Adelaide Uni and Flinders offer places on Year 11 results
It’s been tough for Year 12s dealing with disruptions. Unis are easing some of the pressure by offering them an early slot to study next year.
Tertiary
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More than 2000 students will be offered a place at Adelaide University next year based on their Year 11 results.
In response to the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus disruptions, the alternative application process was created by Adelaide and Flinders universities.
“We know just how difficult this year has been for school communities so it’s wonderful to be able to offer this alternative pathway to students that recognises their resilience and achievements,’’ Professor Jennie Shaw said.
“We know that if students are achieving in Year 11 they are already on the pathway to higher education success.
“Being able to use these results as an alternative for students affected by COVID-19 this year ensures they aren’t unfairly disadvantaged into the future.”
The Adelaide offers will be made from Friday, while Flinders is still open to receive applications until September 25.
Prof Shaw, the interim deputy vice-chancellor (academic) at Adelaide, said the offers were being made “without compromising entry standards”.
Students will still need to complete their SACE or other final Year 12 certificate and pass with at least a C grade in any prerequisite subjects.
The pathway was open to all SA schools and those near the border in NSW and Victoria, but it excluded competitive entry courses such as medicine and those with special entry criteria.
Flinders University vice-chancellor Colin Stirling said even the best students may have struggled this year.
“We don’t want the disruption of the pandemic to rob students of their future ambitions,” he said.
“One tough year shouldn’t end their dreams.”
Seaton High student Macey Lawson has been offered a place studying maths at Adelaide.
“It’s been a huge help for me especially at this point in the year when it’s crunch time. It takes a lot of the pressure away,” she said.
The pandemic had made the year challenging although she remained confident of completing SACE with decent grades in maths, drama and music.
She hasn’t fixed on a career yet but said “I just want to go with maths and see where it takes me.”
The offers will fold back into the usual process handled by the SA Tertiary Admissions Centre at the end of the year.
Adelaide and Flinders were running the Year 11 result applications now but they would be included the final offers in January, SATAC chief executive Stuart Mossman said.
Looking ahead, Mr Mossman said there were “slightly” more applications for 2021 than usual but it was too soon to say whether this was just because of students getting in early.
“We don’t know whether that will hold up,” he said.
“We expect there will be a slight increase in demand because of people wanting to re-skill and retrain on the back of COVID-19’s impact on employment prospects. But at this stage it’s too early to say.”
Anecdotally there were fewer students intending to take a gap year as well as people out of work looking to improve their skills.
“Both graduate and postgraduate demand is up at the moment,” he said.
UniSA has not adopted a Year 11 results application process but has several different entry schemes based on Year 12 results.