THE popular Level 8 Equine Science college course in the University of Limerick experienced a big drop in points this week, according to the Central Application Office (CAO) list released on Monday.

The demand for the course seems to be on the decline as entry level points dropped by a massive 51 points to 308 (from 359 in 2017), the lowest in recent years.

However, Level 8 Equine Business in NUIG Maynooth has held strong and increased one point to 358.

The Level 7 Equine Sciece course at UL has also remained steady at 301 points, the same as 2017 following a big drop of 39 points.

The number of Leaving Certificate points needed for students to study Level 8 Veterinary Medicine at UCD stands at 560, while the Level 8 Veterinary Nursing at the same university remains the same at 467.

Demand for the Level 7 veterinary courses remain high. Veterinary Nursing at Dundalk IT is up to 397, from 388 last year, and points remain the same for the course in both Letterkenny IT (357) and Athlone IT (400).

AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE

Of the 11 Level 8 agricultural courses, all but four saw their points drop, indicating a further drop in demand.

Agricultural Science in UCD dropped slightly for the second year in-a-row to 451 points, while Agri-Enviromental Sciences dropped below 400 to 397.

On the other hand, the agricultural course at Waterford IT increased 14 points to 403 this year and the same course in Dundalk IT rose eight points to 327, proving their popularity.