Everything Victorian students need to know after sitting VCE exams
Whether students aced it or fear they’ve done worse than expected here’s what to do before scores drop on December 16.
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Victorian students have sat their final exams bringing an end to 18 months of struggle for the state’s VCE pupils.
In the past few weeks, more than 80,000 students have sat at least one VCE exam, with most kicking off with English on October 27.
The final exams ended on Wednesday with many students feeling great relief that two years of lockdown schooling are over – almost.
Dr Fiona Longmuir, a lecturer in education from Monash University, said students “are feeling everything from exhausted to elated”.
“It’s been a very, very tough couple of years but they have made it! They should be feeling incredibly proud of their resilience and their achievements,” she said.
Melbourne educator Sharon Witt, author of Surviving High School, said there was great relief that the “finish line is fast approaching, particularly as they have experienced the final two years of their schooling in a way no other recent generation has”.
Here’s everything you need to know to get you through in the next few weeks and months, from how to get your results to how to change your course preference.
When do I get my results?
December 16, from 7am
How can I access my results?
The VCAA (Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority) and VTAC (Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre) offer three options for accessing VCE results and the ATAR: internet, mail, email and app.
You must register through VCAA to access both the internet and mobile app.
Having a VTAC account will not give you access to your VCE results.
Go to resultsandatar.vic.edu.au to register.
You can also download a mobile app from the
Apple App Store or Google Play. Search for ‘VCE Results and ATAR’.
You can install the app now but 2021 results and ATARs won’t be available until 7am on Thursday 16 December.
Aah … I think I’ve tanked …
According to Dr Longmuir, if your score “does mean that it will be unlikely you will be able
to get into your ideal course – don’t give up if that is what you really want.
There could be another pathway or an opportunity that you hadn’t considered before.”
Ms Witt said young people have “achieved remarkable success this year no matter what a
study score says”.
“A study score does not reflect how resilient they have been during the pandemic, how
much they have coped with, whether they have adapted well to online learning and
repeated disruptions to their life and normal schedule,” she said.
“Whatever their results, they are more than prepared to tackle whatever path they wish to
pursue post Year 12.”
How do I find out what courses I can get into?
The Post Results and ATAR Service website is run in conjunction with the VTAC and
contains up-to-date information about what your results mean for admission requirements
to university courses.
How does the uni offer process work?
Offers are released to applicants at different times (referred to as ‘offer rounds’). For offer
round dates, see dates and fees page.
Most course places are allocated in the first January offer round.
In subsequent offer rounds, you will be considered for course preferences higher than any offer/s you have received in each round.
VTAC will again advise you of the highest offer made.
For a detailed look into how the offers system works and answers to other common questions about course offers, download the ABC of Offers.
You can receive a maximum of one offer per offer round.
If you do not receive any offers in any of the offer rounds you may be eligible for a supplementary offer if you have given VTAC permission to release your application information to courses with vacancies.
See Change your permission to receive supplementary offers.
What if I don’t receive an offer?
If you don’t receive an offer, don’t panic.
You may still be eligible for a supplementary offer.
Alternatively, you can check out other courses listed with VTAC and change your preferences as many times as you like, at no additional cost, throughout January and February.
There are many ways to reach your study and career goals.
Many institutions offer pathways into courses as an alternative way to get into the course you want.
Note: If you didn’t receive an offer and want to find out why, contact the institution directly
to discuss this.
I think I aced it, can I change my course preferences?
If your score is higher than you’d expected, Dr Longmuir said it’s important to celebrate
what you have achieved.
“Think over any new possibilities that might now be available but don’t feel you have to deviate from a path that you were happy with and excited by, unless you want to,” she said.
If you change your mind about a course or find a new one, you can use change of
preference at certain times of the year to change your application.
This includes before and after your results are released. You can change your mind about preferences until December 20 for first-round January offers.
Change of preference will reopen after each offer round, and close before the next one (until the last round).
While change of preference is open, you can add, remove, and reorder your preferences as many times as you like. https://www.vtac.edu.au/dates.html
After doing exams, I think I want to change courses.
Very late course applications are available through VTAC until December 3.
Find courses you want to apply for in CourseSearch.
It’s a list of over 1,700 courses offered through VTAC. Click here to find out about the institutions you are considering applying to.
Research the course requirements (including prerequisites) for each course that interests
you.
These are listed by applicant category (see below).
See the Year 12 Guide for detailed information on course research, including questions to ask and visiting open days.
Help! My results don’t seem right
The VCAA has a number of safeguards in place to check the quality of the marking of VCE
examinations.
One of these is identifying students whose examination results are unexpected and reviewing them.
Checks are made against the GAT and the Indicative Grade and a student’s assessment is reviewed if it is lower than expected from the results of any other examination in the same study.
For more information or advice on this process, contact VCAA.
Students can also apply to inspect their examination response materials for written examinations and audio recording of music performance examinations.
To inspect their material, students must apply in writing to VCAA.
What is an ATAR?
An ATAR is an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank.
It’s not a score out of 100, it is a rank. It shows a student’s achievement in relation to other students.
The ATAR (previously known as ENTER) is calculated by VTAC solely for the use of tertiary
institutions to compare the overall achievement of students who have completed different
combinations of VCE studies.
VTAC forwards the ATAR along with application information to selection authorities at institutions.
Do I need a VTAC account?
Yes. Before you can apply for courses, you need to create a VTAC account.
You can create an account for 2022 courses until applications close on 3 December. Sign up for an account at delta.vtac.edu.au/registration/apply.
You can also go through a demonstration of the account registration process to understand
what you’ll need to do before you apply.
Can I change my personal statement?
A VTAC Personal Statement is required and/or considered by some courses, and
lets applicants submit additional information as part of their course application.
These include motivation for study, work experience, community experience and anything else
relevant.
You may outline any circumstances that have affected your academic performance
but any disadvantage is better suited to the SEAS application, which is now closed.
The VTAC Personal Statement can be received until December 3 and the final date to edit it for January offers is January 4.
Visit the demonstrations page to see an example of the VTAC Personal Statement.
To submit your personal statement, log into your VTAC account.
I need to speak to someone about my results and what to do next.
The Post Results and ATAR Service contains detailed information from the VCAA and VTAC
about your results and ATAR, as well as answers to frequently asked questions.
If you have further questions after receiving your results and ATAR, contact PRAS by phone or email.
You can contact the PRAS during the following times:
7am – 5pm Thursday 16 December
9am – 5pm Friday 17 December
10am – 4pm Saturday 18 December
10am – 4pm Sunday 19 December
9am – 5pm Monday 20 December
(03) 9637 3877 (metropolitan callers)
1800 653 080 (free call)
You can email PRAS (pras@education.vic.gov.au) between 16 December and 20 December
and responses will be provided during the opening hours.
You cannot access results through PRAS.
What now?
Dr Longmuir said the conclusion of exams is a time to “step back and let the achievement of
completing VCE through a global pandemic sink in”.
“Reflect on what has been learnt (both by the students and parents) through this time –
resilience, persistence, flexibility, independence, communication and connection.
“The class of 2021 is incredible and will be long admired for what they have achieved. Focus
on those achievements and dream of big futures!”
As Ms Witt says, “whatever their results, young people are more than prepared to tackle
whatever path they wish to pursue post Year 12”.
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