Your preferences, made simple

You’re in year 12, with a lot on your plate: classes, assignments, tests. End-of-year exams are looming. You’re also considering what comes next – maybe further study at uni or TAFE next year. There’s a lot to think about.

While you’re focused on the pressures of getting through VCE, planning what and where to study next year, drawing up a list of your preferences can seem challenging and confusing.

If last year is any guide, VTAC (the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre) will this year manage applications for uni undergraduate and TAFE courses from around 70,000 students.

So, a lot of people are in the same boat. And there are plenty of people, places and resources that can guide you as you plan your next steps.

Your school careers adviser can outline how VTAC works and how it will process your application.

Fellow students, friends who’ve already gone through the process, and family members can provide support and advice. And there’s a mass of material on the VTAC websites and unis that can help, too.

The Students Hub at La Trobe University is a good place to start, with free, easily accessible content and handy links that are useful, regardless of what higher education institution you want to get into.

So, don’t be daunted; the process is manageable, with a bit of thought and some basic planning.

Central to your VTAC application is listing the courses you’d like to undertake, in order of preference. You can list eight preferences, with your favourite option or dream course at the top. We’ll come back to this.

Drawing up your preferences might be easy if you already know what and where you want to study, if you are confident that you’ll meet the entry requirements and you’ve got a clear idea of what you’ll do once you’ve finished study.

Or, like plenty of others, you might be uncertain. Either way, the preference list gives you options.

As you consider your options, it helps if you draft a plan to guide you through the VTAC process step-by-step, as you look for courses that match what you like and what you’re good at, before you lodge your application.

You can use the course search platforms provided by VTAC and unis. As you draft a list of courses that appeal to you, step two is to consider if you’re likely to meet entry requirements based on your ATAR.

The La Trobe ATAR Calculator can help you estimate your ATAR or use your actual ATAR score to find courses that match your interests. It can also help you discover options you might not have thought about.