How to Apply for Early Entry at WSU with Your Year 11 Results

Worried about applying for uni but also feeling the stress of yet another year seemingly consumed by COVID? We hear you — it’s been a tough period, but something that might ease your stress is Western Sydney University’s (WSU) early entry program: HSC True Reward!

To give you some peace of mind for the rest of your studies, we thought we’d run you through what the WSU early entry program entails, so that you can rest assured that your exams won’t be taken over by more COVID fatigue and stress. 

If you’re keen to learn how you can score entry into your dream course at WSU before results day, then keep reading to find out!

Why should you consider studying at WSU?

HSC True Reward Program

How to Apply for Early Entry at WSU

Considerations to Make

Why should you consider studying at WSU?

First, let’s give you a bit of a background on WSU and their early entry scheme known as the HSC True Reward Program. 

WSU has various campuses spread across Bankstown, Blacktown, Campbelltown, Hawkesbury, Liverpool, Parramatta and Penrith. So no matter where you’re from, you’ve got quite a few options when it comes to picking a campus to study at!

According to Top Universities, WSU is ranked among the top 2% of universities around the world! It’s considered an Extra Large university with a faculty made up of 1,620 staff and teachers. 

You’ll have access to a range of schools and faculties including but not limited to the School of Business, School of Medicine, School of Education, School of Science, School of Law, School of Humanities and Communication Arts. 

So, it’s a great university to go to! Some of WSU’s undergrad courses that you may be keen on checking out include: 

• Bachelor of Creative Industries
• Bachelor of Business
• Bachelor of Communication  
• Bachelor of Design and Technology 
• Bachelor of Criminal and Community Justice
• Bachelor of Business and Bachelor of Laws  
• Bachelor of Engineering Advanced (Honours)
• Bachelor of Construction Management (Honours)

Take a look at all your studying options at WSU right here! 

Now what’s this early offer program at Western Sydney University that we’ve mentioned? Let’s check it out now! 

HSC True Reward Program 

If you’re looking for a way to reduce stress on results day or to take your HSC exams with the peace of mind that you’re already accepted into a great university course, WSU’s HSC True Reward Program may be a great option to check out. 

The HSC True Reward Program is an initiative for graduating Year 12 students to apply for uni courses with their Year 11 or 12 results. Maybe COVID has really thrown you off your studies or the stress of a global pandemic has hit you hard — WSU gets it and believes you shouldn’t be penalised for that. 

Your ATAR doesn’t fully encapsulate your interests, talents or abilities! 

Though something to keep in mind as you apply is that your early offer will still be conditional on you successfully completing your last exams, but with a reduced stress load. 

The HSC True Reward Program was launched in 2017 and has been a hit ever since. WSU recognises that students are much more than their ATARs. They’re firm believers that individual subject performance is a great reflection of a student’s strong points and areas of interest. 

How to Apply for Early Entry at Western Sydney University 

#1: Browse potential courses and make a best-of list 

If you’re going to get an early offer into a uni course, it may as well be a degree you’re really keen on completing! Our best advice would be to spend some time getting an idea of all the potential courses, then you can make a list of those that stick out to you the most. 

You could take the list to your school’s careers adviser, a trusted teacher, friends or family to discuss which degree would best suit your interests and abilities.

Remember, it’s best to choose a course that you genuinely like the look of, not one that you feel like you should like. That way you’re more likely to get through the entire degree rather than transferring when you realise it’s not something you see yourself pursuing. 

Like we mentioned earlier, there is a range of undergrad degrees on offer at WSU. Whether you’re interested in studying law, education, science, engineering, arts, design, there’s a course for you. 

Try and get your list to as few as possible to make it easier to apply. 

#2: See if you’re eligible for the course

Once you’ve finalised your top picks for studying at WSU, you can check to see if you’re eligible to apply depending on the marks you’ve received for a few of your Year 11 and 12 subjects. This will be dependent on your chosen degree but we’ll walk you through a couple. You can also check it out for yourself right here! 

Example 1: Applying for a Bachelor of Accounting

If you happen to be hoping to apply for the Bachelor of Accounting program at WSU, all you’d need is a B or above in Year 11 Business Studies or Economics or a Band 4 in Business Studies or Economics in Year 12. How easy is that?!

If you’ve performed well in Business Studies or Economics in Year 11 or 12 and are keen on studying Accounting, you’re good to apply! 

Example 2: Applying for a Bachelor of Arts

As another example, if you’re considering applying to the Bachelor of Arts, you’ll need either a B or above in any English subject or a B in Society and Culture in Year 11, or above a Band 4 in English or a Band 4 in Society and Culture if you’re using your Year 12 results. 

Most of the eligibility criteria follow the same patterns. You’ll need a decent mark in a single Year 11 or 12 subject that relates to the degree! It’s perfect if you’re worried your lower marks in other subjects will bring down your ATAR. 

#3: Start applying! 

Once you’ve chosen your degree and you’ve met the eligibility criteria, it’s time to get applying! Seriously, we recommend it even if you’re not sure. You don’t have to study the degree next year. You can get the offer, have a chance to think about it and then decide whether you’d like to pursue it or not! 

Now let’s cut to the chase. You’ve got 4 main opportunities to apply, so that’s 4 rounds to get potentially accepted. The first round requires you to apply by 11:59pm on 15 August. 

The second round closes on 12 September and those offers will be released on 16 September. 

The third round closes on 14 November and those offers will be released on 18 November. 

The final round is based on your HSC subject results, so closing date is 10 December and you’ll receive the offer on 17 December. 

So, you’ve got plenty of chances and we suggest that you go for them all! 

Once again, here’s the link to apply! 

Considerations to Make 

So there you go! We hope that this explains the HSC True Reward Program and the best ways to apply for early entry at WSU. If you manage to apply for the first round, you could receive your offer as early as August. 

While the HSC True Reward Program is a great way to reduce the stress of the COVID-impacted HSC exams, remember that a lot of these offers are still conditional on a successful completion of the HSC. You don’t have to achieve amazing results but you’re required to do your best. 

There are also some degrees that are not part of the HSC True Reward program — which you can find listed here.

One other thing to keep in mind is that the marks Western Sydney University takes into consideration when looking at your early entry application is dependent on when you apply. So if you apply during the August, September and November rounds, your marks need to meet the Year 11 subject band criteria, but for the December round, you’ll need to meet the Year 12 subject band criteria.

Now that you’ve got all the info you need to apply for early entry at Western Sydney University, we wish you all the best with your application!

Gemma Billington is a Content Writer at Art of Smart and an undergraduate student at the University of Technology Sydney. While studying Journalism and Social and Political Sciences, Gemma enjoys spending her time at the gym or reading about Britain’s medieval monarchy – ideally not at the same time. She currently creates and administers social media posts for Central News and writes for the student publication, The Comma. After completing her undergraduate degree, she hopes to study a Masters of Medieval History and is very excited about the prospect!