How to apply for courses

When to apply

Applications for course places are currently closed. Applications for the mid-year intake open in April. Visit applying to study mid-year for further information on who can apply, researching courses and mid-year offers.

*Some courses may fill their quotas prior to January round 2. Your chances of receiving a course offer in this and subsequent rounds will vary for each course.

All dates and deadlines are available on the VTAC Dates page.

How to apply for courses through VTAC

To apply for courses through VTAC, follow the steps below.

1. Prepare to apply

The VTAC course application allows you to apply for up to eight courses in order of preference, however you can only receive one offer in each 'offer round'.

Before you begin your application, make sure you:

• meet the entrance requirements for each course you want to apply for, and
• have all your details close to hand. For example, details about your educational history, student numbers, any required visa details.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you complete your application accurately, answer all relevant questions and provide the required information. If you provide incorrect information or omit information such as current and previous studies, you may jeopardise your chance of receiving offers, or any offers you receive may be withdrawn.

2. Create an account

Before you can apply for courses, you must create a VTAC account. Click on the login button and then Sign up now. You will need to verify your email address.

3. Complete your profile

This is where you provide us with personal and contact details, your citizenship status and education background so we can determine the courses you are eligible for. For more information, see Completing your profile.

4. Select courses

The button for applying for courses will be available on your dashboard after completing your profile. You can also access the course application under My course preferences in the menu.

1 Choose at least one institution

On the Select courses screen, you can must choose at least one to institution to search for courses. You can also filter the search by qualification but this is optional. After choosing your options, click on the apply filter button.

2 Filter by course name, course code or qualification

The search field above the list of courses provides a further option to reduce the number of courses in the list. For example, enter the word science to see all the science courses at your chosen institutions. If you know the course code, you can enter that here too.

5. Add courses to your preference list

Click on the plus icon to add a course to your list. You can enter up to eight course preferences. You also have the option to view the course information and check that you are selecting the correct course.

When listing course preferences, you must ensure you meet prerequisites and complete all relevant entrance requirements for each course you list. See Entrance requirements.

Also check your course codes carefully. Some courses have more than one course code, so when adding courses make sure you include the correct code. The wrong code could result in you applying for the wrong course, the wrong campus or the wrong fee type, and missing out on the course you want. Things to look out for include:

• codes for full-time and part-time options. For many courses the same course code applies for both full-time and part-time study methods. However, some courses have separate codes for full-time and part-time options, therefore to apply for both the full-time and part-time options you must list the course twice with the two different codes.
• codes for course fee type. The final digit of the VTAC course code (1, 2, 3 or 4) shows you the type of course fees you will be required to pay if you get an offer. For information about the different fee-types, see Course codes and fee types .
• codes for multiple qualifications. Some course codes apply to more than one qualification. For example, a Certificate IV, Diploma or Advanced Diploma in the same area. For most of these courses, the same course code applies to all qualification levels, therefore you only need to list the course code once. The qualification level is established at the time of enrolment. However, some courses have separate codes for each qualification. In these instances, you must list the specific code for the qualification, or each of the qualifications, you wish to apply for.

6. Arrange courses in order of preference

Always list courses in order of preference!

The course you want the most should be listed as your number one preference, then list your second most wanted, third most wanted and so on. If you change your mind, you can add, delete or re-order your courses any time before the course application closing date and other change of preference periods.

Don't make the mistake of listing your course preferences in the order you think you will get into them. Selection authorities may make multiple offers to the same applicant, but you will only receive an offer for the highest offered course on your preferences. If you don't list courses in the order you most want to study them you may end up missing out on the course you most want to do.

You can also move your preferences up and down the list or remove them if you are no longer interested or made a mistake. Course preferences should be listed in the order you would most like to study, with your highest preference at the top. Don't worry if you are not sure at this stage - you can change your preferences after you have submitted your application at no additional charge and as many times as you like. For more information see Changing your course preferences.