Access UniSC | UniSC | University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia

Accessibility links

Access UniSC

Access UniSC is a scheme established to encourage participation from eligible applicants who have experienced educational disadvantage and/or who have excelled in academic and sporting endeavours.

Under the Access UniSC scheme, domestic students applying for most undergraduate programs will be eligible for adjustment factors to be applied to their ATAR score or selection rank1. Some program exceptions apply2.

All adjustment factors will be applied by QTAC. Applicants to UniSC may receive a maximum adjustment of ten (10) selection ranks across all Access UniSC adjustment schemes specified below:

QTAC Educational Access Scheme

The QTAC Educational Access Scheme (EAS) is for current and former secondary students who experience difficult circumstances that adversely impact on their studies.

You can apply for EAS as part of your QTAC application. Applicants assessed under the Educational Access Scheme will be eligible for an adjustment of up to six (6) selection ranks.

Elite Athlete adjustment

Applicants who are elite athletes may be eligible for an adjustment of up to six (6) selection ranks.

To qualify for the UniSC Elite Athlete adjustment scheme, you must currently be an athlete, coach or referee with an Australian Sports Commission (ASC) recognised sport and meet one or more of the following criteria:

  • You’re in a state development squad or team.
  • You’re in a state team or an individual competing in national level competitions.
  • You’re in a national development squad or team.
  • You’re in a national team or an individual competing in international competitions.
  • You’re a coach for a state or national squad or team, or a referee in national or international competitions.

Athletes from non-ASC recognised sports are encouraged to apply and may be considered at the discretion of UniSC.

When lodging your QTAC application, you will be asked to indicate if you are an elite athlete. If you are applying to UniSC courses, you will receive a form with your QTAC application confirmation to return to QTAC with details of recent major competitions you have participated in, as well as other relevant information about your sporting achievements and lifestyle. In addition to completing this form, applicants who are not with the Queensland Academy of Sport will also need to provide an official letter signed by their coach, team manager or sporting organisation which details their team and squad selections and highest level of representation achieved in their sport.

UniSC welcomes all elite athletes and aims to accommodate the demands of their sport in relation to study. More information is available at UniSC's High Performance Student Athlete program.

QTAC will assess the application and supporting documentation and apply the relevant adjustments.

Regional Preference adjustment

Applicants who reside in the Sunshine Coast region or in regions outside the Sunshine Coast region classified as "outer regional", "Remote" or "Very Remote" under the Australian Standard Geographical Remoteness Classification (ASGC) will be eligible for an adjustment of two (2) selection ranks under the Regional Preference adjustment.

UniSC regions for the regional preference adjustment include:

  • Sunshine Coast Regional Council
  • Noosa Regional Council
  • Gympie Regional Council
  • Moreton Bay Regional Council
  • Somerset Regional Council
  • Fraser Coast Regional Council
  • South Burnett Regional Council
Disadvantaged School adjustment

Applicants who are current school leavers from a school that has been designated as disadvantaged will eligible for an adjustment of two (2) selection ranks.

Smith Family adjustment

Applicants who are participants in the Smith Family Learning for Life program will be eligible for an adjustment of two (2) selection ranks.

Applicants indicate that they are participants in the Smith Family Learning for Life program through the Educational Access Scheme section of their QTAC application.

Year 12 Subject adjustment2

Current Year 12 school applicants who have completed school subjects specified below or the International Baccalaureate/Interstate equivalent or have successfully completed Headstart courses with UniSC will be eligible for a maximum adjustment of six (6) selection ranks. Adjustments are applied to an applicant's selection rank that is based on secondary studies only. Adjustments are not applied to VET qualifications that are stand-alone.

Subjects

  • Specialist Mathematics
  • Languages other than English (LOTE)
  • Physics
  • Biology
  • Chemistry
  • Headstart3

Notes:

1. Please note that adjustments are not added onto ATAR scores. Each ATAR is converted into a QTAC selection rank and this rank is then adjusted.

2. Exceptions:

  • Access UniSC adjustments do not apply to the Bachelor of Medical Science.

  • Year 12 Subject adjustments do not apply to the Bachelor of Biomedical Science (Accelerated).

3. Students who successfully complete a UniSC Headstart course will receive a subject bonus adjustment (1 rank per course) up to a maximum of four (4) selection ranks.

* For PDF documents you must have the free Adobe Acrobat Reader, which can be downloaded from the Adobe Download page.