Uni preferences for parents

Year 12 students must meet certain requirements to be considered for admission to courses. These include VCE subject prerequisites, often with minimum study scores, and minimum ATAR requirements.

If a student has not completed the subject prerequisites for a certain course, there may be alternative pathways to fulfil these requirements, such as undergraduate pathways or single subject enrolments. Some courses will also require the completion of additional tasks, such as tests, interviews or folios. Applicant selection is often competitive, with selection rankings changing for different courses year on year.

Course eligibility requirements are available on the course page for each degree.

Firstly, it is important to remain optimistic about their options and the other offers your child could receive.

Students can receive a maximum of one offer per round. If they didn’t receive their first preference, don’t panic - there are several reasons why this could have happened.

• They may not have met the selection requirements, which are derived from their ATAR and any adjustment factors.
• They may not have met the subject prerequisites for the course, including required subjects.
• They may not have been competitive enough compared to other applicants for the course.
• They may not have completed additional selection requirements, such as a test or interview.
• The course may not be participating in the first round of offers (all offers must participate in the January offer rounds)

Whatever the reason, try to encourage your child to remain positive that they could still receive an offer to a course they’d like to study. Remind them that there are also a variety of pathways available to their dream course.

If your child doesn’t get any university offers, do your best to reassure them that there are still many options available to them. There are several rounds of offers so they may still receive a course offer from their preference list if they don’t get their first choice.

Whatever the reason they didn’t get an offer, your child can change their preferences throughout January and February for no additional cost. Consider exploring our Pathways Tool to see more ways for your child to get into their dream course. That way, they can adjust their preferences to begin a pathway course and transfer or become eligible for their preferred course later.

Year 12 students must first submit their course preferences, then can they change their course preferences during change of preference periods. They will be able to add, remove or change the order of the courses on their preference list during these periods, which can be found on the VTAC Key Dates page.

VTAC advises that after receiving an offer, students should only amend their preferences if they have a genuine change of heart about their course choices. VTAC recommends that students accept any offer they receive, as it is likely to lapse before the next round of offers is released. That way, if students receive no other offers, they will still have a course to study.

Students can accept an offer by enrolling in the course. If your child receives an offer but does not accept it, the offer will lapse and the place will be offered to another student. A student’s ability to update their preferences is not affected by accepting, deferring or rejecting an offer.

Students must first complete their course application. If they are eligible, they will be provided the option to apply to an equity scheme or scholarship through their VTAC account.

Scholarships provide financial assistance to students. Equity schemes make students’ applications more competitive to support students with an educational disadvantage, but do not change students’ results and do not guarantee them an offer. Students still need to meet the course’s prerequisites and eligibility requirements.

VTAC’s simple application process allows eligible students to apply using one form covering four categories of equity schemes and scholarships, including personal information and location, financial hardship, living with a disability or medical condition, and difficult family or life circumstances.