10 May 2023 | 4 mins
Overview
  • You’ve probably heard so often that you can only get into your dream university course if you achieve the cutoff ATAR for that degree. 
  • But through UTS College, you can still graduate with a Bachelor’s degree without adding any extra time to your course.

There’s nothing more frustrating than working hard all through Year 12 but missing out on your ATAR because the pressure gets to you during exams. UTS understands that frustration, which is why they’ve created an on-campus college to give students the opportunity to study their dream degree.

UTS College is the perfect pathway into university if you missed out on the ATAR you needed for your dream course. With diplomas in Business, Communication, Architecture, Design, Health, Law, IT, Engineering, Science and Maths, all bases are covered. 

Not only does UTS College help students enter their dream university course, but in most cases, they can transfer straight into the second year of a corresponding Bachelor degree once graduated. For example, if a Year 12 student wants to get into a forensic science degree but missed out on the ATAR, they are able to do a Diploma of Science at UTS College and jump straight into the second year of a Bachelor of Forensic Science once they have the Diploma.

While studying at UTS College you’re also able to join the uni’s clubs and societies, giving you a chance to immerse yourself in UTS’ famous student culture and make friends with people on campus while you pick up your diploma.

Depending on your Year 12 marks, there are three different course streams you can apply for. The stream you get into will determine how quickly you’re able to finish your diploma. The streams are:

  • Extended (4 semesters – 16 months)
  • Standard (3 semesters – 12 months)
  • ​Accelerated (2 semesters – 8 months)

Entry into UTS College isn’t based on your ATAR, but rather the average of your Year 12 English mark, and your three best marks in your other Year 12 subjects. The averages needed for each stream are as follows:

  • 75% for Accelerated
  • 67% for Standard
  • 63% for Extended

So to break that down, imagine a Year 12 student named Jeremy studied English Standard, Design and Technology, Modern History, Environmental Science and Standard Mathematics. Out of his four board-developed subjects, Jeremy’s best three marks were Earth and Environmental Science (71%), Mathematics Standard 2 (73%) and Design and Tech (68%). His English Standard mark (65%) is also used to calculate the average. His four marks are then turned into an average (65+71+73+68) / 4 = 69.25%.

While Jeremy’s ATAR is 51.10, his UTS College subject average is 69.25%, meaning he qualifies to study a Standard 12-month diploma (min. 67% average).

So thanks to UTS College, you don’t have to put all your eggs in the ATAR basket. Even if you miss out on the magic number you needed, you can still study your dream degree, without even extending your time at university. If that’s something you’re interested in, you can learn more about UTS College here.