Getting a low ATAR might be your worst nightmare. What happens if that nightmare becomes true? How do you go about turning your worst nightmare into your dream degree?
If you look around for them, you can find many alternate pathways to getting into your dream course at uni that aren’t just you meeting the ATAR cut-off. In other words, there’s still plenty to be optimistic about even if you get a low ATAR.
With the help of Tom’s own success story of getting into Macquarie, we’ll answer the age-old question: is getting a low ATAR the be-all and end-all?
The shocking (or not so shocking) answer is absolutely not!
Tip #1: Look at your experience and co-curriculars
Tip #2: Organisation is key
Tip #3: Don’t be scared of your goal
Missing the Cut-off, but Getting an Offer
For the whole of his HSC year, Tom studied just like the rest of us. He was expecting an ATAR of around 78.
But, his actual ATAR ended up being 20 points below that — it ended up precisely sitting at 58.3!
It would’ve been easy to feel bitter and cynical about the HSC system and university applications, but Tom grappled with his challenge head-on. “My motivation never ended,” he tells us, “so I just kept working and stuff and, you know, just went through.”
As Tom learned, universities want you to get in. It’s basically a win-win situation when more students enrol in their courses. That’s what exactly happened with Macquarie and two other universities.
Tom’s Early Entry Offer at Macquarie
Tom ended up accepting an early entry offer for his dream degree, a Bachelor of Commerce and Bachelor of Arts at Macquarie University (which has a cut-off of 82).
“The second early entry came out, like within the hour, I had already applied,” Tom says.
Wait, so how could he apply so quickly? With a lot of preparation.
Before the applications even opened, Tom had written all his letters, drafted his responses, taken his photo, updated his LinkedIn resume, and polished up his C.V. — he made sure that he was on top of all the bits and bobs when it came to the application process.
Tom’s stellar nonacademic part of his life veered him toward particular uni opportunities that don’t require a certain ATAR mark. In the end, he received three early entry offers: one at UTS, one at ICMS and one at Macquarie!
But, since this amazing feat is possible for many students, Tom has given us 3 quick tips for applying for early entry courses and other alternate pathways.
Tip #1: Look at your experience and co-curriculars
Instead of feeling unmoored by his ATAR score, Tom used his incredible amount of real-world experience to back him up in his uni applications.
“I would say the co-curriculars got me that application,” he says confidently.
Tom had 12 years of martial arts and Taekwondo training under his belt (pun intended). On top of that, he was already running a couple of businesses, working a part-time job at IGA, and doing cadets during his HSC year!
These activities weren’t just things to list out on his application — Tom’s co-curriculars helped show his values, such as discipline, leadership and determination.
Importantly, Tom tells us, “It’s not just the experience, it’s also your story.”
Naturally, we want to root for the main character of a story. The people who’ll read your application will want to do the same and root for someone who has that main character potential.
You don’t need to be an open book and share all your darkest secrets, but try not to skirt around your personal motivations, your personal challenges and what makes you you.
Tip #2: Organisation is key
If you can, do everything early and remember that you don’t have to do everything by yourself.
“I basically just sat down one night and just thought if I don’t do this [apply for early entry], I’m not going to get in,” Tom says, “so better start early.”
Tom has been remarkably proactive. He started having biweekly sessions with his careers advisor since he was in Year 9, who has helped him think ahead of the game and pick the co-curriculars to help him shine out in his application.
When it comes to organisation, the ball’s in your court. Tom knew that writing everything important down in his application needed time and multiple drafts to get it right.
“I spent most of my time just writing drafts,” Tom puts simply. His first draft didn’t need to be perfect (everyone’s first draft will be pretty mediocre), but the final one was close to perfect!
Tech-wise, Tom’s also a big fan of the Google Calendars and puts everything on the app from waking up at 5:40AM to his last task at 9:40PM. This way, Tom believes, “Life will just hand itself to you”.
Tip #3: Don’t be scared of your goal
When you’re running up that hill toward your goal, don’t let the hill run up you. A lot has changed for the better since Tom first got his ATAR back, and he attests this to never giving up.
“If I was to say, I should get an early entry but I’m scared to try, I wouldn’t have gotten it,” he says, “It’s got to be like, I need to get early entry because if I don’t, I have nowhere else to go.”
Tom’s motto is simple: don’t be worried, be desperate. Putting that into practice is a little trickier and requires some reverse psychology: if there’s no other choice but to get that offer, do the things that will make you get that offer.
It’s human to have a little self-doubt, but don’t blow it out of proportion (and don’t let others’ biases think you can’t reach your goals!).
This is where your social network comes in: talk it out with friends, family, mentors or anyone you trust to give you the right opinion.
“Before Year 12, it was kind of hard. Like I didn’t really want to share my emotions with people,” he says. “In Year 12, as soon as I started talking about it [his emotions], everything went away. That kept me motivated.”
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Lynn Chen is a Content Writer at Art of Smart Education and is a Communication student at UTS with a major in Creative Writing. Lynn’s articles have been published in Vertigo, The Comma, and Shut Up and Go. In her spare time, she also writes poetry.
