Bachelor of Arts

Source: https://study.unimelb.edu.au/find/courses/undergraduate/bachelor-of-arts/entry-requirements/#nav Parent: https://study.unimelb.edu.au/find/courses/undergraduate/bachelor-of-arts

Undergraduate

Bachelor of Arts

• 1in Australia for Arts and Humanities

• 19in the world

• Course code: B-ARTS

• VTAC code: 3800538001

Domestic student Change

Duration

3 years full time / 6 years part time

Mode (Location)

On campus (Parkville)

Intake

February, July\ Key dates

Fees

Commonwealth Supported Places (CSPs) available\ Learn more

Entry requirements

88.00 - Guaranteed ATAR 2026 \ 86.00 - Lowest selection rank 2025 (guide only)\ View full entry requirements

Entry schemes

Access Melbourne is available\ Learn more

How to apply

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Entry requirements

Entry requirements

Admission requirements

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You're considered a domestic student if you're an Australian or New Zealand citizen, an Australian permanent resident, or have a permanent humanitarian visa. This applies even if you're studying abroad or have dual Australian citizenship.

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Admission criteria

This information will help you find the most useful and relevant admission and selection requirements based on your circumstances.

• Completed secondary education recently (within the past two years)

• This is information for applicants with recent secondary education (within the past two years)

Applicants are selected according to academic merit, in the form of the ATAR or notional ATAR calculated by the relevant Tertiary Admissions Centre. Courses which select primarily on ATAR will have minimum ATARs set in advance, and you can only be selected below this point if you have additional criteria to be considered.

The standard required to receive an offer may be above the minimum ATAR. It is determined by the number of applications and the number of places available.

External assessment is a key component required in all qualifications approved as entry pathways to the University of Melbourne. For this reason, you’ll need an ATAR or notional ATAR for courses which select primarily on ATAR, and study scores to satisfy prerequisites (not simply completing the subject).

Please note: The University of Melbourne does not make ATAR adjustments for VCE graduates who have met the requirements of the VCE - Baccalaureate. For more information about this award, refer to the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority.

##### Prerequisites

All applicants must satisfy the course prerequisites. Usually this is achieved through the relevant Australian Year 12 subject but there are other ways you can satisfy prerequisites.

##### Criteria that may apply in addition to ATAR

If you didn't meet the lowest selection rank, factors may be taken into consideration in addition to your ATAR or notional ATAR:

##### Access Melbourne

Circumstances described in your equity schemes application. For some applicants, selection guarantees may apply. For all applicants eligible for Access Melbourne, offers are regularly made significantly below the lowest selection rank offered to and the minimum ATAR. Check if you are eligible for Access Melbourne.

##### Elite Athletes and Artistic Performers Entry Scheme

Additional consideration is given on an individual basis based on the circumstances described in your Elite Athletes and Artistic Performers Entry Scheme application. For some applicants, selection guarantees may apply. For all applicants eligible for the Elite Athletes and Artistic Performers Entry Scheme, offers may be made below the lowest selection rank offered to. Find out about the scheme.

Adjustments for the following criteria are already made as part of the ATAR calculation and we do not adjust for:

• Extension studies undertaken as part of Year 12
• Bonus points for completed language subjects.

##### Personal statements

Only relevant work and community experience will be considered and only where work experience is specified in the course selection criteria.

#### ATAR-based admission information for Semester 1 2024

*All students who achieve the specified guaranteed ATAR, meet the course prerequisites and are school-leavers (that is, students applying to start this course immediately after high school) will be offered a place.

#### ATAR profile of those offered places in the Bachelor of Arts wholly or partly on the basis of ATAR in Semester 1, 2024 (includes data also for any Bachelor of Arts Graduate Degree Package offers, if applicable). Does not include consideration of student background and equity.

• Completed some or all of a higher education qualification

• This information is for applicants with higher education study from the last seven years (excluding extension studies taken as part of Year 12).

If your last study was more than seven years ago, see the information about non-school leaver entry in the section for applicants with work and life experience below.

Applicants are selected according to academic merit, usually in the form of the weighted average mark.

##### Your weighted average mark (WAM)

If you have completed any higher education study, a weighted average mark (WAM) (weighted according to the point value of the individual subjects) is calculated. Your WAM is calculated across any undergraduate and graduate coursework study you have undertaken. Any research study undertaken is considered in addition to your WAM. Instructions on how to calculate a WAM

##### If you have less than a year (1 EFTSL) of higher education study

Your entire academic record is considered and both your ATAR (or other final secondary result) and your WAM will be considered.

If you’ve completed less than a year (1 EFTSL) of higher education study and don’t have a secondary qualification assessed by the University as equivalent to the VCE, you won’t be eligible for entry. You may be eligible, however, under non-school leaver entry, see the section for applicants with work and life experience below.

##### If you have a year (1 EFTSL) of higher education study

Generally, your WAM will be primary factor in assessment, particularly if your study is in a relevant discipline.

##### If you have more than a year (1 EFTSL) of higher education study

WAMs will be calculated across all your higher education study and across the last year (1 EFTSL) and the higher of the two will be considered in assessment. If the points equating to the last EFTSL fall within a study period (e.g. a semester) then all subjects within that study period will be included in the calculation.

The information provided in your VTAC personal statement regarding your motivation in applying for the course and your study and career goals will also be taken into consideration.

##### VTAC personal statements

Some elements of your VTAC personal statement may be considered during assessment:

• Relevant work and community experience will be considered only where work experience is specified as part of the course selection criteria
• Explanations about why the WAM does not truly represent your potential:
  • Difficult circumstances - we would typically assume that these have been dealt with via special consideration and other internal mechanisms at your previous institution. If this is not the case, you can describe the issue and the impact it had in a personal statement and attach independent supporting documentation to corroborate your claim.
  • Please note: if you have previous higher education study you are not eligible for Access Melbourne (excluding extension studies done as part of Year 12 and applicants eligible for non-school leaver entry). For most applicants with higher education study, we do not look at information provided in the VTAC equity schemes and scholarships application, only at information provided in the personal statement.
• If you believe your performance was impacted by the discipline you were studying and you are now seeking a ‘fresh start’, you can mention this in this form. If your higher education study was consecutive, recent, not more than a year, and your secondary results are above the level required for entry, then in some cases you may be assessed mainly on your secondary results.

If you have completed more than a year of tertiary study, details about your motivation in applying for the course and your future study and career goals will be considered.

##### Prerequisites

All applicants must satisfy the course prerequisites. Usually this is achieved through the relevant Australian Year 12 subject but there are other ways you can satisfy prerequisites, including through the completion of approved tertiary subjects

There is no time limit for satisfying an English prerequisite but other prerequisites must generally be satisfied within the last 10 years to ensure the knowledge is current.

##### Advanced standing (credit)

Advanced standing (sometimes known as credit or recognition of prior learning) may be awarded based on prior study. It is not awarded for work experience in undergraduate degrees. Learn more about Advanced Standing.

• Completed some or all of a VET qualification

• This information is for applications who have completed all or some vocational education and training (VET) study from the last seven years.

If your last study was more than seven years ago, see the information about non-school leaver entry in the section for applicants with work and life experience below.

To be considered for entry, your study must be at diploma or advanced diploma level and in a discipline relevant to the course you are applying for. If this is not the case, assessment will be based on other study completed (typically secondary results).

Applicants are selected according to academic merit, usually in the form of the weighted average mark.

##### Your weighted average mark (WAM)

If you have completed a diploma or advanced diploma in a relevant discipline a weighted average mark (WAM) (weighted according to the point value of the individual subject) will be calculated. Qualifications which are not graded (for example, where only competency results are awarded) are not suitable for entry as assessment is based on the WAM. Instructions on how to calculate a WAM

##### Access Melbourne

If you’ve undertaken vocational education and training (VET), you can apply through Access Melbourne, our equity entry scheme.

##### Personal statements

Only relevant work and community experience will be considered and only where work experience is specified as part of the course selection criteria.

##### Prerequisites

All applicants must satisfy the course prerequisites. Usually this is achieved through the relevant Australian Year 12 subject but there are other ways you can satisfy prerequisites.

There is no time limit for satisfying an English prerequisite but other prerequisites must generally be satisfied within the last 10 years to ensure the knowledge is current.

##### Advanced standing (credit)

Advanced standing (sometimes known as credit or recognition of prior learning) may be awarded based on prior study. It is not awarded for work experience in undergraduate degrees. Learn more about Advanced Standing.

• Applicants with work and/or life experience

• Applicants in this category typically fall into one of the following categories:

• Non-school leaver entry for applicants whose secondary education was completed over two years ago and/or any tertiary study was more than seven years ago

• Applicants with an overseas secondary qualification
• Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander applicants who don’t fit into the above categories but are assessed as likely to succeed in the proposed course. (See additional information for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the section below).

The Selection Committee may seek further information to clarify any aspect of an application in accordance with the Selection and Admission Policy.

Additional information

• Advanced standing
• Advanced standing (sometimes known as credit or recognition of prior learning) may be awarded based on prior study. Advanced standing is not awarded for work experience in undergraduate degrees.

The University has a range of credit agreements with other tertiary education institutions. Use our credit tool to calculate how much credit you may be eligible to receive when you apply for Advanced Standing.

How to apply for Advanced Standing

• Domestic applicants with overseas qualifications
• If you are currently completing your secondary school studies outside Australia, please see more information about the application process.

Information for domestic applicants with overseas qualifications

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People
• We are committed to improving participation in higher education by Indigenous students. If you tell us you are of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent (through your VTAC course application and/or the VTAC equity schemes application), your status will be verified by Murrup Barak, the Melbourne Institute for Indigenous Development.

Once verified, an assessment will be made to determine whether you are likely to succeed in the course you apply for. The usual entry requirements and entry standards for the course will not necessarily apply. However, they will be considered as part of the assessment of whether you are ‘likely to succeed’. When determining your ‘likelihood to succeed’, the additional support available through Murrup Barak and the Wilin Centre will be taken into consideration.

Indigenous applicants regularly receive offers when their ATAR (or notional ATAR) is significantly below the lowest selection rank to which an offer was made and the minimum ATAR for a course. Indigenous Australian applicants could be eligible for guaranteed entry through our entry scheme, Access Melbourne.

• Student profile of the Bachelor of Arts
• The table below gives an indication of the likely peer cohort for new Bachelor of Arts students at the University of Melbourne. It provides data on students who commenced undergraduate study and were enrolled after the census date in Semester 1, 2023. It includes data for students offered the Bachelor of Arts, in combination with data also for any corresponding Bachelor of Arts Chancellor’s Scholars Program and/or Graduate Degree Package offers (if applicable).

<5 - the number of students is less than 5.\ N/A - students not accepted in this category.\ N/P - not published, the number is hidden to prevent calculation of numbers in cells with less than 5 students.

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