Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre

Understanding ATAR

Find all you need to know about ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank) and explore what that means for your tertiary journey.

Understanding the Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR)

The Australian Tertiary Admission Rank, commonly known as the ATAR, is a crucial component in your tertiary education journey. It serves as a ranking system that reflects a student’s overall academic performance in their final years of secondary education, providing a standardised measure for university admissions. Understanding the ATAR is essential for students, parents, and educators, as it plays a significant role in determining the pathways available for further study and career opportunities.

Are you ATAR ready? Here is what you need to know when planning your tertiary education application.

What is the ATAR?

Across Australia, the ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank) serves as the primary mechanism for tertiary admissions. QTAC, with 40+ years of experience, calculates and issues the ATAR for eligible Queensland Year 12 students and manages applications for Queensland and some interstate institutions.

The ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank) is a percentile rank rather than a mark, indicating a student’s position relative to their peers within the same age group for a given year.

It provides a standard measure of a student’s overall academic achievement in comparison to other students who may have studied different subject combinations. The ATAR helps tertiary institutions select applicants for their courses by indicating each student’s position relative to their peers.

From 2020, Queensland Year 12 students will be certified for tertiary entrance with the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR). Students completing Year 12 and their QCE from 2020 onwards can access their ATAR by creating an account in the ATAR Portal.

From 2020, the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) replaced the Overall Position (OP) as the standard pathway to tertiary study for Queensland Year 12 students. 

In 2020, the first cohort of Queensland Year 12 students graduated under the new QCAA QCE system and were issued their Queensland ATAR, which is calculated by QTAC. This system continues to be used for subsequent graduates.

Until 2019, the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) calculated ATARs for Queensland OP-eligible students to ensure Queensland students were considered for courses offered interstate (see OP to ATAR).

It is expressed on a 2000-point scale, ranging from 99.95 at the highest to 0.00, with increments of 0.05. ATAR scores are reported in descending order, starting from 99.95 and decreasing by 0.05 down to 0.00. Scores below 30 are reported as “30.00 or less.”

An ATAR of 80.00 does not mean a student got 80%. It indicates that the student placed in the top 20% of students in Queensland in their Year 12 age group.

ATAR Essentials

To be eligible for an ATAR, a student must:

  • Complete five General subjects (Units 3 and 4); or
  • complete four General subjects (Units 3 and 4) plus one Applied subject (at Units 3 and 4) or a VET course at AQF Certificate III level or higher;
  • and accumulate results within a five-year period.


Students must also satisfactorily complete (i.e. achieve a minimum grade of C or higher) an English subject (one of English, English as an Additional Language, English and Literature Extension, Literature, or Essential English).

While students must satisfactorily complete an English subject to be eligible for an ATAR, the result in English will only be included in the ATAR calculation if it is one of the student’s best five scaled results. For more information about scaling and the ATAR, refer to QTAC’s website.

There can be many reasons why a student’s ATAR result might be recorded as ‘ATAR ineligible’. If you are concerned, try the following checks:

1. Check your results in your QCAA Learning account:
Make sure all your QCE results and any VET qualifications are recorded correctly. Your QCAA results are used by QTAC to calculate your ATAR.

2. Did you meet the ATAR English eligibility requirement?

You need a minimum of a C grade for an English subject, any one of: English, English as an Additional Language, English and Literature Extension, Literature, or Essential English.

3. Have you completed one of the following eligible combinations of subjects?

  • Five General Subjects (at Units 3 and 4), or
  • Four General Subjects (at Units 3 and 4), plus one Applied subject
  • Four General Subjects (at Units 3 and 4), plus one completed VET qualification at Certificate lll level or above.

If you are ‘ATAR ineligible’ this means you have not yet qualified for an ATAR.

You can continue to study and accumulate QCE subjects and VET qualifications until you have enough to be eligible for your first ATAR to be calculated in a later year.

If you have already qualified for a Queensland ATAR and want to improve your ATAR, you will need to meet the eligibility requirements for getting a NEW ATAR.

These requirements are:

  • Complete the minimum number of additional new subjects to qualify for a new ATAR.
  • The minimum number is 3 General subjects or 2 General + 1 VET or 1 Applied.
  • Make sure your additional subjects help you meet the ATAR eligibility requirement

For more information download the Factsheet ‘Qualifying for a new ATAR.’

Call the QTAC ATAR hotline 1300 193 173 for further assistance.

When you register, you will be asked to give consent to share your final ATAR, or ATAR eligibility, with your school. This consent is optional, although during Year 12 this information can be useful to enable the school to support its students.

You can change the consent to share your ATAR by logging in to the ATAR Portal and changing the consent selection.

Schools will only get access to the individual ATARs of their former Year 12 students where consent has been granted by those students when registering in the ATAR Portal.

No, it is the responsibility of the student to register by creating their own QTAC ATAR account in the ATAR Portal. Schools can assist students through the process by making sure students have the correct login details and making them aware they should use a personal email, and not their school email address.

Schools will only get access to the individual ATARs of their former Year 12 students where consent has been granted by those students when registering in the ATAR Portal.

Your QCE results are issued by the QCAA (not QTAC). Your QCE Statement (results) and certificate are issued electronically via your QCAA learning account. Log in to your Learning Account via the QCAA Student Portal in MyQCE to access your results.

If you already have an ATAR account from 2022 you do not need to register again.

If you finished Year 12 in 2022 and are completing more Year 12 subjects in 2023 (to qualify for a new ATAR), you can log into your existing account to access your ATAR result when ATARs are released in December 2023.

If you are in Year 12 and created an account in Year 11 or early in Year 12, the details in your ATAR account will only match the QCAA details after ATAR registrations open for Year 12s in August each year i.e. after QTAC updates the ATAR Portal with the most recent QCAA data.

Your QCE and your ATAR

Your Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) and your ATAR are different and have different purposes.

QCE

Certifies learning, showing the individual has achieved a specific standard of education at senior schooling level and may be considered for further study and employment.

Shows a set of results across QCE subjects. Your results in a subject show your performance in the subject against every student who took the subject.

Is awarded and released by the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA).

ATAR

Tells us about a student’s position (or ranking) compared to all other students in the state. The only intended purpose for the ATAR is to assist with selecting applicants for tertiary study.

Your ATAR measures your position (or ranking) against the whole Queensland Year 12 age cohort, where a variety of combinations of subjects have been studied. Is based on scaled results.

Is calculated and released by QTAC.

How the ATAR is calculated

breaking it down

Your ATAR is calculated based on an aggregate of scaled results from your five best ATAR eligible inputs
from three different schemes:

  • Five General subjects (at Units 3 and 4); or
  • Four General subjects (at Units 3 and 4) plus an Applied subject (at Units 3 and 4); or
  • Four General subjects (at Units 3 and 4) plus one completed VET qualification at Certificate III level or
    above.

The key steps in the ATAR calculation process are:

Step 1: QCAA provides QTAC with student’s subject results (Units 3 and 4 only) and completed VET qualifications.
Step 2: The subject scaling process is undertaken.
Step 3: The best five scaled subject results (from eligible inputs) are added together to create a best five Subject Aggregate.
Step 4: Students are placed in a descending order of merit based on their Best five Subject Aggregates.
Step 5: Determine how many students are to be in each of the 2000 ATAR bands (based on the Queensland Year 12 population). For example, if the Queensland Year 12 population is approximately 60,000 students then approximately 30 students will be placed in each ATAR band.
Step 6: Assign students to each ATAR band. The top 30 students are assigned ATAR 99.95, the next 30 students are assigned 99.90, and so on.

The following rules apply regarding precluded subjects and subject combinations in the ATAR calculation:

  1. Only General English subjects or Applied English subjects can be included in the ATAR, but not both. For example, it is not possible to include both English (a General subject) and Essential English (an Applied subject) in a student’s ATAR.
  2. Only General Mathematics subjects or Applied Mathematics subjects can be included in the ATAR, but not both. For example, it is not possible to include both Mathematical Methods (a General subject) and Essential Mathematics (an Applied subject) in a student’s ATAR.
  3. Only one result for the same subject taken as a General subject and via Senior External Examination can be included in the ATAR. For example, it is not possible to include both the General subject Chinese and the Senior External Examination subject Chinese in a student’s ATAR. Similarly, it is not possible to include both the General subject Biology and the Senior External Examination subject Biology in a student’s ATAR

There are no other restrictions on the inclusion of subjects in the ATAR, for example a student may
count the following General subject results in their ATAR:

  • both English and Literature
  • both Mathematical Methods and Specialist Mathematics
  • both Chinese and Chinese Extension

Remember! Some university courses have subject prerequisites that you must satisfy before you can be considered for tertiary entry so if you have a desired course(s) in mind, consider this when selecting your subjects.

What is scaling?

Students can study thousands of different combinations of subjects in their senior schooling and qualify for an ATAR. Scaling adjusts for the fact that it is more difficult to obtain a high result in some subjects than in others. This is not because some subjects are inherently harder or easier, it is because some subjects attract a more competitive cohort of students. Scaling ensures that students are neither advantaged nor disadvantaged based on the subjects they choose. Each state in Australia uses a scaling process in the calculation of the ATAR. In Queensland, subject results are scaled by QTAC.

There is some complex mathematics that underpins the scaling process, but as a simplified explanation, scaling is the process by which ‘raw’ subject results are adjusted to allow the results for each subject to be fairly compared with the results from any other subject for the purpose of calculating ATARs. The scaling process will adjust the raw results in each subject to take account of how well students achieve in their subjects and how difficult it is to achieve a particular result in the subject relative to achievements in all other subjects.

Refer to the QTAC website for more information about scaling.

The ATAR and tertiary selection

Most tertiary courses administered by QTAC attract more applicants than there are places available. This requires applicants to be placed in a merit order (i.e. ‘ranked’) to allow selection to take place.

The first step when selecting applicants is to check whether the applicants have met the prerequisites for the courses for which they have applied (for example some Bachelor of Physiotherapy courses will have a science subject prerequisite). If you have not successfully completed these prerequisite subjects you will not be considered for entry to the course, regardless of your ATAR

The second step is to rank all applicants who satisfy the prerequisites for that course. For most courses, current school-leavers are ranked using the ATAR.

Some courses may have additional selection criteria, such as portfolio, interview, audition, questionnaire or test.

Prerequisites and additional selection criteria will be listed in the course description in the QTAC Guide and on the QTAC website.

ATAR will be the standard pathway used to determine entry for most tertiary courses (in addition to other entry requirements such as subject prerequisites).

ATAR will not be the only pathway to tertiary study for all courses however. Other pathways include:

  • VET qualifications as a stand-alone basis of admission: Individual institution policies will apply as to whether VET qualifications such as AQF Certificates III and IV, Diplomas and Advanced Diplomas can be used to gain admission to a course. Refer to the institution website or QTAC website for more information.
  • Courses where ATAR is not a selection factor: Most TAFE VET courses, and some university tertiary preparation courses and other courses may not require an ATAR for entry. Refer to the relevant institution website or the QTAC website for more information about course entry requirements.
  • Bridging and preparation courses: Completion of approved bridging, pathway or preparation courses can lead to entry to your preferred tertiary course. Refer to institution websites or the QTAC website for more information.
  • Other admissions pathways: Refer to institution websites for additional information on other admissions pathways.

Adjustment factors (previously referred to as ‘bonus points’) are additional points that may be added to an applicant’s ATAR (or other rank) to derive an adjusted selection rank for a particular course at a particular institution. They do not change the ATAR.

Each institution has its own criteria for when adjustment factors can apply. They may not be applicable for all courses or all applicants. All institutions limit the maximum adjustments that will apply to your selection rank (for example some may cap the increase to your selection rank to 5 points). Common types of adjustment factors include:

  • Equity adjustment: if an applicant has experienced difficult circumstances or disadvantage
  • Subject adjustment: if a current Year 12 applicant has undertaken a secondary subject in a Language
    Other than English (LOTE) or Specialist Mathematics, or university enrichment courses
  • Location adjustment: if an applicant has resided in certain areas
  • Elite athlete adjustment: if an applicant is an elite athlete

Satisfying subject prerequisites

For entry to most tertiary courses, you must have achieved a certain result in specific senior secondary subjects (QCE subjects) (or equivalent).

If a course has a prerequisite(s), you will find this listed in the course entry in the QTAC Guide or online QTAC Course Search and institution websites and publications. The prerequisite requirement will be displayed as “Subject (Units 3 and 4, Letter Grade)”.

Successful completion (i.e. minimum Grade of C or better) in Units 3 and 4 of General subjects will satisfy the majority of subject prerequisites. Some courses may require a higher grade (e.g. minimum achievement of Grade B or better) to satisfy a subject prerequisite.

Subjects are structured into four units: Units 1 and 2 (typically studied in Year 11) and Units 3 and 4 (typically studied in Year 12). Completion of Units 1 and/or 2 only in a subject will not meet the subject prerequisite(s) for a course.

English Prerequisite

The most common prerequisite is the English subject (Units 3 and 4, C). General English subjects are English, English as an Additional Language, Literature, and English & Literature Extension.

Satisfying Prerequisites for entry to initial teacher education programs

The Queensland College of Teachers (QCT) has accepted the General syllabus subjects in Maths, English and Science as prerequisites subjects to meet the entry requirements for initial teacher education courses as follows:

English (for early childhood, primary and secondary courses):

  • English
  • English as an Additional Language
  • Literature
  • English & Literature Extension

Maths (for early childhood, primary and secondary courses):

  • General Mathematics
  • Mathematical Methods
  • Specialist Mathematics

Science (for early childhood and primary courses):

  • Agricultural Science
  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Earth & Environmental Science
  • Marine Science
  • Physics
  • Psychology

Assumed knowledge and recommended study

Not all courses have subject prerequisites. In addition to, or instead of, subject prerequisites, some courses have assumed knowledge and/or recommended study.

Not all courses have subject prerequisites. In addition to, or instead of, subject prerequisites, some courses have assumed knowledge and/or recommended study.

If you do not have the assumed knowledge or recommended study, you can still be admitted to the course, but you might have difficulty with your studies.

Other ways to satisfy subject prerequisites

If you didn’t study a prerequisite subject at Units 3 and 4 (or didn’t achieve the minimum grade required), you may be able to meet the requirement in other ways, such as via bridging or preparatory courses, depending on the policy of the institution. Visit www.qtac.edu.au/applying/admission-criteria for more information.

ATAR and VET qualifications

What is VET?

VET (Vocational Education and Training) qualifications provide students with specific workplace related technical skills. The VET sector includes qualifications from Certificate I through to Advanced Diploma

VET in schools (VETIS)

Queensland students may be able to undertake VET qualifications at school:

  • as part of their school studies,
  • as school-based apprentice or trainee scheme, or
  • by enrolling in a qualification with an external RTO.

 

VET qualifications, the ATAR and tertiary selection

Completed Vocational Education and Training (VET) qualifications may be used for tertiary selection in two ways:

  • as one of the five inputs into a student’s ATAR, and/or
  • as a stand-alone basis for tertiary admission

How will VET qualifications be included in the ATAR?

VET qualification levels that count towards ATAR eligibility are completed Certificate III, Certificate IV, Diploma and Advanced Diplomas. For more information about ATAR eligibility and what inputs can be included in the ATAR calculation, please refer to the QTAC website.

Each year, completed VET qualifications at the same Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) level will have the same scaled score, regardless of duration, content or provider. This means, for example, that a completed Certificate III in Hospitality will have the same scaled score as a completed Certificate III in Business. The scaled scores of VET qualifications at each level are expected to change from year to year with each new year 12 cohort.

Individual students’ VET results received by QTAC from the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA) are simply recorded with a completion status of Yes/No.

Different VET providers have different grading systems and all VET subjects are recorded with simply a completion of status of Yes/No and there is no grading.

In calculating the ATAR, VET subjects are scaled at the specific AQF level by initialising with a default value and averaging the polyranks of the students in the year 12 cohort who have completed the particular qualification at the AQF level e.g. Cert III, Cert IV. (See QTAC’s Technical Document: Calculating the ATAR in Queensland for more detailed information.)

Tips for making sure VET qualifications can be included in your ATAR calculation

  • Check that all VET qualifications are recorded as ‘Completed’ in your QCAA learning account by the end of November. This ensures that the QCAA can provide those VET results to QTAC for inclusion in the December ATAR calculation.
  • Contact the QCAA directly for issues related to the inclusion of VET qualifications in learning accounts and the Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) results.
  • Completed VET qualifications that may not have been recorded in a student’s learning account prior to the December ATAR calculation are processed by the QCAA and passed on to QTAC as amendments. QTAC will notify students if there is a change in their ATAR.

Admissions criteria for tertiary intuition VET qualifications 

Institutions offering courses through QTAC may also consider completed VET qualifications at Certificate III level and higher as a stand-alone basis of tertiary admission (including for non-school leavers applying for tertiary study).

Find out more about each university’s admission criteria for VET qualifications by visiting the institution profile or alternatively visiting their institution website.

  • ACU: 
  • BOND:
  • CHC: 
  • CQU: 
  • GC: 
  • GU: 
  • JCU: 
  • JMC:
  • QUT: 
  • SCU:
  • TAFE: 
  • UQ: 

Performing arts qualifications for tertiary entrance

Non-AQF Performing Arts qualifications such as Australian Music Examinations Board (AMEB) awards are not included in the ATAR calculation. However, some institutions may consider these qualifications as a basis of admission to tertiary study.

Note: Bond University & QUT will not accept performing arts qualifications as a basis of admission for any category of applicant. Southern Cross University & University of New England are yet to advise of policies at time of publication.

Find out more about each university’s admission criteria for Performing arts qualifications by following the links below:

  • ACU: 
  • CHC: 
  • CQU: 
  • GC: 
  • GU: 
  • JCU: 
  • JMC:
  • QUT: 
  • SCU:
  • TAFE: 
  • UQ: 
  • TORRENS: 
  •  UNE: 
  • UNISQ: 
  • UNISC: 

For more detailed information on VET scaling, talk to your guidance officer, career counsellor, VE coordinator or head of senior schooling. You can also view QTAC’s Technical Document: Calculating the ATAR in Queensland (Section 3.2).

Adjustments and Selection Rank
What is a Selection Rank?

A selection rank is a numerical value used by tertiary institutions to assess an applicant’s suitability for a specific course. It is derived from various criteria, including academic achievements and other factors like adjustments for certain circumstances. The Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) is often mistaken for the selection rank, but they are distinct. The ATAR is an achievement measure indicating how a student performed relative to their peers. This ATAR value is then converted into a selection rank, which may or may not include additional adjustments.

Qualifying for a new ATAR

Qualifying for a new ATAR, ATAR amendments and Variable Progression Rates.

There are a number of situations where a student may qualify for a new ATAR after their first ATAR is released at the completion of their year 12 studies. This factsheet provides information to guide students, teachers and parents through the following: Variable Progression Rate students; re-entry students doing additional subjects; accumulating results, repeating subjects and ATAR amendments. The factsheet also covers the practicalities of having more than one valid ATAR when applying for courses.

Multiple valid ATARs

A student may qualify for more than one ATAR* from multiple attempts at doing additional subjects towards their ATAR, including repeating subjects. This is dependent on the student’s subject selections and QCE results meeting the requirements for accumulating results towards a new ATAR.

*Note: The QTAC Application Customer Declaration requires applicants to declare all attempts at study. This includes all ATAR attempts. Applicants also need to be mindful of institution rules about which ATAR rank to accept for a particular program of study e.g. the highest or the most recent.

The ATAR is calculated from the QCE subjects results provided to QTAC by the QCAA. Students who have completed year 12 and whose QCE subject results do not meet the ATAR eligibility criteria (yet) will receive a result of “ATAR ineligible” when ATAR results are released at the end of the year.

The Variable Progression Rate is a special category which involves a study program for accumulating QCE subject results over more than one year towards gaining ATAR eligibility. Eligibility will be dependent on the subject selections meeting the normal ATAR subject combinations and other key criteria, as below:

i. Currency of Scaled Results for inclusion in the ATAR: Scaled subject results can be used over no more than a five year period, including breaks in study.
ii. Saving scaled results for subjects completed prior to year 12 exit e.g. completed in year 11: The results of students who complete QCE subjects before their year 12 exit year (e.g. accelerated students) will be received from the QCAA by QTAC in the year in which the subjects are completed and will be scaled with that cohort. Those scaled results are saved by QTAC and will be used in the calculation of the ATAR when the full set of QCE results is received at year 12 exit.
iii. Minimum number of subjects for a first ATAR: There is no minimum number of subjects to be studied in a single year for a student’s first ATAR to be calculated.

Students on a VPR program will receive an ATAR notification of ‘ATAR Ineligible’ in the ATAR Portal for each year that they are accumulating subjects, until they successfully complete all subjects required for ATAR eligibility.

Re-entry Student: A student who has returned to complete year 12 after a period of absence of three years or more following completion of year 10. Most re-entry students will be 18 years or older.

Repeat Student: A student who re-enrols in year 12 at any time following their completion of year 12, ie after a Senior Statement has been issued.

Students may seek to improve on their original ATAR by repeating or doing additional QCE subjects in the
year/s following the issue of their original ATAR. The following rules apply to qualifying for a new ATAR:

i. Repeating subjects: most recent result used
Where a student has repeated a subject, the scaled result of the most recent attempt is used in the calculation of the new ATAR even if this result is lower than an earlier attempt.

ii. Minimum number of additional (new) subjects for a new ATAR
For a new ATAR to be calculated, a student must complete and receive scores from QCAA in a minimum of:
• 3 General subjects at Units 3 & 4, OR
• 2 General subjects at Units 3 & 4 plus one Applied subject or completed Certificate III or higher level VET qualification.
For each additional year that a student satisfies this requirement within a five year period, a new ATAR will be calculated for the student.
The results of the 3 (or more) new subjects must be included in the calculation of the new ATAR.
The best two scaled results from previous years are also used in the calculation of the new ATAR. If a student fails a new attempt at a General or Applied English subject, the scaled result will be used as an input to the new ATAR. However, provided they have passed a General or Applied English subject at some time in the last 5 years, they will still be ATAR eligible.

iii. Valid subject combinations
There are some subject study patterns and choices which can lead to subjects ‘cancelling’ each other out, thereby rendering a student with 3 new subjects ineligible for a new ATAR. The following precluded subject combinations are applicable for individual students in their ATAR calculations:
1. Only General English subjects or Applied English subjects can be included in the ATAR, but not both. For example, it is not possible to include both English (a General subject) and Essential English (an Applied subject) in a student’s ATAR.
2. Only General Mathematics subjects or Applied Mathematics subjects can be included in the ATAR, but not both. For example, it is not possible to include both Mathematical Methods (a General subject) and Essential Mathematics (an Applied subject) in a student’s ATAR.
3. Only one result for the same subject taken as a General subject and via Senior External Examination can be included in the ATAR. For example, it is not possible to include both the General subject Chinese and the Senior External Examination subject Chinese in a student’s ATAR. Similarly, it is not possible to include both the General subject Biology and the Senior External Examination subject Biology in a student’s ATAR**

**There is no restriction on the inclusion of the General subject Chinese Extension in the ATAR calculation.

A student may qualify for more than one ATAR from multiple attempts at doing additional QCE subjects, including repeating subjects. Issuing of a new ATAR is dependent on the student’s subject selections and QCE results meeting the eligibility requirements for accumulating results towards a new ATAR (as above).

All valid ATAR results will be recorded in the student’s ATAR Portal account.

There is no single answer to this question. Generally, the highest ATAR will be used. However, the final decision depends on the specific course requirements and individual institution’s admissions policies.

Any student wishing to study further to improve their ATAR for a specific course should check the institution’s course entry requirements carefully. For example, a person who has already completed year 12 and then repeats/continues their QCE studies to achieve a new ATAR, may not be eligible for current year 12 entry into some courses, such as medicine.

ATAR Appeals

QTAC offers an ATAR Appeal process which gives ATAR recipients the opportunity to request a review of their final ATAR result calculation. An ATAR Appeal is made by lodging a formal application online. All ATAR recipients have the right to appeal. However, appeals must be lodged by the ATAR recipients themselves.

The 2024 ATAR Appeals period will run from when ATARs are released on 13 December 2024 until 31 January 2025.

An ATAR appeal should only be considered in situations where the student has good reason to believe that their ATAR has not been calculated in accordance with QTAC’s approved rules, policies, procedures and practices.

These rules are contained in the approved document, Calculating the ATAR in Queensland Technical Document (see QTAC website).

Where your ATAR is likely to change due to amendments (changes) in your QCE results e.g. due to a review, you do not need to lodge an appeal. (See below for more information)

The ATAR Appeal fee is $36 (incl. GST).

Payment must be made online when the Appeal Application is submitted.

If the Appeal is successful the fee will be fully refunded.

  1. Contact QTAC to discuss any concerns with your ATAR and to work out the best way forward.
  2. Familiarise yourself with the Calculating the ATAR in Queensland Technical Document.
  3. Use this in your Appeal to prepare the reasons why you believe a review and recalculation of your ATAR is needed.
  4. Prepare supporting documentation for your appeal. All supporting documentation attached to your application must be clearly identified with your full name and LUI.
  5. Complete the ATAR Appeal form.
  6. Pay the appeal fee online at the time of lodging the Appeal application.
  7. Submit the ATAR Appeal online application form.

Below is the form to commence the ATAR Appeals Process. This is a formal procedure designed to ensure the accuracy of your ATAR. Please submit an appeal only if you have substantial reasons to believe your ATAR was not calculated following QTAC’s approved rules.

An ATAR appeal should only be considered in situations where the student has good reason to believe that their ATAR has not been calculated in accordance with QTAC’s approved rules, policies, procedures and practices.

These rules are contained in the approved document, Calculating the ATAR in Queensland Technical Document (see QTAC website).

Where your ATAR is likely to change due to amendments (changes) in your QCE results e.g. due to a review, you do not need to lodge an appeal. (See below for more information)

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The Appeal Outcome

The Appeals process will be managed by QTAC’s ATAR Technical Adviser and recalculation of the ATAR will be conducted by QTAC’s statistician.

QTAC will endeavour to commence work on an Appeal submission within five business days from submission.

Applicants will be emailed the outcome of their Appeal.

If an applicant is successful in their appeal, a new ATAR will be issued and the applicant’s records will be updated with the recalculated ATAR.

The new ATAR will supersede the original ATAR. Interstate Tertiary Admission Centres will be advised of the applicant’s new ATAR if the applicant has consented to share this information.

If the student has lodged a QTAC application, the application will be updated with their new ATAR.

How to access the Appeal Service

To access the ATAR Appeal Service use the online request form. Complete the form with all the required details and make payment via credit card.

Appeal or Amendment

The appeal process should only be used to request a review of the final ATAR result calculation. You do not need to lodge an appeal where your ATAR is likely to change due to amendments in your QCE results. Amendments will be automatically processed by QTAC when the amended results come through to QTAC from the QCAA.

QCAA Amendment

Any change to the original QCAA year 12 results data used to calculate the ATAR for initial release to individual students is called an Amendment. Types of amendments include changes to QCE results, addition of VET qualifications, changes to personal data such as corrections to names, date of birth, LUIs etc.

QTAC usually receives QCE data and results amendments from the QCAA on Mondays. Depending on when the amendment files are received, amendments are usually processed within 24 to 48 hours. It can take a couple of days for the changes to make it through to the ATAR Portal.

Where QCE results have changed, QTAC’s statistician recalculates the ATARs and the final amendment file is uploaded to the ATAR Portal and other systems.

Students whose ATARS have been recalculated and have changed as a result of new QCAA results data will be notified by email that their ATAR has changed. They can also log in to the ATAR Portal to see their result and download a new certificate.

We encourage students to contact us at QTAC to discuss their ATAR concerns with our QTAC ATAR specialists before lodging an appeal.

Online ATAR Appeals submissions for the 2024 ATAR will close on 31 January 2025

All appeal-related queries should be directed to the ATAR hotline 1300 193 173 or email atarappeals@qtac.edu.au.

QTAC will continue to receive amendments to students’ QCAA results and these will be processed as amendments and ATARs automatically recalculated

ATAR verification

Need to validate your ATAR? Review what the ATAR Verification process can offer.

QTAC’s ATAR Verification service is designed to assist students, educational institutions and employers in assuring the validity of the ATAR results shared by a student when applying for courses, scholarships and jobs. The service will be particularly useful for those students applying to institutions overseas, interstate and through direct application (i.e. not through an Australian tertiary admissions centre).

The ATAR Verification Service offers the option to order a printed certificate as a tangible reminder of your academic success:

PRINTED VERIFICATION

Request a printed and verified copy of your own ATAR certificate to be mailed to you.

$30.00 incl. GST

ELECTRONIC VERIFICATION

Request a verified electronic copy of your ATAR results to be transferred to up to three (3) nominated institutions, employer or other entities in a single transaction. More transactions will incur further charges.

$17.00 incl. GST

To access the ATAR Verification Service use the online request form. Complete the form with all the required details and make payment via credit card.

Please note: Students who have put in an application with QTAC do NOT need to apply for the Electronic Verification service. QTAC applicants give consent in their application for QTAC to make their ATAR available to the relevant QTAC institutions.

Interstate applicants: Students applying to interstate TACs do not need to apply for ATAR Verification if they have an ATAR account. Students with an ATAR account give consent for QTAC to share their ATAR results with interstate TACs.

Please make sure the information you enter is accurate and correct, especially the contact details of the three nominated entities for the Electronic Verification service. QTAC takes no responsibility for institutions not receiving ATAR results due to incorrect information supplied.

QTAC will endeavour to complete Verification service requests within ten days from receipt (not including time allowances for postal delivery).

For further assistance please email verification@qtac.edu.au.

Register for the ATAR portal

How to Register or Log in to the ATAR Portal:

You will need the following personal details ready to set up your ATAR account:

  • Full name (as shown on your QCAA learning account)
  • Date of birth
  • LUI number
  • Personal email address (do not use your school email)

ATAR account holders from previous years should still be able to log into the ATAR Portal.

Please Note: If you are planning to apply to tertiary study in 2025, you will also need to complete a QTAC Application. Receiving the ATAR by text message is not an option.

  • Online: You can view your ATAR by logging in to your ATAR Portal account.
  • Email: ATAR results will not be sent directly to your email address. However, you can opt in to receive a single notification via email when the results are released and can then log in to the ATAR Portal to view your ATAR.
  • Print: Log in to the ATAR Portal to view your ATAR and to download and print a copy of your ATAR certificate.
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