UAC News - March 2020

Applications for study at uni in 2021 will open on Wednesday 1 April. Students will be able to apply for undergraduate study as well as Schools Recommendation Schemes, Educational Access Schemes and Equity Scholarships.

Although not all courses for 2021 will be available, we encourage students to choose any 2021 course to complete their application and come back later to review and change their preferences as courses come available.

All semester 1, 2021 courses will be available from August.

Early bird applications will close at midnight on Wednesday 30 September and offer rounds and other deadlines will remain the same as previous years.

Schools Recommendation Schemes will close earlier this year. Mark midnight on Sunday 20 September in your diary as the new closing date for SRS.

All dates will be available on UAC’s website from 1 April.

UAC PINS

Students will receive their UAC PIN on Wednesday 1 April and will be able to apply straight away. PIN emails will be sent to the email address NESA has on file.

Remind your students to update their email address with NESA, preferably to a personal email address (rather than a school one), so they can be contacted by UAC when they have left school as ATARs and offers are released.

CHECK THE COURSE START DATE

When applying, advise your Year 12s to check the course start date before adding any courses to their preferences to avoid applying for a semester 2, 2020 course. If their preferred course isn’t listed for first semester 2021, tell them to choose any course that starts in 2021 to complete their application and come back later to review and change their preferences.

UNI OPEN DAYS

For an up-close experience of university life, encourage your students to attend a uni open day. Dates for 2020 are available now.

THE UAC GUIDE

The UAC Guide will be arriving at schools from early April. Contact UAC if there are any issues with your school's delivery.

The Guide contains everything Year 12 students need to know about applying for uni in 2021 in one handy publication – for both undergraduate and international students. Comprehensive course descriptions will be added to UAC’s website as they are finalised by the universities. Encourage your students to check UAC’s website regularly.

WHY APPLY THROUGH UAC?

The UAC application allows students to apply for courses across 26 institutions and UAC supplies information on an additional 11 institutions. Some of those institutions also offer direct applications just for their own courses. Based on feedback we've received from schools, we know that students are unsure about whether they should apply direct to the institution or through UAC, and to increase their chances many are doing both. Not all institutions accept direct applications from Year 12 students but it’s important for students considering a direct application to remember the following:

• a UAC application gives you 5 course preferences to choose, you don’t have to apply 5 times to 5 different institutions
• having a UAC application enables you to apply for Access and early entry schemes: EAS, SRS and Equity Scholarships
• having a UAC application as well as a direct application will give you more chance of securing an offer, so long as you don't enter the same preferences in both applications.

SPECIAL ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

Medicine and Medical Sciences

Entry into undergraduate medical degrees is highly competitive and the selection process is rigorous. Special entry requirements for medicine and medical science courses in 2021 at the University of Newcastle, University of New England, the University of Sydney, UNSW Sydney, Charles Sturt University and Western Sydney University for 2021 are now available. View the information on UAC’s website.

University Clinical Aptitude Test (UCAT)

UCAT is an admissions text required for entry into most medical, dental and some clinical sciences degree programs. Students interested in these courses need to check the course description to see if the course they’re interested in requires them to sit UCAT.

Registration for UCAT is open now and closes at midnight on 18 May 2020.

LAW

UNSW Law Admission Test (LAT)

LAT is a selection test developed to assess the types of aptitudes and skills that are critical to success in the Law program at UNSW Sydney. The LAT is used for selection into undergraduate level programs in Law.

For students interested in studying law at UNSW, LAT 2020 will be held earlier this year, on Tuesday 29 September 2020. Visit the LAT website or contact UNSW for further information.

HELP FOR STUDENTS

Year 10 - Subject Compass

UAC’s Year 10 booklet, 'Steps to Uni for Year 10 students', will be available in May again this year. A free copy will be provided to every Year 10 student in schools in NSW and the ACT.

The associated portal, Subject Compass, has also been updated for 2020. Students can input their interests, skills and career aspirations to discover the areas of study that suit them best. They will receive HSC course suggestions and their ATAR eligibility and then they can share their findings with their careers adviser.

Year 12 - Course Compass

If your Year 12 students need help deciding which uni course to apply for, direct them to Course Compass. They can answer a few quick questions about their HSC subjects and Course Compass will display the fields of study offered to recent applicants just like them. They can also drill down to institutions offering courses that might suit them.

HELP FOR SCHOOLS

OFFER LISTS

A reminder that details of all 2020 semester 1 uni offers made to students at your school are available in the secure School Hub area of our website. For assistance with your School Hub login, email the Community Engagement team.

INFORMATION SESSIONS

In 2019 the Community Engagement team attended over 300 events at schools and unis across the country and look forward to doing the same in 2020.

The Community Engagement team provides in-school information sessions on:

• ATAR and applying to uni for Year 12 student
• Subject selection and the ATAR for Year 10
• Parents information sessions on ATAR and applying through UAC
• Staff development session on the ATAR calculation.

These sessions are in high demand, so if you’d like UAC to come to your school, check our guidelines for school presentations on the UAC website or email the Community Engagement team for further information.

Another way to hear the team talk on the ATAR, subject selection and uni entry is to visit one of the major careers expos. Come and say hello and ask us about the different entry schemes on offer to students.

UNIVERSITY NEWS

Read the latest news from our institutions.

• Aspire Institute
• Griffith University
• International College of Management, Sydney (ICMS)
• Macquarie University
• SAE
• University of Newcastle
• University of Sydney
• UNSW
• Western Sydney University