Adelaide Uni launches statewide subject-based entry system as alternative to ATAR
Year 12 students from all SA high schools will be able to gain entry to Adelaide University based on their results in specific subjects rather than just their tertiary admission rank.
Tertiary
Don't miss out on the headlines from Tertiary. Followed categories will be added to My News.
- SA uni bosses discuss potential admissions overhaul
- No student should be admitte to uni by ATAR alone: SA principals
Year 12 students from all SA high schools will be able to gain entry to Adelaide University based on their results in specific subjects, rather than their ATAR.
The scheme will encourage students to pick subjects that best prepare them for their preferred degrees, rather than ones to help maximise their admissions rank. Meeting the required grades will guarantee entry to a broad range of degrees.
They include engineering, science, psychology, commerce, media and arts.
For several engineering degrees, for example, students would be guaranteed entry if they scored ‘B’ grades in Year 12 for Specialist Mathematics and Mathematical Methods, and a ‘C’ for Physics.
The additional entry method, which does not replace entry by ATAR, will apply to school leavers starting uni next year. But its intended influence on school subject choices would be felt in future years.
It will address the issue of school students dropping difficult maths and science subjects so as to maximise their ATAR, a national ranking benchmark derived from Year 12 scores. They are then poorly prepared for STEM degrees, if they choose them at all.
Vice-Chancellor Peter Rathjen said the change would give young people the best chance at success at uni, resulting in the more highly educated workforce needed “for the future prosperity of the state”.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor Pascale Quester said the aim was to influence subject choices from Year 10 onwards towards “the fields that interest them most”.
Currently, more than 85 per cent of Adelaide University’s domestic school leaver admissions are by ATAR alone. The new statewide scheme follows a successful trial by which 40 Adelaide High, St Peter’s College, Trinity College and University Senior College students gained entry this year to engineering, computer and mathematical sciences degrees. “Each of these students has been doing well in their first year,” Prof Quester said.
St Peter’s College principal Tim Browning said: “Education should inspire students and encourage depth of study and passion rather than the single pursuit of an ATAR.”
University Senior College principal Anita Zocchi said the scheme should “pave the way for more resilient young people who will be rewarded for their perseverance and stay the course with subjects that may challenge them”.
SA Secondary Principals Association president Peter Mader said it was a good “first step” but “more far-reaching reform” was needed. He advocated for “portfolios of evidence” of how uni applicants met the key “capabilities” of the SACE, which include creative and critical thinking.
Education Minister John Gardner hoped the scheme meant more SACE students would stick with Specialist Mathematics and foreign languages. Labor’s education spokeswoman Susan Close, who is overseas, previously expressed support for expanding the trial across all schools.
Since 2016, UniSA has offered places in a range of degrees based on Year 12 grades (usually requiring a ‘B’ average) but only when spots are free after applicants who score ATARs needed for automatic selection have been admitted. It accounts for nearly 5 per cent of UniSA’s intake.
