Preferences

SATAC treats each preference as a discrete application. We assess your eligibility and calculate a selection rank (if applicable) for each course in your application.

Selection rules can vary between institutions and courses. Your eligibility and selection rank might be different for each preference. It will depend on how your qualifications or other information (e.g. audition score, evidence of relevant work experience) relate to the selection rules for the course.

Read the course information before adding your preferences. Course entries contain information about the course, its entry requirements, and closing dates.

List courses in order of preference, with the course you are most interested in as preference one. SATAC assumes that your first preference is the course that you most want to study.

You must include at least one preference in a SATAC application. Use your lower preferences to list courses you would consider if you miss out on your first choice.

Your selection rank is not affected by the order of your preferences.

Changing preferences means:

You can change your preferences online via your application.

Courses may be subject to change of preference deadlines. There are also some courses with strict closing dates.

If you make changes to your preferences after specified dates you may not receive an offer. Please contact SATAC if you have questions about changing your preferences.

There may also be times where changes of preference are not available. This is to enable SATAC to prepare for an upcoming offer round.

Check the key dates for information about changing preferences.

SATAC does not charge a fee for changing preferences.

Undergraduate applicants who apply for midyear or summer semester courses will pay a higher processing fee if they add a semester 1 course after 29 September.

There is no increase in application fees for postgraduate applicants who change their preferences.

TAFE SA applications are free of charge.

SATAC will offer you the highest preference for which you are both eligible and competitive.

If you miss out on an offer to your first preference you will compete for a place in each of your other preferences in the order they are listed.

SATAC checks your eligibility and selection rank for every other preference. You are competing on this basis, regardless of where in your order of preference you or other applicants placed them.

If you reach the maximum number of offers in your application, you will not be able to make changes to your preferences or receive any more offers.

For TAFE SA applications, if you add a course with admission requirements for the first time, you may need to provide more information about your qualifications.