UCAT Results Discussion 2019

[REGULAR JOE]

Which TACs did you ask? I've called all of them and some individual unis hoping for some information but only SATAC were able to give me a clear definite answer :/ (in case you misunderstand I'm not suggesting you could be lying about 'several tacs' I'm just genuinely curious and will try contact those admission centres which provided you information again)

Hey. So I have got 3A*s, so my grades are maximum for only the TAC's that use 3 subjects, TISC, VTAC and UTAS. UTAS have told me that my equivalent atar is 99.00, and that this was the maximum achievable by an applicant that has done A Levels. Vtac and tisc also told me that mine was the highest achievable, but wouldnt give me a number. Im guessing that they're the same as Tasmania. And like you said, SATAC gave me the the ATAR. QTAC, I had to contact the individual unis seprately, and they told me mine was 99.50. I haven't yet asked UAC.

Unfortunately there is no justification for this reasoning^. For example in QLD's OP system OP1 is the highest possible, but no-one can argue OP1 is therefore equivalent to the highest ATAR 99.95. The correct logic is OP1 is approximately the top 1% thus = 99+, whereas 99.95 is the top 1/20th of 99+. They have to find ways to split OP1 into 20 ranked sub-groups and only the top sub-group is considered 99.95.

So for A Levels they'd need to know what percent of students achieve the maximum grades, then have ways to rank them into 0.05% sub-groups and give 99.95 to the top sub-group. I guess the unis/TACs here have no interest in doing all these calculations.

A1 So for A Levels, you can do either 3 or 4 subjects. My 3A*s are considered the highest possible for only the TAC's that use 3 subjects. I remember last year, SATAC and QTAC used 3 subjects and when I called them they said for 3A*s, the equivalent would be 99.95. This year, one of the unis that still use 3 subjects, uni tasmania, said mine was just 99.00 and this was the highest possible. They also said 'I would be ranked with applicants who have a similar qualification to mine for equity'. I'm concerned since MBBS ranking is on ATAR alone, and since the degree is very competitve, they'll just ignore my 99.00 even though it's the highest possible for me. Any thoughts on this would be very much appreciated!

 

[A1]

A1 So for A Levels, you can do either 3 or 4 subjects. My 3A*s are considered the highest possible for only the TAC's that use 3 subjects. I remember last year, SATAC and QTAC used 3 subjects and when I called them they said for 3A*s, the equivalent would be 99.95.

NSW students for example, to get 99.95 need an average of 95-96 marks per subject. Otoh A Levels 3A*s could be 3x of 90-91 marks which is equivalent to just above 99.0. You see why the unis are reluctant to make 3A*s = 99.95.

I think the only way you can change their mind is to obtain your A Levels raw scores instead of just the A* grades. If the raw scores average 95-96 or better submit to them that you should be given a higher ATAR equivalent.

 

[REGULAR JOE]

NSW students for example, to get 99.95 need an average of 95-96 marks per subject. Otoh A Levels 3A*s could be 3x of 90-91 marks which is equivalent to just above 99.0. You see why the unis are reluctant to make 3A*s = 99.95.

I think the only way you can change their mind is to obtain your A Levels raw scores instead of just the A* grades. If the raw scores average 95-96 or better submit to them that you should be given a higher ATAR equivalent.

My average mark is 94. I uploaded my certificate and it included my marks as well. I guess as you mentioned earlier, they aren't willing to go through calculations just for one applicant. UTAS said that for equity, they'll only compare me with applicants with similar qualifications as mine, but I'm not sure they'll do it (I think it's highly unlikely that they'll have a separate quota for the very small number of domestic applicants who have done A Levels!)

A1 replies: Last ditch effort - google UAC Table A9, divide the aggregates by 5 to get the average marks per subject for the corresponding ATARs. Print it out send to the uni/TACs requesting to align your 94 average to this table.

 

[medhopeful2001x]

99.95 & 99.40 indicate these likely were IB students. Using this coming year as example, IB results will be released on 7th Jan while Monash will send out interstate invites from 14th Jan. Note an important difference in that ATARs are calculated/issued by the TACs (i.e. easily accessed between them) whereas I believe IB results are issued by some faraway organisation. I just found this link, maybe these students forgot to request IB to make their results available to VTAC?

> Transcripts | Diploma
"You can select up to six higher education institutions (HEI) worldwide. An admissions center, e.g., Universities and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS), counts as one request.

When results are released, they will be made available to (the selected) institutes via an IB secure website, or on a paper transcript if the institute does not make use of the IB secure website."

Could also be that the two people mentioned didn’t meet the 50/50/50 threshold Monash had in place for each section of the UMAT

 

[Lyyrre]

Could also be that the two people mentioned didn’t meet the 50/50/50 threshold Monash had in place for each section of the UMAT

I honestly don't know where I keep finding all these unusual cases. They were indeed IB candidates, and they did meet the 50/50/50 as they are both studying at UNSW now. I remember I asked them whether they received Monash interviews on 18th January, and they both said no; both applied via VTAC.

 

[A1]

they both said no; both applied via VTAC.

As I mentioned above maybe they didn't request IB to make their results available to VTAC. It's not automatic like ATARs between the TACs.

 

[DrDrLMG!]

I honestly don't know where I keep finding all these unusual cases. They were indeed IB candidates, and they did meet the 50/50/50 as they are both studying at UNSW now. I remember I asked them whether they received Monash interviews on 18th January, and they both said no; both applied via VTAC.

UNSW didn't have the 50/50/50 rule, so this isn't necessarily indicative.

 

[Lyyrre]

UNSW didn't have the 50/50/50 rule, so this isn't necessarily indicative.

Yeah mb I think it was 150 minimum. In any case 93%ile and 99%ile most likely did meet the minimum, the case A1 described is more likely.

 

[ucatboy]

As I mentioned above maybe they didn't request IB to make their results available to VTAC. It's not automatic like ATARs between the TACs.

Wait this is news to me - we need to manually give our results to VTAC?? How does that work??

 

[A1]

Wait this is news to me - we need to manually give our results to VTAC?? How does that work??

This is for IB students only, as I wrote in this post > UCAT Results Discussion 2019

That's what I understand from the IB webpage, not 100% sure it is actually like that.

 

[ucatboy]

This is for IB students only, as I wrote in this post > UCAT Results Discussion 2019

That's what I understand from the IB webpage, not 100% sure it is actually like that.

I'll double check with my year 12 friends from last year about the procedure - thanks for the heads up!

 

[Ian Naga]

I'll double check with my year 12 friends from last year about the procedure - thanks for the heads up!

I can confirm that you do not need to. IBO will send it automatically to all Australian TACs including UTas. You do not have to do anything. If you are applying overseas like NZ or UK, you will have to request and pay some money for them to send it. HTH.

Regarding Lyyrre's example, I can only think that their ATAR got bumped up after a re-mark . The remark result come way too late, near the 2nd round or even afterwards which is a disadvantage for IB students.

 

[Lyyrre]

I can confirm that you do not need to. IBO will send it automatically to all Australian TACs including UTas. You do not have to do anything. If you are applying overseas like NZ or UK, you will have to request and pay some money for them to send it. HTH.

Regarding Lyyrre's example, I can only think that their ATAR got bumped up after a re-mark . The remark result come way too late, near the 2nd round or even afterwards which is a disadvantage for IB students.

Ah yes, I should clarify that the 99.40/99%ile was remarked and bumped up from the 98.95 (?) which will have affected their chance. The 99.95/93%ile never got a remark, so not sure what the case was with them.

 

[Polaris]

is ATAR of 98.5 with 87%ile adequate for an interview offer at curtin?
I ve searched up the past interview offer scores in this forum but there arent much offer informations for curtin and also my scores are kinda on the line, makes it uncertain for me to say that I will receive an offer. Its not really high, but not really low.
Also i am a local student living in perth

 

[Crow]

is ATAR of 98.5 with 87%ile adequate for an interview offer at curtin?
I ve searched up the past interview offer scores in this forum but there arent much offer informations for curtin and also my scores are kinda on the line, makes it uncertain for me to say that I will receive an offer. Its not really high, but not really low.
Also i am a local student living in perth

We have as much information as you do. If you’ve checked the interview and offers sub forums and checked the scores posted that were high enough in the past, then you know as much as we do. Curtin is especially hard to predict this year as they’ve got the calculations wrong in past admissions cycles - I suspect applicants with stronger ATARs will be more successful in the upcoming cycle than they have been in the past due to Curtin’s weightings. Good luck

 

[maldini123]

hey, just checking in before uni interview offers get sent out for adelaide medicine. Want to see if I'm in with a chance for a tertiary transfer,
7.00 GPA, 94 UCAT, Health and Medical Science (adv) second year, also been doing volunteering and extra-curriculars to talk about in the interview, what do all you guys think????? Any help is appreciated

 

[Crow]

hey, just checking in before uni interview offers get sent out for adelaide medicine. Want to see if I'm in with a chance for a tertiary transfer,
7.00 GPA, 94 UCAT, Health and Medical Science (adv) second year, also been doing volunteering and extra-curriculars to talk about in the interview, what do all you guys think????? Any help is appreciated

With those scores you should definitely land an interview and be in a great position for a place offer. The rest will come down to your interview performance. Make sure you prepare well and don't rely on the fact that you have lots of volunteering / extra-curricular experience to discuss; this is great, but there will be more things asked in the interview than this! Good luck

 

[jamesle319]

Applying for: Medicine
Application Type: School leaver
Predicted ATAR/GPA: 98.30 (predicted raw ATAR, adjusted to 99.80 with SEAS according to Monash calculator)
UCAT Percentile Rank: 97
VR: 710
DM: 740
QR: 820
AR: 780
Total: 3050
SJ: 627
Current State: VIC
Applying to: Monash
Rural Applicant: No
GWS Applicant: No
Indigenous Applicant: No
Other: SEAS, Monash Guarantee
Specific Question: So I've just found out my predicted ATAR from my school and I'm quite concerned because I understand that 98.30 is on the lower end. However, I have applied for two categories (low SES postcode and financial disadvantage). How much will my SEAS and Monash Guarantee help me in this situation?

I would also like to ask whether Monash 'discriminates' against adjusted selection ranks? Do they value your raw ATAR more?

 

[A1]

Applying for: Medicine
Application Type: School leaver
Predicted ATAR/GPA: 98.30 (predicted raw ATAR, adjusted to 99.80 with SEAS according to Monash calculator)
UCAT Percentile Rank: 97
VR: 710
DM: 740
QR: 820
AR: 780
Total: 3050
SJ: 627
Current State: VIC
Applying to: Monash
Rural Applicant: No
GWS Applicant: No
Indigenous Applicant: No
Other: SEAS, Monash Guarantee
Specific Question: So I've just found out my predicted ATAR from my school and I'm quite concerned because I understand that 98.30 is on the lower end. However, I have applied for two categories (low SES postcode and financial disadvantage). How much will my SEAS and Monash Guarantee help me in this situation?

I would also like to ask whether Monash 'discriminates' against adjusted selection ranks? Do they value your raw ATAR more?

The Monash Guarantee promises you an interview if your UCAT is above a certain value (around 85th %ile iirc) and yours is well above. I believe SEAS-boosted ATAR is on equal footing as raw ATAR of same value. Being a Vic student you will definitely get a Monash interview.

 

[jamesle319]

The Monash Guarantee promises you an interview if your UCAT is above a certain value (around 85th %ile iirc) and yours is well above. I believe SEAS-boosted ATAR is on equal footing as raw ATAR of same value. Being a Vic student you will definitely get a Monash interview.

Thanks. What are my chances for a CSP, BMP, and ERC at Monash?