Eligibility for Tertiary Education
In order to apply for a tertiary course a mature age student does not need to base their application on year 12 scores or previous study/ qualifications. Under current entry requirements at Australian universities and TAFE potential students are eligible to apply for courses even if they have not completed secondary school. This is also applicable to some courses run by private RTOs.
The only requirements that tertiary applicants must meet is the minimum entry requirements set by the course provider. This may include for example a folio, an audition, employment experience, Special Tertiary Admission Test (STAT) results, a statement of personal competencies. Examples of the most common form of alternate entry requirements or pathways set by tertiary institutions include:
- Special Tertiary Admissions Test (STAT)
- employment experience
- personal competencies
- foundation, bridging and university studies courses
- special consideration/educational disadvantage
To find out the minimum entry requirements for the course that you wish to study contact the course coordinator at the tertiary institution running the course, look at the course handbook produced by the education provider or log onto their website.
Refer to Worksheet 2 - Finding a course that is right for you (worksheet 2 as text 27KB or worksheet 2 as PDF 85 KB) to identify key questions to ask a course coordinator.
Justene Knight talks about
her entry pathway
into university as a
mature age student with a disability
Max Magain talks about his entry
pathway
into TAFE as a mature age
student with a disability