Early uni offers for Year 12 students caned

Education minister slams universities for making early offers to too many Year 12 students before they even sit their final exams.

Conservative estimates show 40,000 NSW students are forecast to apply for an early offer, the largest cohort yet.

It is that time of year again in the school calendar when thousands of year 12 students across the country are preparing to sit for their final high school exams.

Those few crucial hours of exams mark the culmination of 13 years of schooling, with many students inevitably viewing them as the gateway to the next chapter in their lives, whether it is university, vocational education, or direct entry to the workforce. Little wonder then that as the day approaches so many experience varying degrees of stress.

So when universities give students an early offer for a place (or even better, one without any conditions, such as an ATAR), many leap at the opportunity.

Unfortunately, principals see declining levels of engagement in the critical final weeks of school among pupils who have received offers with few strings attached. The impact of that drop in engagement isn’t limited to the student; principals say a school’s overall performance can be warped because a statistically significant number of students have taken their foot off the gas.

Conservative estimates show 40,000 NSW students are forecast to apply for an early offer, the largest cohort yet. The true figure, which won’t be known until early next year, is likely to be even higher, driven in part by the commonwealth’s decision to cap the number of international students.

Up to 50 per cent of students now enter university via this route and yet we have few guidelines around the process, making it something of an educational free-for-all as universities offer places earlier and schools, in good faith, focus on supporting their students in making numerous applications.

NSW Deputy Premier and Education Minister Prue Car says universities are rewarding “privilege over potential’’ in making early entry offers to Year 12 students. Picture: Tim Hunter.

Unless we – the commonwealth, states and territories and our universities – act as one, then I fear we will be entering an arms race, with students becoming pawns in the quest for greater university market share.

Earlier this year I was proud that NSW led a collective response for a temporary solution. Universities agreed to stop giving places to HSC students for entry in 2025 and 2026 until September in the preceding year. It was a significant change from the ridiculous practice of some universities – particularly in Western Australia and the ACT – of making offers in March, a full seven months before students sit their exams.

I am not alone in believing that it is vital students get the most out of their education and we should encourage them to complete their studies to the best of their ability. And while getting an early offer can reduce a student’s stress levels, the job of an educator is to help prepare our young for adult life, including valuable life skills such as resilience and perseverance.

Early offers have played a role in increasing university access for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, those from low socio-economic backgrounds or from regional or remote areas. Research has found that while those cohorts are less likely to apply for university, those that did are more likely to accept an early offer than their counterparts.

However, my concern is that the lack of transparency around the admissions process is leading to a system where only those who work the system can benefit from it. Applying to universities directly is more an art than a science. Some advantaged schools that have mastered the process – from ensuring their students are participating in extra-curricular activities to get extra credits, to assisting them in applications. By contrast, less advantaged schools don’t always have the time or resources for this.

This imbalance can result in students from more privileged backgrounds receiving multiple offers, while those who may have additional responsibilities at home (like helping with the family business or caring for relatives) are left out, despite their potential.

Education should be the great social leveller. We have the best part of a year to come up with a fairer system.

Prue Car is NSW Education Minister and Deputy Premier.