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Entry requirements
Admission requirements
Admission criteria
This information will help you find the most useful and relevant admission and selection requirements based on your circumstances.
- Completed secondary education recently (within the past two years)
Applicants will be assessed based on their entire academic record and the VTAC Personal Statement.
Applicants with relevant work experience may be given additional consideration. Details must be provided via the VTAC Personal Statement.
Some applicants may be required to attend an interview, complete a selection test, or supply employer references/referees as part of the selection process.
Consideration of equity, student backgrounds and previous educational disadvantage
The University of Melbourne takes into consideration equity, student backgrounds and previous education disadvantage through a number of special entry schemes, including Access Melbourne.
ATAR-based admission information in Semester 1, 2023
ATAR-based admission for the Diploma in General Studies ATAR Lowest ATAR where a recent Year 12 student offer was made (excluding students made offers through special entry schemes) 49.15 Lowest ATAR to which an offer was made (including students made offers through special entry schemes) 44.65 Minimum ATAR required for consideration (only applicants eligible for special entry schemes were admitted below the minimum) N/A for this course Guaranteed ATAR for applicants who completed Year 12 and were eligible for the Access Melbourne categories of remote or regional and/or disadvantaged financial background* N/A for this course Guaranteed ATAR for Indigenous applicants who completed Year 12 N/A for this course Guaranteed ATAR for Kwong Lee Dow Young Scholars who completedYear 12and attended an under-represented school* N/A for this course Guaranteed ATAR for Kwong Lee Dow Young Scholars who completedYear 12 and did not attend an under-represented school* N/A for this course *All students who achieve the specified guaranteed ATAR and meet the course prerequisites will be offered a place
ATAR profile of those offered places in the Diploma in General Studies wholly or partly on the basis of ATAR in Semester 1, 2023 (includes data also for any Diploma in General Studies Graduate Degree Package offers, if applicable). Does not include consideration of student background and equity.
ATAR-based offers only, across all offer rounds ATAR Highest rank to receive an offer 98.55 Median rank to receive an offer 63.10 Lowest rank to receive an offer 49.15
- Completed some or all of a higher education qualification
A foundation studies program or equivalent approved by the Academic Board including appropriate English language studies.
- Completed some or all of a VET qualification
Completion of one of the following qualifications will be deemed to be equivalent to completing VCE for the purposes of entry to the Diploma in General Studies:
- Certificate IV in Accounting
- Certificate IV in Agriculture
- Certificate IV in Conservation and Land Management
- Certificate IV in Frontline Management
- Certificate IV in Tertiary Preparation
A senior secondary program, foundation studies program or equivalent approved by the Academic Board including appropriate English language studies.
- Applicants with work and/or life experience
A senior secondary program, foundation studies program or equivalent approved by the Academic Board including appropriate English language studies.
Additional information
- Advanced standing
Advanced standing (sometimes known as credit or recognition of prior learning) may be awarded based on prior study. Advanced standing is not awarded for work experience in undergraduate degrees.
- Domestic applicants with overseas qualifications
If you are currently completing your secondary school studies outside Australia, please see further information about your application and qualifications.
Information for domestic applicants with overseas qualifications
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People
We are committed to improving participation in higher education by Indigenous students. If you tell us you are of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent (through the VTAC course application and/or the VTAC SEAS application), your status will be verified by Murrup Barak, the Melbourne Institute for Indigenous Development.
Once verified, an assessment will be made to determine whether you are likely to succeed in the course you apply for. The usual entry requirements and entry standards for the course will not necessarily apply. However, they will be considered as part of the assessment of whether you are ‘likely to succeed’. When determining your ‘likelihood to succeed’, the additional support available through Murrup Barak and the Wilin Centre will be taken into consideration.
For some applicants, an Indigenous selection guarantee may apply. Indigenous applicants regularly receive offers when their ATAR (or notional ATAR) is significantly below the lowest selection rank to which an offer was made and the minimum ATAR for a course.
- Student profile of the Diploma in General Studies
The table below gives an indication of the likely peer cohort for new Diploma in General Studies students at the University of Melbourne. It provides data on students who commenced undergraduate study and were enrolled after the census date in Semester 1, 2023. It includes data for students offered the Diploma in General Studies, in combination with data also for any corresponding Diploma in General Studies Chancellor’s Scholars Program and/or Graduate Degree Package offers (if applicable).
Applicant background Number of students Percentage of all students Higher education study (domestic) < 5 N/P Vocational education and training (VET) study (domestic) < 5 N/P Work and life experience (admitted on the basis of previous achievement not in the other categories) (domestic) < 5 N/P Recent secondary education - admitted solely on the basis of ATAR (regardless of whether this includes the consideration of adjustment factors such as equity) (domestic) 35 44.9% Recent secondary education - admitted where both ATAR and additional criteria were considered (eg, audition, interview) (domestic) 36 46.2% Recent secondary education - admitted on the basis of other criteria only and ATAR was not a factor (eg, portfolio, audition, entrance test etc) (domestic) N/A 0.0% Recent secondary education - overseas secondary qualification (not including the International Baccalaureate Diploma) (domestic) < 5 N/P International students N/A 0.0% All students 78 100.0% <5 - the number of students is less than 5.
N/A - students not accepted in this category.
N/P - not published, the number is hidden to prevent calculation of numbers in cells with less than 5 students.