCSI.

Fitness to Practice

Students will be subject to the University's Fitness to Practice policy, full details of which can be found in our policies section.

Minimum age requirement

For 2024 entry, non-EU applicants must normally have attained the age of 18 years by 1 December following entry to RCSI.

Student vetting

Police clearance (or "Garda vetting" as it is known in Ireland) of our students is required to facilitate clinical teaching, and is a standard protocol for all individuals working and training in the healthcare sector. All students will undergo Garda vetting during their first year of studies at RCSI.

Garda Vetting is organised through the RCSI Student Academic & Regulatory Affairs office (The Registry Office) and requires students to complete a form outlining all of the permanent addresses that they have lived in from birth. This form is checked (vetted) by the Irish Police to establish whether the individual being vetted has had criminal convictions in the past or whether any criminal proceedings are pending.

Transfers from other schools

RCSI has a 'no transfer' policy, more details of which can be found in our policies section. 

Applications from students with disabilities

RCSI welcomes applications from students with disabilities. However, it is strongly advised that applicants disclose their disability on their application and contact the RCSI Admissions Office to discuss any appropriate supports/reasonable accommodations.   Applicants may also be required to provide relevant information which will be treated in the strictest of confidence.   

International students are encouraged to contact the Learning Access Team in advance of accepting your place in the RCSI so we can advise you of the types of supports and reasonable accommodations which may be available to you. However, please be advised that supports you may have received in your home institution may differ from those provided here in the RCSI.  

Evidence of your disability is also required to register with the Learning Access Service. Please note that the evidence of disability must be provided in English, and if not originally in English must be translated by a professional translator.