Definitions

In these regulations,

the Academic Board is the Academic Board of The University of Western Australia;

the Admissions Centre is the Admissions Centre of The University of Western Australia;

the Admissions Manual is a publication produced annually by the Admissions Centre which provides information to University staff involved in student selection, about the application and admission process;

Commonwealth-supported places are places funded under the Higher Education Support Act (2003) for which the Commonwealth Government requires citizens and permanent residents of Australia and citizens of New Zealand to pay a student contribution to the cost of their studies at university;

a domestic applicant is an applicant who is a citizen or permanent resident of Australia, a holder of an Australian humanitarian visa, or a citizen of New Zealand and who may be either a Commonwealth-supported student or a fee paying student;

Fee-paying places are places for which the student pays a fee set at an amount equal to the sum of the Commonwealth Government contribution and student contribution to the University;

an international applicant is an applicant who is not a citizen or permanent resident of Australia or a citizen of New Zealand and is not eligible to be a Commonwealth-supported student;

a matriculated student for the purposes of Statute 7 and other related statutes or regulations of the University is one who has been admitted to the University for a degree course;

a private candidate is a person who sits a Tertiary Entrance Examination on a private basis. Such candidates must enrol with the Curriculum Council. The mark for a Tertiary Entrance Examination taken on a private basis may be used in the calculation of the Tertiary Entrance Score.

the STAT is the Special Tertiary Admissions Test and comprises a series of tests designed to assess a range of competencies considered important to success in university study; 

TEE means Tertiary Entrance Examination (Western Australian);

the Tertiary Entrance Rank (TER) is a number between 99.95 and zero that reports a student's rank position relative to all other students. The TER is normally derived from the Tertiary Entrance Score by a mathematical procedure approved by the Academic Board. A TER is also derived for applicants who have taken the normal university entrance qualification akin to the TEE in another state of Australia or in New Zealand or who have the International Baccalaureate Diploma. In these cases the TER is considered equivalent to the Western Australian TER.

the Tertiary Entrance Score (TES) is a score out of 510, calculated on the basis of a person's TEE results as follows:

Except in the case of students who reached the age of 19 years or more by 1 March of the year in which the TEE subjects are taken and who complete the Two–subject–plus–STAT TEE, the TES is calculated by multiplying by 5.1 an applicant's best mean scaled score over four or five Tertiary Entrance subjects, with at least one subject from each of List 1 and List 2 contributing to the score.

A subject score which contributes to the mean scaled score is the combined scaled score for that subject. The combined scaled score for a subject is the scaled value of a 50:50 composite of the external examination score and the moderated school assessment for that subject except in the case of subjects taken on a private basis in which case the scaled examination score will form 100 per cent of the final scaled score. All subjects for which the scores contribute to the calculation of the TES must have been completed over no more than two consecutive years.

In the case of students who reached the age of 19 years or more by 1 March of the year in which the TEE subjects are taken and who complete the two–subject–plus–STAT TEE, the TES is calculated by multiplying by 5.1 the average of the applicant's best two subject scores. Both subjects must have been completed in the same year.

the Tertiary Entrance Subjects are the subjects for which the scores may contribute towards the calculation of the Tertiary Entrance Score and are as follows:

List 1:

Ancient History

Art

Chinese: Advanced

Chinese: Second Language

Drama Studies

Economics

English

English Literature

French

Geography

German

Hebrew *

History

Indonesian: Advanced

Indonesian: Second Language

Italian

Japanese: Advanced

Japanese: Second Language

Latin*

Malay: Advanced

Modern Greek

Music

Political and Legal Studies

* Examinations in Hebrew and Latin are not conducted as part of the Western Australian Tertiary Entrance Examinations. An applicant for admission to the University who is taking either or both of these subjects is required to ensure that the related examinations they sit for are conducted by an examining authority approved by the Academic Board of the University. The Admissions Committee may scale the marks obtained in such examinations for use in the calculation of the Tertiary Entrance Score.

List 2:

Accounting

Applicable Mathematics

Biology

Calculus

Chemistry

Discrete Mathematics

Geology

Human Biology

Information Systems

Physical Science

Physics

The following subject combinations may not be used in the calculation of the Tertiary Entrance Rank: If both subjects are taken, the result in only one may be used to calculate the TER.

(a)  Biology and Human Biology

(b)  Chinese: Advanced and Chinese: Second Language

(c)  Discrete Mathematics and Applicable Mathematics

(d) Discrete Mathematics and Calculus

(e)  English and English Literature

(f)  Indonesian: Advanced and Indonesian: Second Language

(g)  Indonesian: Advanced and Malay: Advanced

(h)  Indonesian: Second Language and Malay: Advanced

(i)   Japanese: Advanced and Japanese: Second Language

(j)   Physical Science and Chemistry

(k)  Physical Science and Physics

tertiary study is any formal study undertaken at the level of Diploma as accredited under the Australian Qualifications Framework, or above;

TISC is the Western Australian Tertiary Institutions Services Centre; 

the University is The University of Western Australia.

Admission Requirements

Notes:

1. Applicants should note that possession of the qualifications detailed below means only that they are eligible for selection; it does not guarantee that a place will be offered.

2. Special entry requirements apply to the Bachelor of Dental Science, the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery and music courses. See Regulation 13.

1. Applicants who did not reach the age of 19 by 1 March of the year prior to that for which application for entry is made

1.1 An applicant who did not reach the age of 19 years by 1 March of the year prior to that for which application for entry is made must—

(a) complete the requirements for Secondary Graduation, as defined by the Curriculum Council of Western Australia; and

(b) demonstrate English language competence through achieving a combined scaled score of 50 or more in English or English Literature at the Tertiary Entrance Examination, or for those who are eligible to take the subject, the required mark in English as a Second Language as determined each year by the universities; and

(c) achieve a satisfactory standard in the prerequisite subjects for a course as they are determined by the Academic Board, after consideration of recommendations from the appropriate faculties through the Admissions Committee, and published in the TISC brochure entitled 'Admission Requirements for School Leavers'; and

(d) obtain a sufficiently high Tertiary Entrance Rank (TER) to gain an offer of a place in a course;

Notice of subject requirements

1.2 The 'Admission Requirements for School Leavers' brochure is published in May each year and gives at least two and a half years notice of subject requirements.

2. Applicants who reached the age of 19 by 1 March of the year prior to that for which application for entry is made

2.1 An applicant who reached the age of at least 19 years before 1 March of the year prior to that for which application for admission is made is exempt from the Secondary Graduation requirement of Regulation 1.1(a) and may achieve a sufficiently high TER to gain a place in a course by—

(a) satisfying the requirements contained in Regulation 1.1(b) to (d); or

(b) taking the Two–subject–plus–STAT TEE.

Two-subject-plus STAT TEE

2.2(1) The Two–subject–plus–STAT TEE consists of:

(a) two subjects chosen from List 1 or List 2 of the Tertiary Entrance Subjects taken in the same year; and

(b) the Special Tertiary Admissions Test—Multiple Choice Test (Verbal Component) and Written English Test.

(2) An applicant who is taking the Two-subject-plus-STAT TEE may take more than two TEE subjects in any year but only the best two subject scores will be used to calculate a TES.

(3) The required STAT marks are published annually by the Admissions Centre in the relevant TISC publications.

(4) An applicant who is taking the Two-subject-plus-STAT TEE must—

(a) take the STAT by the end of November of the year in which the TEE subjects are taken;

(b) study the subjects specified for admission to their preferred course in the 'Admission Requirements for Mature Age Applicants' brochure which is published by TISC for students taking the Two-subject-plus-STAT TEE in the following year; and

(c) achieve a satisfactory standard in all prerequisite subjects for their preferred course as they appear in the Tertiary Institutions Service Centre (TISC) 'Admission Requirements for School Leavers' brochure for the relevant admission year.

3. Admission requirements for applicants who have taken a university entrance examination akin to the TEE in another state in Australia or in New Zealand or who have the International Baccalaureate Diploma

3.1 An applicant who has taken the normal university entrance qualification akin to the TEE in another state of Australia or in New Zealand, or who has the International Baccalaureate Diploma must—

(a) obtain a sufficiently high Tertiary Entrance Rank (TER) to gain a place in a course;

(b) demonstrate English language competence through achieving a pass in a subject equivalent to the Western Australian TEE English or English Literature, or for those who are eligible to take the subject, a pass in a subject equivalent to English as a Second Language; and

(c) achieve a satisfactory standard in subjects equivalent to the prerequisite subjects for a course, as described in Regulation 1.1(c).

4. Currency of TER

4.1(1) Domestic applicants who have satisfied the requirements under Regulations 1, 2 or 3 within five years immediately prior to admission, and who have never achieved results in tertiary study, will be ranked for an offer of a place on the basis of their TER, except for those in (2).

(2) Applicants for the Bachelor of Dental Science or the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery who have satisfied the requirements under Regulations 1, 2 or 3 within the two years immediately prior to admission, and who have never achieved results in tertiary study, will be ranked for an offer of a place on the basis of their performance in a written selection test, an interview and their TER, as described in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry Admissions Policy available on the Faculty's website.

5. Special entry schemes for disadvantaged applicants

5.1(1) An applicant who has achieved a TER under Regulations 1, 2 or 3 but who does not meet some or all requirements for admission to their preferred course may be made an offer of a place by a decision of the Special Entry Schemes Committee.

(2) An applicant described in (1) must demonstrate to the Committee's satisfaction that, had it not been for the disadvantages reported by them as specified in the policy for the scheme concerned, they would have qualified for admission to the course.

6. Applicants who receive an award approved by the Academic Board

6.1(1) An applicant who does not meet all requirements specified in Regulations 1, 2 or 3 may be made an offer of a place following receipt of an award approved by the Academic Board.

(2) An applicant described in (1) must demonstrate that they satisfy the eligibility criteria specified in the relevant award policy.

7. Applicants who do not satisfy requirements in Regulations 1 to 6

7.1 An applicant who does not satisfy the requirements in Regulations 1 to 6 may be eligible for admission if they—

(a) demonstrate English language competence through satisfactory performance in an approved test or course of English, as prescribed by the Academic Board;

(b) demonstrate that they have knowledge and skill at least equivalent to that required to pass any TEE subjects listed as prerequisites for entry to their chosen course; and

(c) possess one or more of the following:

(i) a qualification at Diploma level or above, accredited under the Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF);

(ii) a teaching qualification recognised by the Education Department of Western Australia;

(iii) the equivalent of a minimum of 24 UWA credit points completed through UWA Extension or at another recognised tertiary institution;

(iv) a qualification awarded overseas which is assessed as at least equivalent to a qualification under Regulation 1;

(v) a satisfactory standard of performance in the STAT;

(vi) a pass degree at another university.

Admission on the basis of STAT alone

7.2(1) An applicant who will reach the age of 20 years by 1 March of the year of admission, or 1 August for admission in second semester, who has no qualifications other than the STAT may be considered for admission to courses in the Faculty of Architecture, Landscape and Visual Arts, and the Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences and to the combined course for the Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Education.

(2) Both the Multiple Choice and Written English sections of the STAT must be taken.

(3) The required STAT marks are published annually by the Admissions Centre in the relevant TISC brochures.

(4) Applicants referred to in (1) are ranked for selection on the basis of their STAT results.

8. Admission to an honours programme

8.1(1) An applicant who has completed the requirements to be awarded a pass degree may be eligible for admission to an honours programme at the University.

(2) Applicants referred to in (1) must demonstrate knowledge and skill at least equivalent to the requirements specified in the University General Rules and Faculty Rules for admission to the relevant Honours programme.

9. Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander applicants

9.1 Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander applicants may qualify for admission through a programme administered by the School of Indigenous Studies.

10. Faculty ranking of applicants

10.1(1) With the exception of those covered under Regulation 4(1), all domestic applicants for a particular course will be given a recommended ranking by the faculty.

(2) The Dean of Undergraduate Studies will determine the ranking down to which an offer of a place in the course will be made.

11. Applicants for Fee–Paying Places

11.1(1) An applicant for a fee–paying place must satisfy the requirements for admission to a course under Regulations 1 to 7.

(2) Ranking and selection will be conducted as per Regulations 4(1) and 10.

12. International applicants

12.1(1) An international applicant may satisfy the requirements for admission to a course under Regulations 1, 2(1)(a), 3 or 7 except under Regulation 7.2 for which an international applicant is ineligible. 

(2) The Manager, International Marketing and Admissions determines whether an offer is to be made to an international applicant based on the requirement that the standard of such an applicant must be no less than that required for a domestic applicant to enter that course in recent years, and observing any quota that the University might impose on international applicants.

13. Applicants for the Bachelor of Dental Science or the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery or for music courses

13.1 In addition to the academic requirements for admission listed above—

(a) an applicant for entry to the Bachelor of Dental Science or the Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery courses must achieve a satisfactory standard in both a written selection test and an interview, as described in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry Admissions Policy available on the Faculty's web site; and

(b) an applicant for entry to a music course must achieve a satisfactory standard at an audition, as determined by the School of Music.

14. Appeals on the basis of exceptional circumstances

14.1(1) The Admissions Committee's Appeals Committee may decide that an applicant will be offered a place where it is considered, on the basis of an appeal application, that the applicant would have qualified for admission but for exceptional circumstances.

(2) Appeal cases will only be considered after an application for special consideration has been lodged through the Admissions Centre normally prior to the relevant round of offers.

Application Requirements

15. Requirement to submit a formal application

15.1 A formal application for admission must be made by the following:

(a) all applicants who have never before studied in an undergraduate course at the University;

(b) all applicants who have commenced degree studies at the University, but who withdrew from their course without academic credit or penalty;

(c) all applicants for whom the time limit for completion of their undergraduate degree study at the University has elapsed, or who will be unable to complete their degree within the specified time limit;

(d) all applicants seeking to return to an unfinished course or to gain admission to a new undergraduate course following completion of a degree at any university; and

(e) all applicants for entry to the Bachelor of Dental Science, Bachelor of Laws or Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery.

16. Application and acceptance procedures for international applicants

16.1(1) An international applicant must apply for a 'fee-paying overseas student place' through the International Centre.

(2) The application and acceptance procedures are described in the Prospectus for International Students, published annually by the International Centre.

17. Application and acceptance procedures for domestic applicants

Procedural guidelines for the application process

17.1 Procedural guidelines for the application process for domestic applicants are described in the Admissions Manual, published annually by the Admissions Centre.

Closing dates for applications

17.2 An application for admission must be submitted by the relevant closing date published on the Admissions Centre website.

Accepting an offer

17.3(1) The procedure and dates for acceptance of an offer of a place are specified in the offer letter.

(2) An offer of a place will lapse if the applicant does not accept by the date specified and in accordance with the specified procedures.

18. Permanent residency requirement for Commonwealth-supported places

18.1(1) Undergraduate places for domestic applicants are funded by the Higher Education Support Act 1003 (HESA), in relation to which permanent residency must have been granted by the relevant unit census date.

(2) For administrative purposes, applicants are usually required to have been granted permanent residence by the final application closing date.

19. Untrue or incomplete applications

19.(1) An applicant must sign a declaration that their application is 'true and complete'.

(2) An applicant who is believed to have submitted an application that is untrue or incomplete will be asked to explain their action.

(3) An applicant who is unable to explain their actions to the satisfaction of the Admissions Committee will have the application withdrawn from the application process, and no further application form will be accepted from the applicant within two years following the offence.

(4) The University will record such cases in confidential files, and the information will be made available to the relevant faculty selection committee if an applicant lodges a subsequent application for admission.

(5) Where an applicant is found to have been admitted on the basis of fraudulent or misleading information, the enrolment will be cancelled and the academic record endorsed accordingly.

20. Repeated withdrawal from course

20.1 An applicant whose academic record shows that they have withdrawn from university courses on two or more occasions without recording any results (including courses commenced at other universities) will not be permitted to enrol in a course at the University without the explicit permission of the appropriate faculty.

21. Deferral of place

21.1(1) Except as set out in (2), (3) and (4) an applicant may defer taking up a place at the University once only, for up to one year.

(2) An applicant may apply to the Admissions Office for an extended period of deferral of up to two years in cases where circumstances beyond their control (for example serious illness, acute financial hardship or National Service obligations) prevent earlier commencement.

(3) An applicant is not permitted to defer taking up a place in a course in music.

(4) An applicant may be permitted to defer taking up a place in the MBBS graduate course only in exceptional circumstances.

(5) In considering a request for a deferral under (2), the University may take into consideration the impact on course quotas.

(6) Deferred applicants indicate their intention to take up their deferred place by lodging an application for admission in the relevant subsequent admissions period.

(7) If a student has deferred taking up a place in a course which does not allow commencement in second semester, they must lodge an application for admission in the relevant first semester admission period.

(8) Admission to the deferred course is guaranteed provided that the application requirements are satisfied.

(9) The deferral will lapse if a deferred applicant undertakes any tertiary study during the deferral period.

(10) A deferred applicant who undertakes tertiary study during the deferral period and who wishes to undertake the deferred course must submit a new application and will compete for a place at the University on the basis of all study undertaken to that point.

22. Personal declaration

22.1 An applicant must sign the Personal Declaration on the enrolment form before they can be admitted to the University.

23. Re-admission to course following withdrawal without academic penalty or credit

23.1 An undergraduate student at the University who demonstrates to the satisfaction of their faculty that they must withdraw from their course due to illness, and who does so before incurring academic credit or penalty, will be re-admitted to their course according to the procedures for admission of deferred students described in Regulation 21.

24. Transfer to a new course following withdrawal with academic credit or penalty

24.1(1) A student who has received academic credit or penalty in at least one unit at the University, and who wishes to transfer to a new undergraduate degree course must—

(a) apply in accordance with Regulation 16 or 17 as appropriate if—

(i) they wish to enter Dentistry, Law or Medicine; or

(ii) they have exceeded the time limit for completion of their course, or

(iii) they have completed a degree course at any university since they last competed for admission to a course at the University; or

(b) apply through the relevant faculty in all cases other than those described in (a).

(2) Where application is made direct to the faculty, the faculty assesses, ranks and recommends applicants for selection according to procedures published by the faculty.

25. Transfer to a Commonwealth-supported place from a fee–paying place

25.1 A student who has been admitted to a fee–paying place may apply for admission to a Commonwealth-supported place after they have completed a minimum of 48 credit points of their course.

25.2 Students may make more than one application to transfer to a Commonwealth-supported place but must have completed at least 48 points of their course between each such application.

25.3 Students who apply to transfer from a fee–paying place to a Commonwealth-supported place must compete for a Commonwealth–supported place against all other Commonwealth–supported place applicants.

26. Responsibility for control of number of offers

26.1(1) Except where the University has set a fixed quota of entrants to a course, control of numbers of offers to domestic applicants in each category defined by these regulations is the responsibility of the Admissions Committee.

(2) The Admissions Committee may delegate its responsibility under (1) to the Dean of Undergraduate Studies.