SkillSPARK
SkillSPARK pilot project
SkillSPARK is a new pilot exploring a strengths-based pathway enabling students to apply for university by focusing on their unique strengths, skills and capabilities, alongside traditional criteria.
The pathway is being co-developed with the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC) and Universities Admissions Centre (UAC) in collaboration with schools and universities across NSW, ACT and Victoria, to positively reimagine their Educational Access Schemes pathways.
Why does SkillSPARK exist?
SkillSPARK offers universities a way to see more of the young person who is applying in a transparent way with evidence they can rely on.
With over 90% of new jobs requiring post-secondary education, young people need support to pursue further education. Students from low socio-economic communities are disproportionately affected by key factors in their ATAR ranking—socio-economic status, postcode, and school. The pathway aims to develop a fairer and transparent admissions pathway that recognises a broader range of skills and attributes.
Current educational access schemes allow universities to admit students using criteria beyond ATAR, but these can vary between courses and represent additional effort required by students. They also often focus on disadvantage and negative events, which can mean there is a risk of re-traumatising students as part of the application process.
Our new approach will shift this by recognising essential skills like tenacity, communication, and problem-solving, alongside academic knowledge. This benefits disadvantaged students who develop these through non-academic activities like working or caregiving, which traditional assessments fail to capture.
The pathway includes application preparation activities, application tools, and evaluation of impact/potential for broader systemic innovation.
Together, VTAC and UAC cover three jurisdictions and more than half of the year 12 cohort who apply to university each year, presenting a large opportunity for impact. Working together creates the opportunity to streamline and make current processes more transparent and utilise collective expertise to support innovation and scale.
2024 SkillSPARK pilot
For the 2024 pilot, students will be able to use the strengths assessment tool which has been co-created between the project partners, young people, and schools. The information returned to VTAC and UAC will be used to evaluate the potential of the assessment tool to enhance the admissions process in future years.
For 2024, specific schools and students have been invited to participate in the SkillSPARK pilot. If you have received an invitation email or been advised by your school, you can use the resources below to participate:
- Assessment tool (interactive PDF for completing on your computer)
- Assessment tool (printable version for completing with a pen and then scanning)
Please return your completed assessment tool to
A gude to completing the assessment tool is available in the video below: