Campus Review Vol 30. Issue 01 | January 2020 | Page 5

campusreview.com.au news Still got it USYD and Monash top first-round preferences in their respective states for undergrad degrees. By Wade Zaglas A ustralia’s oldest university has proved its prestige yet again, being the leading institution in NSW for first-preference applications from students looking to enter undergraduate degrees this year. However, hot on the heels of the University of Sydney was the University of Technology Sydney (UTS), surpassing the University of New South Wales as the state’s second most popular university when all preferences were considered. Information released by the Universities Admissions Centre (UAC) shows that USYD is highly regarded by high-achieving students – it was the first choice for the top 500 ATAR students and for a host of students with an ATAR of more than 85. It was also the top choice for highly gifted students in the top 99.9 band of ATAR. The number of high-achieving students wishing to gain a place at the university has led to an increase in the number of main- round offers – 6156. This is an increase of 740 places on last year. “In the last few years, we’ve undertaken an ambitious reform program to transform our undergraduate offering and create closer ties with industry, which has helped cement our position as Australia’s leading university for graduate employability and placed us among the top four institutions in the world for graduate employability,” vice- chancellor and principal Dr Michael Spence said. “It’s pleasing that our continued focus on improvement has also led to this increased demand from the highest-achieving students in the country.” In fact, USYD attracted the largest share of first preferences and had more first preferences from the top 500 ATAR students than any other university in the country. An emphasis on maintaining high standards in science and mathematics, and attracting the best and brightest, was evident last year as the university introduced mathematics prerequisite courses for 62 of its courses. “We know from our own data that students perform better at a university level for science and maths degrees when they have two units of high school maths or above,” Spence said. “Our transformed undergraduate curriculum means that our students graduate fully equipped to enter the current workforce and pursue career paths that are yet to be imagined.” Meanwhile, this year UTS surpassed UNSW in both first-round and total offers so far. The lowest ATAR selection rank for the most popular course at UTS – the Bachelor of Business – was 88, while the cut-off for the second most popular course, the Bachelor of Nursing, rose from 82.10 to 82.20. UTS’s popular Bachelor of Construction Project Management, which received the third-highest number of first preference applications, rose from 87.05 to 90.45. The cut-off for other popular combined courses such as the business and law degree rose slightly from 96.10 to 96.25, while the cut-off for its sport and exercise science degree dropped from 82.05 to 81.75 In Victoria, Monash proved to be the most popular university for Year 12 students in 2020, with the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC) showing that the relatively young university attracted more first preference applications than any other university in the state. In terms of courses, Monash’s medicine degree was the most in-demand course in the state for Year 12 students. It received the greatest number of preferences for a course – a total of 2277 applications, a testament to the reputation of its medical training. In mid-December, Monash sent 6207 first-round undergraduate offers to students in 130 courses across its four campuses. Most offers were sent to students for the Bachelor of Science (529), followed by the Bachelor of Biomedical Science (357) and the Bachelor of Arts (326). Compared to the previous year, many ATAR cut-offs at Monash have remained largely unchanged or have increased slightly, allowing more flexibility in offering second-round offers. The university’s Bachelor of Politics, Philosophy and Economics has experienced early success, issuing 21 offers with a lowest selection ranking ATAR score of 88.95. Professor Susan Elliott, Monash’s deputy vice-chancellor and vice-president (education), congratulated all students receiving an offer to study at Monash. “It is a great achievement of which you should all be very proud,” she said. “But we also know that an ATAR doesn’t define you, and it doesn’t have to hold you back if it’s not what you expected. “There are more options and pathways than ever before to help you get where you want to go.” Elliott encouraged those students looking to change their preference to take advantage of all the information and support available. More than 38,000 students have already received a first- round offer. The selection rank, or course cut-off, for most degrees at the University of Sydney has stayed the same as last year. Students with a rank of 80 will be eligible for USYD's arts and science degrees, while students will need a rank of 85 for a primary education degree, 92 for most engineering courses, 95 for a commerce degree, and 99.5 for a combined law degree. While most of the top universities slightly increased or decreased their cut-off scores, the Melbourne Institute of Technology’s Sydney campus accepted the lowest ATAR of all institutions – 18.60 for its Bachelor of Business degree and 24.40 for its Bachelor of Networking. The University of Sydney’s lowest ATAR cut-off score was 61.20 for its liberal arts and science degree, while UTS accepted students with a cut-off score of 69.05 for its music and sound design degree. At UNSW, the lowest ATAR cut-off for a course was 70 for the environmental management and arts degree.  ■ 3