UNDERGRADUATE ADMISSIONS GUIDE
Trinity College Dublin admits you to a specific course, and most of its bachelor’s degrees take four years. Start here to understand its two application routes, the Dual BA with Columbia, and what studying in Dublin costs.
September 2027 entry
GET TO KNOW THE DEGREES
Like a UK university, Trinity admits you to a specific course rather than to the university in general. You can choose one subject, a broad course such as Science or Philosophy, Political Science, Economics and Sociology (PPES), or two subjects together through Trinity Joint Honours.
WHEN YOU APPLY
Your course page sets the subjects you need, the English level, and, for a few courses, an audition or test.
FROM SECOND YEAR
In Joint Honours, you can keep both subjects equally, take a major with a minor, or continue with one subject alone.
FINAL YEAR
A substantial independent research project, which you normally carry out in your final year.
Trinity Electives are stand-alone, often interdisciplinary modules worth 5 credits, and most students can take up to two. Open modules add subjects related to your own.
How it works: You spend your first two years at Trinity and your last two at Columbia University in New York, and you graduate with two bachelor’s degrees, one from each. At Columbia, you complete an approved major and Columbia’s Core Curriculum.
The twelve pathways: Biological and Biomedical Sciences (Neuroscience); Classics, Ancient History and Archaeology; English Studies; European Studies; Film; Geography and Geoscience; History; History of Art and Architecture; Middle Eastern and European Languages and Cultures; Mathematics; Philosophy; and Religion.
How you apply: Through a separate online application run by Columbia’s School of General Studies, not the Common App, with one essay, two recommendations, and an $80 fee. SAT and ACT scores are optional for fall 2027 applicants from English-speaking schools. If you live in the EU, EEA, UK, or Switzerland, you must also apply through the CAO and receive an offer from your Trinity course.
What you can’t combine: You can’t apply to the Dual BA and to Columbia College or Columbia Engineering in the same year. If you applied Early Decision to either of those, you aren’t eligible for the Dual BA, whatever the outcome, and you also can’t apply if either turned you down in the last three years.
A U.S. high school diploma: A cumulative GPA of 3.2 or better, unweighted (a B+ average), with English, mathematics, a second language, and three further subjects. Trinity considers AP and honors classes where they’re relevant to your course. For 2027 entry, SAT and ACT scores are optional, and you can send any you have.
The IB Diploma: Three Higher Level subjects at grade 5 or above and three Standard Level subjects at grade 4 or above, in one sitting, including English, mathematics, and another language.
Your course’s own subjects: Each course page adds its requirements. PPES asks for Standard Level Mathematics at grade 5, for example, while Medicine asks for grades 6 and 5 at Higher Level in two of Physics, Chemistry, and Biology.
English: Most courses ask for Band B: IELTS Academic 6.5 overall with 6.0 in each part, TOEFL iBT 90 with 21 in each section for tests taken before January 2026 (4.5 with 4.0 in each section after), Duolingo 120 with 100 in each subscore, or Cambridge 180 with no part below 170.
UNDERSTAND HOW TRINITY DECIDES
Trinity sorts applicants by fee status. If you live in the EU, EEA, UK, or Switzerland, you usually apply through the CAO, Ireland’s national application system, where offers go by points from your exam results. Otherwise, you usually apply directly to Trinity, which reads your whole application.
YOUR FEE STATUS
EU fee status usually depends on your citizenship and on where your family has been tax resident: an EU, EEA, UK, or Swiss country for at least three of the last five years, with further conditions. UK citizens keep access to EU fees in Ireland.
Letrado’s adviceIf you hold two passports or have moved countries, ask Trinity’s Academic Registry which route applies to you before you pay any application fee.
THROUGH THE CAO
Your exam results convert to a points score, and each course’s published points figure changes from year to year with demand. In 2025, PPES needed 581 points for 43 places, and Medicine needed 739 for 136 places, with the HPAT admissions test for every EU applicant.
Letrado’s adviceLook at several years of points for your course, not just the latest, and fill your CAO list with choices you’d be glad to accept.
APPLYING DIRECTLY
For direct applicants, Trinity considers your GPA or exam results, your transcripts, two references, and a personal statement. Some courses reach capacity by early spring.
Letrado’s advicePlan to finish well before the priority deadline, and make sure your referees use their school email addresses. Trinity doesn’t accept references from personal email accounts.
WHAT TRINITY AND COLUMBIA DESCRIBE
An interview by invitation, about 30 minutes online, with a joint panel from Trinity and Columbia, from mid-February into March.
First auditions between November and March, with a classical, a contemporary, and a reserve monologue of up to three minutes each, then at least one more round for voice, movement, and group work.
An interview and audition in late March or early April.
EU applicants to Medicine take the HPAT-Ireland admissions test in the year they apply. For 2026 entry, it was held from February 13 to 16, 2026; the 2027 dates weren’t posted at the end of September 2026. The other course pages we checked, including PPES, list no interview.
WHAT TRINITY DESCRIBES
Trinity’s Medicine course takes five years and leads to the MB, BCh, BAO degrees. EU applicants apply through the CAO and take the HPAT. For non-EU applicants, the 2026-entry deadline was February 1, 2026, months before most other courses.
Trinity’s medical school says North American students apply through the Atlantic Bridge program, and students in Singapore, Malaysia, and elsewhere in Asia apply through the Irish Universities & Medical School Consortium. For 2026 entrants, the non-EU fee was up to €60,000 a year.
WHAT TRINITY SAYS
We found no guidance on AI tools in Trinity’s undergraduate admissions pages. Trinity’s university statement on generative AI (version 2, updated July 15, 2026) covers teaching, learning, assessment, and research, not applications.
The Dual BA application belongs to Columbia’s School of General Studies. Read its instructions when you open the form, and follow any rule it sets.
PLAN THE APPLICATION
If you apply directly, Trinity reviews applications on a rolling basis and gives the strongest consideration to those received by its February 1 priority deadline. Medicine, Dental Science, Music Education, and Drama close on February 1 too. The Dual BA with Columbia has its own deadline, January 2, 2027.
Trinity’s direct-application portal opens
Nov 1, 2026The CAO opens for 2027 entry
Nov 5, 2026The Dual BA deadline
Jan 2, 2027Trinity’s priority deadline
Feb 1, 2027Trinity’s final deadline for direct applications
Jun 30, 2027Trinity gives its direct-application dates as a yearly pattern; its course pages still listed 2026-entry deadlines at the end of September 2026, so check them again when the portal opens. Columbia’s Dual BA timeline also gives its dates without a year. The CAO had confirmed only its 2027 opening date. In the 2026 cycle, its fee was €35 until January 20, €50 until February 1, and €65 for late applications until May 1.
Through the Non-EU Application link on the course’s page. Each costs €55, and the first course you apply for counts as your first preference.
About one page, or 500 words, for U.S. applicants: why Trinity, what you hope to gain academically, and what you’d contribute.
From teachers, a principal, or a guidance counselor. Trinity contacts them directly, at professional email addresses only.
Transcripts or exam results, an English test if English isn’t your first language, your passport, and SAT, ACT, or AP scores if you choose to send them.
Your course choices go on one CAO application, and your exam results convert to points. Medicine adds the HPAT.
The 2026 cycle: The CAO opened on November 5, 2025, and closed on February 1, 2026, with late applications until May 1 and changes to your course list until July 1. Round 1 offers came on August 26, 2026, after exam results.
A levels: Trinity scores your best four A levels, or three A levels and one AS, and adds 25 bonus points for A level Mathematics at grade E or above. The IB and the European Baccalaureate have their own scales.
Free fees: If you qualify for the Irish government’s Free Fees Initiative, the state pays your tuition and you pay the student contribution. It usually requires EU, EEA, Swiss, or UK nationality and three of the last five years’ residence in one of those countries, for your first undergraduate degree.
If you studied in the EU: EU, EEA, UK, and Swiss nationals who completed at least five years of primary or secondary education in those countries may also qualify for EU fees.
Scholarship deadlines: Trinity’s Global Excellence Scholarships were awarded on a rolling basis for 2026 entry. The deadlines were April 1, 2026, for the Americas, May 1 for Africa, June 15 for most regions, and July 15 for Southeast Asia and Oceania.
Housing: Trinity prioritizes first-year non-EU students on full degrees for Trinity-owned or Trinity-recommended accommodation, if you apply by the housing deadline.
Accepting: Trinity emails you when a decision is ready. You accept in the my.tcd.ie portal and pay a deposit, then send your final documents.
WRITE IN YOUR OWN VOICE
About 500 words, on one pageWhat Trinity asks of U.S. applicants. The Dual BA sets one essay question in its own application.
Trinity asks why you chose it, what you hope to gain academically from your course, and what you could contribute while you’re there. You apply for a specific course, so show that you understand the subject you’ll study from your first week.
Letrado’s adviceName the modules or questions that drew you to your course, and one thing you did about that interest. If you use AI, keep it to brainstorming, understanding a topic, or checking spelling and grammar, and write every sentence yourself.
Point to something in your course’s structure, such as a Joint Honours pairing, a second-year pathway, or a year abroad, and explain why it suits the way you like to learn.
Read the first-year modules on your course page, and connect one of them to something you’ve already read, built, or asked about.
Trinity has more than 170 student societies and sports clubs. Instead of listing activities, describe one commitment and what you’d do with it in Dublin.
Trinity’s admissions pages set no AI rule for applicants, so our policy applies: AI can help you brainstorm, understand a topic, or check grammar, but never write or rewrite your sentences.
MAKE ROOM FOR THE FINANCIAL QUESTION
Your tuition depends on your fee status and your course. For students who started in 2026/27, non-EU fees were €22,580 a year for courses such as History and Law, and €29,570 for Science and Engineering. Eligible EU students paid a €2,500 student contribution, and the Irish state covered their tuition. Trinity hasn’t published 2027/28 fees yet.
EU FEE STATUS · 2026/27 ENTRANTS
The student contribution, if you qualify for free fees. If you don’t, you pay EU tuition as well: €5,681 in total for History or Law, for example.
NON-EU · ARTS, LAW, AND BUSINESS · 2026/27
For example History, Law, Psychology, and Business, Economic and Social Studies (BESS).
NON-EU · SCIENCES AND ENGINEERING · 2026/27
For Science, Engineering, Computer Science, and Mathematics. Medicine and Dental Science cost up to €60,000.
These are first-year fees for students who entered in 2026/27. Trinity says continuing students’ fees may rise each year under its fee-certainty rules, and every student also pays an annual student levies charge. In the Dual BA, you pay Trinity’s rate for two years, then Columbia’s School of General Studies rate.
Trinity’s undergraduate fees (opens in a new tab)TRINITY’S LIVING-COST ESTIMATE · ONE YEAR
€19,937–€29,050Trinity’s estimate for an international undergraduate’s year in Dublin, including accommodation but not tuition.
Trinity doesn’t label these figures with a year and says they may change. Tuition is extra.
Trinity’s cost-of-living guide (opens in a new tab)Letrado’s adviceTrinity’s scholarships are small next to the non-EU fee, and a Global Excellence award covers the first year only. Price all four years, plus living costs, before you count on an award.
If you’re not an EEA national, you register with Irish immigration after you arrive, for a €300 fee, with private medical insurance and access to at least €10,000 for each year. Some nationalities also need a study visa first. You can work up to 20 hours a week during term and 40 in the holidays, and after your degree you may stay 12 months to look for work.
Irish immigration: student FAQs (opens in a new tab)CLIENT JOURNEYS
Here are three related stories. These students weighed focused study against breadth, compared offers that included Columbia, and worked out the real cost of studying abroad, the same questions many Trinity applicants face.
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AI illustrationWHEN YOU’D LIKE A HAND
Bring your questions to a free 45-minute introduction with your proposed mentor. Afterward, we’ll email a personalized plan with recommended next steps.
