FAQ: Uni preferences

It’s so easy to get caught up in the stress of HSC that you forget the existential crisis you’re meant to be having about what to do after school! Seriously though, if you think you might be interested in going to uni next year, take a few seconds away from the HSC prep to put your mind to what you might want to study post-school and how to get there. Got some questions those uni preferences? Well don’t worry, we have your back.

1. Wait, remind me what uni preferences are again?

No judgement here. Uni preferences are basically when you go onto the UAC website and lock in which specific degrees at which specific universities you want to apply for. If you're at all interested in going to uni after this year, this is what you should probably be doing!

2. And when are they due?

If you want to save yourself over $100 (yes… UAC charges processing fees 😡 ), we recommend getting in before the early bird deadline which is September 29. Otherwise, you can pretty much apply all the way up until Semester 1, 2018 which is February 5. To be honest, it’s definitely better to apply sooner rather than later so you can try and get one of the earlier offers.

3. Does the order of preferences matter?

It does actually. See, there are several different ‘rounds’ of offers at dates starting from August all the way until next year. You can put in a list of preferred courses (the specific degree at a specific university), but you can only receive one offer per round which will be the first option on your list that you qualify for. What that means is you should treat your preferences as well… preferences. List them in the order starting with what you most want to do, then what would be your second best option and so on. Basic stuff!

4. How do I even know where to start?

If you know that you want to go to uni but when it comes to the specific degree you’re like 🤷‍🤷‍🤷‍, then you’re probably in the majority. It’s not easy to lock down a specific degree but there are two strategies that work pretty well.

If you want a specific career, start with that as your goal and work backwards by degree and university.

• If you want to be a lawyer, look at law degrees and sort them by what is most convenient, accessible and appealing to you. If you want to be a teacher, start researching education degrees. It’s pretty straightforward.

If you don’t have your heart set of a specific career, think about what you enjoy and start researching degrees with subjects that look interesting.

• If you like maths, look for degrees that have interesting-ish maths subjects in the early years. You might be picking a science, maths or engineering degree but you won’t be locked into that career, you just know you are starting with what you like and what you’re good at. You can always change direction as you go!

5. Should I put down a course even if I won’t get the ATAR?

That's a firm yes 👍 . You have no idea what ATAR you are going to get yet and you also don’t know what the ATAR requirements for the course will be this year. Even if the course is 10 ATAR points higher than you expect, definitely still put it down as a preference just in case.

6. Where can I get specific advice on choosing my uni courses?

Great question. As much as we love giving advice, when it comes to your uni preferences, it does help to have someone look at your marks, your interests and your strengths. You can always start with the careers advisor at school, the teacher of your favourite subject or even contact the uni you are interested in for more advice. It’s also not a bad idea to talk to someone - like your parent’s friend - who is working in the area you are interested in for some insider info.

7. What should I look for in a uni course?

When you are looking at the uni courses, you also should consider some of the basic logistics of the degree. Look at the location of your classes (some universities have different campuses), the days that your lectures and tutorials will take place and even the types of assessments involved. If you hate writing essays, it might be worth thinking twice about picking a degree where every subject has at least two essays! This nitty-gritty information can be found in faculty handbooks or on faculty websites if you want to check it out.

8. Can I change my mind once I put my preferences in?

Yep, sure can. You can effectively change your preferences at any time just like you can change your degree once you’ve started. Changing preferences is always done through the UAC website and you can do it up until the closing date for each offer round. Check out those dates here and remember that if you miss the closing date, you can just change your preferences for the next round of offers.

Remember

It’s always going to feel like UAC is asking you to pick your whole future career right now and that there is a tonne of pressure involved. Just make sure you get as much information as possible, you pay attention to the due dates for each round, you enter your preferences correctly and know that you can always change direction later on. Enjoy this little break from HSC study!