The final numbers: course cut offs
Many a student has been waiting for these final numbers, so here they are, the final cut off for some of the state's top courses. You can check the details of every course in the state in the interactive below.
University of Sydney
Bachelor of Combined Law 99.50
Bachelor of Commerce (Liberal Studies) 98.00
Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) 90
University of New South Wales
Bachelor of Architectural Studies 95.60
Bachelor of Commerce (International) 97.25
Bachelor of Engineering (H)/B Commerce 96.3
Bachelor of Science (Adv Maths) (Hons) 95.00
University of Technology
Bachelor of Advanced Science (Adv Mat & Data Sci) 99.95
Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation with Fashion and Textiles 99.95
Bachelor of Engineering (H) Civil (Struc) DEP 92.00
That barely scrapes every course or university in the state, but you can find information on all of these here and our full story in tomorrow's paper.
On that note, we are going to wrap up our live coverage for tonight.
Thanks very much for joining us.
Largest climbs and falls by course
Among NSW universities, the Australian Catholic University dominated the list of courses with the largest increases in ATAR cut-off, with its Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood and Primary) jumping by nearly 18 points compared to last year.
ACU's Bachelor of Applied Public Health rose by 15 points, while Newcastle's Bachelor of Aboriginal Professional Practice rose nearly 12 points.
The course with the biggest drop in cut-off was Charles Sturt's Bachelor of Medical Radiation Science, which fell more than 17 points.
New England's combined Bachelor of Environmental Science/Bachelor of Laws was next, losing nearly 11 points, while Newcastle's combined Bachelor of Information Technology/Bachelor of Business degree last more than 6 points.
There is always another way: alternative entry schemes
HSC students who have missed out on a main round university offer to their preferred course can still go on to complete their undergraduate program with the assistance of pathway programs.
"There are a lot of students with great potential that could miss out on a direct offer to their degree of choice because of ATAR scaling," said the Dean of Studies at UTS:INSEARCH, Tim Laurence.
"But HSC graduates who don't get the marks they were aiming for don't need to settle for courses they are not interested in, or wait a year for an offer. They can still move towards their chosen courses through the pathway systems available."
UTS:INSEARCH admits students based on their HSC subject average (which is calculated from their best four HSC subject results for non-VET subjects, including English).
Can you game the ATAR?
How does scaling work, and is it possible to game the ATAR system?
What has changed this year?
Last year a Fairfax Media investigation into confidential university data revealed NSW universities were admitting students with ATARs as low as 30 into some of the state's top tertiary degrees.
Students with marks up to 40 points below the advertised course cut-off were accepted in fields such as business, teaching and engineering, according to the 2016 admissions figures from the University of Sydney, UNSW, Macquarie University and Western Sydney University.
Up to two thirds of students offered places at Macquarie University had ATARs below the advertised cut-off – the highest share of the four universities. The University of Sydney had the lowest share, with 27 per cent of students scoring below the required mark.
The investigation led Federal Education Minister Simon Birmingham to direct the Higher Education Standards Panel to examine transparency in the university sector.
In December, the federal government announced that universities would be forced to publish transparent information on a MySchool style website from 2018, or risk losing their funding.
- the lowest ATAR to receive an offer;
- the maximum number of bonus points available;
- the percentage of students admitted with bonus points; and
- the ATAR required to be in the top 25 per cent, bottom 25 per cent and the middle of the student intake
Given the widespread misrepresentation of the marks actually required to get into a degree, and the use of ATAR cut offs as a marketing ploy, it is worthwhile taking the advertised ATAR cut offs with a grain of salt.
No one is this more important too than prospective students, thousands of whom could have missed out on a degree or career they never applied for because the advertised ATAR cut off was set too high.
Universities ignore ATAR scores
Up to 99% of applicants for some NSW university degrees have been admitted despite failing to meet the minimum ATAR score advertised for the course. Eryk Bagshaw reports.
UNSW student looks forward to engineering the future
One of the biggest anxieties around choosing a university course can lie in trying to predict where the job market is going - no one wants to enrol in a degree that will be obsolete in a few years.
That's something Alana Adamus, from Mosman, who went to Redlands, has thought about seriously.
But having achieved an ATAR of 97.5 and received an offer to study biomedical engineering at UNSW, she probably won't have to worry too much.
"I think [the job market] definitely will change a lot in the next few decades, especially with technology advancing so greatly," she says. "But in regard to my degree and hopeful career it's definitely in line with the change that will happen. In that respect I'm in the right place - if anything it will become more important."
Alana's father is an engineer and is pleased his daughter is following in his footsteps.
"I think engineering is of great importance," she says. "Other professions, like journalism and law, they're all about analysing the present, where engineering has the possibility to create and change the future. I like that - there's so much opportunity to really make a big difference.
"Especially in biomedical, when you can save lives and improve health care."
HSC journey ends for Alana
Redlands, Mosman student Alana Adamus finds out whether she has the ATAR to study engineering next year.
Tougher standards for education degrees
Students hoping to get into education and teaching will find it tougher than students last year, thanks to new minimum academic standards aimed at raising the quality of teachers in NSW classrooms.
The average cut-off for combined education/teaching degrees surged nearly 2.5 points this year, the biggest jump among more than 20 fields of study.
Single degrees in education and teaching climbed more than half a point, posting the second-biggest rise.
Entry into arts/humanities, nursing/midwifery and human movement/sports science degrees are also harder to get into this year, compared to last year.
Average cut-offs fell in more than two-thirds of the broad fields of study, with architecture/building/design/planning sinking by nearly two points - the biggest drop compared to last year.
Social sciences and IT/information systems recorded the next-biggest falls, both sliding more than 1.5 points.
Did you make the ATAR cut off?
Use our interactive below to see what the advertised minimum mark was for every degree in the state.
Universities go to bragging war
While the University of Sydney may have claimed to have taken a "46 percent of the share of first preferences from those students with an ATAR of 99.5 or above," it hasn't taken long for UNSW to fire back.
The Kensington institution claims it "again attracted the largest number of the top 500 students in NSW and the ACT."
A university spokeswoman said the university saw notable increases in Built Environment and STEM degrees, while offering places to more than 8,000 students in 2017.
"We are very pleased to continue to be the destination of choice for these high achieving students," said Professor Merlin Crossley, UNSW Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Education.
"It's also pleasing to see an increase in the number of offers to female engineering students as well as big increases in important areas like City Planning."
Uni entry standards continue to slide
ATAR cut-offs across all institutions have fallen by nearly three points, on average, since 2010.
This year, the average cut-off across more than 30 tertiary education providers slid to 75.86, down from 78.81 in 2010.
Bear in mind that the courses offered by each institution are not necessarily the same from year to year, so that can influence the trend. Also, averages can mask big variations between courses and fields of study.
Still, it's a sign that standards have taken a hit over the past eight years or so.
University of Sydney offers places to thousands
The University announced its main round offers at 6pm this evening to more than 6000 students.
Combined Law, Arts and Commerce degrees were among the most popular degrees with strong growth also seen in Engineering degrees. Demand was strong for Science, with student preferences recognising the opportunity for career growth in STEM fields.
The University of Sydney also attracted a 46 percent of the share of first preferences from those students with an ATAR of 99.5 or above.
"We are very pleased that so many of the state's most talented students have chosen to join us in 2017. Every year we continue to be impressed by the calibre of our incoming cohort, and this latest intake is no different," said Professor Tyrone Carlin, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Registrar) at the University of Sydney.
![The University of Sydney's deputy vice-chancellor, Tyrone Carlin [L]](/web/20170121001504im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/m/9/b/3/4/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gtu1wg.png/1484724616422.jpg)
ACU soars while Western Sydney falls
The average cut-off for courses at the Australian Catholic University, UTS, Charles Sturt and UNSW have all risen this year, with ACU leading the pack with a rise of more than 2.2 points.
UTS was a distant second, recording a rise of less than one point.
Western Sydney and Macquarie have taken the biggest tumble this year, with cutoffs falling by just over one point, on average at both universities.
At Wollongong, Sydney and New England, average cut-offs slide by around half a point.
Early offers ease the stress
While many students have been sweating on their results today, others have known for weeks whether they will have a place in university thanks to the early offer rounds.
The University of Sydney made more than 4500 early rounds offers this year, 500 more than last year. Most of the growth is from the expanding Future Leaders Scheme - open to duxes and since 2016 to school captains too - and other pathways like the E12 alternative entry scheme.
18 year old Delahoya Manu from Plumpton received an early offer under the university's Future Leaders Scheme in mid-December, for his first choice of course, a Bachelor of Health Sciences.
He was the first ever school captain of Polynesian descent at his school, Patrician Brothers' College in Blacktown.
A talented footy player - he plays in the NSW Waratahs Under 20s team - Manu was drawn to the university by both its reputation and surrounds.
"Last year, we played the Sydney uni rugby team at their home ground, and just looking around and the environment looked awesome. It kind of looked like Hogwarts, and I'm a big Harry Potter fan!
"And when I was applying for universities through UAC I knew Sydney uni was one of the best in Australia, so I made it my first preference."
He seems well placed to make a contribution to the university's Quidditch Club, where participants run around on broomsticks in a tribute to the Hogwart's sport.
"My parents are happy for me, they are proud of my efforts and all my hard work has paid off. That's the main thing - that I made my parents happy."
University entrance standards continue to fall
University entrance standards have continued to slide, an eight-year analysis of university admissions data has revealed, as more than 44,000 students received offers to study at a NSW university on Wednesday.
Demand for degrees in communications and media, and the creative and the performing arts has fallen, according to a comparison of the minimum entry scores required across more than 20 fields of study since 2010.
Average ATAR [Australia Tertiary Admissions Rank] cut-offs for courses in these two fields of study tumbled nearly seven points since 2010, reflecting a scarcity of jobs available in these areas.
By contrast, demand for combined degrees in medicine and medical science has surged, with the average cut-off for courses in this field of study rising more than four points since 2010. Degrees in social sciences also became more popular, with the cut-off for courses in this field of study climbing four points.
A comparison of 2016 and 2017 figures reveals education and teaching has climbed 2.4 points after the NSW government instituted tough new minimum academic standards to raise the quality of teachers in the state's classrooms.
This year, the steepest fall in advertised ATAR went to a Bachelor of Medical Radiation Science at Charles Sturt, which tumbled 17.1 points to 70.
Three of the courses with the highest advertised ATAR cut offs this year were at UTS.
One combined a Bachelor of Creative Intelligence and Innovation, with Fashion and Textiles, while another combined the same bachelor's degree with Architecture. All three required a perfect ATAR of 99.95.
Good evening and welcome to our live coverage
It's been two months since the last HSC students put down their pens, a month since more than 70,000 students received their HSC results, and today more than 50,000 students are anxiously awaiting whether they will receive an offer for a place at university.
Join us as we cover all the courses, universities and fields of study, that have been taken through eight years of data analysis to reveal how the state's students choices, have real world outcomes.
From 6pm phones will start buzzing across the state.
Got a story? Get in touch eryk.bagshaw@fairfaxmedia.com.au or leave a note in the comments
1 new post(s) available. View post(s) Dismiss