Demand for popular courses sets OP scores for Queensland universities soaring

Students are having to try twice as hard to get into some southeast Queensland universities, with data revealing popular degrees are now requiring tougher OPs.

STUDENTS are having to try twice as hard to get into some southeast Queensland universities, with data revealing popular degrees now require higher OPs.

Nursing, health sciences and IT at the University of Queensland, Queensland University of Technology, and Griffith University are among a raft of degrees that are considerably harder to get into compared to 2009.

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The OP cut-off for nursing at UQ in 2009 was 15; in January last year it had increased to 7. Nursing at QUT went from 14 to 8 in the same period, and from 16 to 12 at Griffith.

Recent nursing graduate Bahara Nadir Shah at the Princess Alexandra Hospital in Woolloongabba. Picture: AAP/Image Sarah Marshall

Health science at UQ increased from 15 to 8, while business at QUT jumped from 12 to 9.

QUT vice-president (administration) and registrar Leanne Harvey said courses could be harder or easier to get into depending on their popularity and how many places the university had available each year.

“It’s about supply and demand in that year. Course thresholds are based on both the required academic capability to succeed in the course and the demand for places available within the course.”

Bahara Nadir Shah, 23, has been a nurse at the Princess Alexandra Hospital for nearly a year after graduating from QUT.

She said the OP cut-off could be slightly higher because the degree and occupation are both hard work, but extremely rewarding.

“I think it will show how much you really want it and how hard- working you are willing to be for this job,” she said. A UQ spokeswoman echoed Ms Harvey’s comments. “At UQ, our OP selection thresholds are determined according to a range of factors including demand for the program and our capacity to increase the number of students.

“Our most popular programs, based on first preferences, are engineering, medicine, arts, law and business management.”

Griffith deputy vice-chancellor Professor Debra Henly said while there had been some variation in OP cut-offs, they had remained relatively steady for the university’s most in-demand degrees in core areas such as nursing, education, and business. It had also experienced an increased demand for double degrees.

“In response, the university has grown its options and introduced a range of industry-related combinations designed to prepare students for opportunities in a fast-changing world,” she said.

The OP thresholds for 2019 will be updated in coming weeks.