Robertson Drive
BUNBURY WA 6230
Telephone: (08) 9721 5702
PO Box 500, Bunbury WA 6231
Making Informed
Decisions
Senior School information for parents and
students
MAKING DECISIONS
All young people, in Western Australia, must attend school or participate in an approved alternative
option up to the end of the year in which they turn 17 years old.
Although people are calling it "the new school leaving age" it doesn't mean young people have to actually
stay in school. In fact there are lots of options available - but current Year 10 students need to remember
that whichever option or combination of options they choose, they must add up to full-time.
Options available include:
School
Training (eg TAFEWA)
An apprenticeship
A traineeship
Community based course
Combination of school / work / training
Full-time work
Making decisions about the future is not easy. The following resources can assist in making good
decisions:
Completing a computer-based career profiling program at your school (eg: Career Voyage)
Browsing the Job Guide - hard copies available from your school or http://jobguide.dest.gov.au
Browsing through University and TAFE websites and course handbooks. Visit:
www.tafe.wa.gov.au
www.curtin.edu.au
www.ecu.edu.au
www.goingtouni.gov.au
www.murdoch.edu.au
www.uwa.edu.au
www.nd.edu.au
Visit the Career Information Centre at 2nd Floor, City Central Building, 166 Murray Street Mall, Perth
(9464 1305) provides thorough career information.
Employment Directions Network - operates within Bunbury (9792 3888). Experienced counsellors are
available to help young people obtain information about jobs and careers.
Exploring some of the numerous careers websites, such as:
My Future
www.myfuture.edu.au
Get Access
www.getaccess.wa.gov.au
Apprentices & Trainees
www.det.wa.edu.au/apprenticentre
DEFINITIONS
Senior School Courses
There are a range of senior school courses that have been developed by the Curriculum Council. These
courses are divided into List A and List B courses – students must select at least one List A and one List B
course in order to graduate and receive the WACE.
Course units run for a semester and increase in difficulty from Stage 1 to Stage 3.
Eg: English 1A, 1B, 1C, 1D, 2A, 2B, 3A, 3B.
Senior School Courses at Manea Senior College will be delivered as a pair of units (eg: English 3A and
3B) to be studied sequentially. To meet university entrance and graduation requirements students must
study four units of English by the end of Year 12 and at least 4 stage 2 courses at Year 12 level.
A full course at Manea Senior College refers to a pair of course units eg: English 1A and 1B.
Senior School Courses are assessed by the school but include an external exam for those students
wishing to proceed to university. All stage 2 and 3 courses include an external examination.
VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING (VET)
A Vocational Education and Training (VET) Pathway enables students to gain work skills and
experience. It also offers students the chance of achieving secondary graduation and completing a
Certificate training qualification in an industry area of their choice.
At Manea Senior College students participate in a Vocational Education and Training (VET) Pathway by
selecting a TAFE Industry Skill Area as part of their course selection process.
When students select a VET pathway they are automatically placed into workplace learning (WPL).
Students complete a minimum of 110 hours of work placement in industry specific areas during Year 11
and are assessed on a number of work related skills and receive accreditation towards secondary
graduation as an Endorsed Program for their achievements.
Students may be required to complete work placements on weekends, during holidays and after
school hours.
By successfully completing a VET Pathway Program students should be well placed to gain employment
or enrol in further study at TAFE.
VET programs are programs of study that combine Curriculum Council courses, qualifications from
nationally endorsed training packages and workplace learning. These pathways are suitable for those
students who have already a very clear career focus and interest in the “world of work”.
Endorsed Programs
Endorsed Programs recognise the significant learning that students experience not covered by traditional
senior school courses. Examples include: Cadets WA, School Productions, Rock Eisteddfod, Workplace
Learning, TAFE and/or university study.
There are 5 Categories of Endorsed Programs:
Workplace Learning
University Studies
VET stand-alone
Community Organisation
Personal Development
Points are allocated to Endorsed Programs based on the hours involved, the level of participation and are
endorsed through a formal process.
An Endorsed Program which equals 5 points is the equivalent to studying one senior school course (eg:
English 1A).
These programs can contribute up to 50% of a student’s WACE requirements. In other words, students
can use a combination of senior school courses (at least 10 units) plus other learning (another 10 units)
to achieve graduation.
Community Service
Community Service provides opportunities for young people to develop the values, skills and
understandings needed to contribute to civic wellbeing.
All students are required to complete 20 hours of community service in order to graduate from school.
This can be completed between Years 10 to 12.
What is it?
Activities that are undertaken for the benefit of others, for which there is no financial reward.
Criteria




Benefits others
Gives a service in an area of need
Provides opportunities for learning and reflection
Not involve payment
Activities can be
 School-oriented or community-oriented
 Organised by the school or by parents and students
 Done in school time or out of school time
 One-off or long term
 Direct involving personal contact with person being served) or indirect (food drives,
fundraising, environmental clean up)
Guidelines
 Activities that are part of the school program that are of benefit to others or have an explicit
link to the community. Eg: litter survey for the local council or preparing morning tea for the
local senior citizens.
 Social and personal development activities for the benefit of others. Eg: being part of a band
that plays at community events or performing a drama production for the local community.
 Preparation and training to participate in a specific community service. Eg: St John
ambulance first aid course, Salvation Army community challenge.
 Home-oriented service Eg: young carers who support family members with disabilities or
illnesses and take on significant responsibilities.
 Specific components of fundraising activities (check these with your CSP coordinator)
The community service program guidelines are available on the Curriculum Council website:
http://newwace.curriculum.wa.edu.au/pages/about_csp.asp
Logbooks are available at:
http://newwace.curriculum.wa.edu.au/docs/comm_service_log_book.pdf
SECONDARY GRADUATION
The aim of all students entering senior school should be to attain Secondary Graduation. This will
demonstrate that you have been successful in the program of study that you chose. Prospective
employers will favourably consider those who have successfully graduated.
All students who achieve Secondary Graduation will be eligible for the WACE – the Western Australian
Certificate of Education.
In addition, a Statement of Results will be issued to all students who complete at least one Curriculum
Council accredited course.
Statement of Results
The Statement of Results will be issued to all students at the end of Year 12.
The Statement of Results will record:



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
Qualifications achieved such as WACE and VET certificates
School achievement in course units
Achievement of endorsed programs
Examination results and school assessment for each course in which the student sits the
external examination
Completion requirements including English Language Competency and Community Service
Achievement of Curriculum Council awards
WESTERN AUSTRALIAN CERTIFICATE OF EDUCATION (WACE)
This certificate will be issued to students who achieved Secondary Graduation by meeting the following
conditions.
The WACE requirements for 2010
 Course completion
 Course achievement
 English language competence
 Breadth of Study
 Community Service
Course Completion (eligibility):
 Complete at least 20 Course units (eg English 1A = 1 unit)
 At least 3 paired units (eg: English 1A then 1B = a paired unit)
 Up to 50% can come from endorsed programs
 WACE courses: All students in their final year who are enrolled in stage 2 or 3 units sit the
exam (unless exempt)
Course Achievement:
 C Grade average over at least 10 Course units
 Must include at least 5 different Courses
 Must complete at least 3 paired units (eg: English 1A then 1B = a paired unit)
 **Inclusion of endorsed programs can reduce these requirements
 Achievement of a VET Course unit = ‘C’ Grade
English Language Competence (ELC):
 Complete 4 units of an English Course, and 2 units of an English Course must be completed
in Year 12
 Meet English language competence standard (work samples), or
 Pass the Curriculum Council English language competence test.
Breadth of Study
 Students must complete at least one course from List A courses (Arts/Languages/Social
science) and one from List B courses (Mathematics/Science/Technology).
Community Service
 Students must complete 20 hours of Community Service
Examinations
 Compulsory for students enrolled in a pair of stage 2 or 3 units in that course.
 Exemptions for VET certificate students with 3 or fewer courses at these stages.
UNIVERSITY ENTRY
Universities in Western Australia are:
 University of Western Australia
 Edith Cowan University
 Curtin University
 Murdoch University
 University of Notre Dame
Students selecting courses leading to the university entry must ensure that:
 They meet the prerequisites for each course to be studied at school
 Their commitment to study is sufficient to permit success
 They have a clear idea of the nature of the courses that they have selected, and
 They study at least 4 paired course units at Year 12 level that have an external examination
(ie: Stage 2 or above).
University Admission Requirements 2011:
 Meet the requirements for the Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE) prescribed
by the Curriculum Council
 Achieve competence in English as prescribed by the individual universities
 Obtain a sufficiently high TER for entry to a particular university and / or course, and
 Satisfy prerequisites or special requirements for entry to particular courses.
NOTES:


Western Australian Certificate of Education (WACE): Graduation requirements have been
summarised previously in this handbook.
English Language Competence: This can be met for all universities by obtaining a scaled
mark of at least 50 in an English course. Some universities have concessions to this
requirement, provided applicants have met other stated requirements.
For more information see the TISC website http://www.tisc.edu.au/
For specific details on:
2011 Admission Requirements
go to:
www.tisc.edu.au/tisc.jsp?URL=/tiscguide/undergrad-admission-req-summary.html
University Prerequisites
go to:
www.tisc.edu.au/tisc.jsp?URL=/tiscguide/prerequisites.html
What is the Tertiary Entrance Rank (TER)?
The Tertiary Entrance Rank (TER) is the basis of admission to most university courses. You are ranked
in order of merit based on your Tertiary Entrance Aggregate (TEA). Anyone who would normally have a
TEA calculated automatically receives a TER.
What is the TER?
The TER ranges between zero and 99.95. It reports your rank relative to all other WA students of Year
12 with a TEA as well as the number of people of Year 12 school leaving age in the population of this
state. A TER of 75.00 indicates that you have an overall rating equal to or better than 75% of the Year 12
school leaving age population in Western Australia.
TER (A percentile rank)
 TISC ranks students because there are more applicants than places
 Students are numbered from 99.95 down
 A TER of 96 = top 4%, or better than 96% of the Year 12 school leaver age population
 96 TER = scaled average of approximately 75% min courses



TISC assigns the TER based on the student score (TEA)
TEA is a combination of 50/50 school and exam results
TEA can be gained over 5 years for Curtin, Murdoch, UWA and no time limit for ECU
How do they use the TER?
Universities provide TER ‘cut-offs‘ each year. These scores indicate the minimum TER that permitted
university admission. These TER entry scores vary from year to year depending on the demand for and
the availability of places for school leavers.
The following table states the TER that were required to gain entry in the first round of offers made by the
four public universities last year.
University
TER
UWA
80
Minimum TER for University Entry 2008
Curtin
70
Murdoch
70
ECU
55
The minimum requirements for competitive courses have much higher entry requirements. In 2008, some
of these TER cut – offs included:
Science / Engineering (UWA) = 98.00 TER
Midwifery (BSc) (Curtin) = 99.60 TER
Sociology (Murdoch) = 91.60 TER
Veterinary Science (Curtin) = 95.40 TER
In Previous years, students with a TER as low as 63 have received second round offers for some
courses. Whilst this may encourage many students to select a university course, it should be
remembered that:
 The academic rigour of the course still remains high.
 Failure rates for first year students at public universities need to be considered.
 Employment prospects for students graduating with lower grades are not promising.
 Prerequisites: are courses or special requirements that must be successfully completed for
entry to particular university courses.
Alternative Entry to University
There are alternative entry pathways offered by some of the universities, where students do not qualify
for direct entry. For further information visit the following websites:
http://www.nd.edu.au/fremantle/index.shtml
http://uwa.edu.au/
http://www.murdoch.edu.au/Future-students/Entry-Requirements/
http://www.curtin.edu.au/
http://www.ecu.edu.au/
TAFE ENTRY
All students and their parents should look at, and think about, the opportunities to gain qualifications
through Technical and Further Education Colleges (TAFE Colleges). While, on average 35% of students
will go to a university, the majority of further training opportunities will be through TAFE.
There is a TAFE College in Bunbury and many more in Fremantle, Perth and country Western Australia,
all offering a wide variety of courses.
Entrance Requirements and Selection Criteria for Admission to Full-time TAFEWA Courses
Application to TAFE is a reasonably complex task. In simple terms all courses at TAFE have minimum
entry requirements to get into a course and if these are not met then an application is rejected.
All TAFE courses require the completion of Year 10 as well as minimum entry requirements. These
minimum entrance requirements are different for each course. They are only expressed in the areas of
Mathematical Skills and Communication Skills and are shown as dots:
•
••
•••
••••
Basic skills
Developed skills
Well developed skills
Highly developed skills
To calculate where your son/daughter is on the scale of dots, the TAFE website www.tafe.wa.edu.au has
a skills calculator where the subject level is entered, your son/daughter’s grade is entered and the level
of dots is calculated.
Competitive and Non Competitive Courses at TAFE
Most courses at TAFE are Non Competitive, ie as long as you have met the minimum entrance
requirements you should be accepted. However it should be noted that courses can change to a
competitive course if there are more applicants than places.
If a course is competitive (as indicated in the TAFE handbook) then not only minimum entrance
requirements have to be met but selection criteria have to be addressed. Basically with selection criteria
your son/daughter is marked out of 100 points. It is worth noting that the completion of an AQTF
qualification (a TAFE qualification) really gives those students a distinct advantage.
TAFEWA
Selection Criteria
Maximum Score = 100 Points
Qualification Pathway
Maximum Score = 29 Points
Scoring is based on an Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) qualification according to the
values listed
AQF Qualification
Certificate I
Certificate II
Certificate III
Certificate IV
Diploma
Advanced Diploma,
Associate Degree,
Graduate Diploma,
Bachelor degree or
above
Complete
qualification in
the same field
of study*
20.5
22
24.5
26
27.5
Points
Complete
qualification in
other field of
study
16
17.5
19
20.5
22
Incomplete
qualification in
the same field
of study
7.5
9
10.5
12
14.5
Incomplete
qualification in
other field of
study
4
5.5
7
8.5
10
29
24.5
16
11.5
Work Experience/Employment
Maximum Score = 29
Scoring is based on 0.002 points per hour worked.
Work experience/employment covers:

Paid/unpaid work

Full-time/part-time work

General work experience and work experience in school and VET programs and voluntary
work

Community service obligations
Secondary Education/Skills Development
Maximum Score = 42 Points
Scoring is based on the best three 2 course ** unit combinations. One of these courses must
be English, English Literature or English as an Additional Language/Dialect.
OR
Portfolio demonstrating evidence of skills development.
Important: scoring for certain qualifications within the arts and entertainment industry
area is based ONLY on a specific portfolio of evidence.
*The same field of study refers to any qualification in the same occupational group as published
in the TAFEWA Full-time Studies Guide.
**Course refers to a Curriculum Council developed course of study.
FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE
$100 Government Subsidy
A subsidy of one hundred dollars is automatically deducted from charges for eligible students attending
secondary school.
Secondary Assistance Scheme - Clothing and Educational Program Allowances
The Clothing and Educational Allowance is available to those eligible claimants who hold one of the
following cards – Centrelink Pensioner Concession Card, Centrelink Family Health Care Card (not a
student’s card) and Department of Veterans Affairs Pensioner Concession Card.
In 2008 the allowances were:
Educational Program Allowance
Clothing Allowance
$135.00 per eligible student (paid directly to the school)
$115.00 per eligible student
Allowance is paid up to and including the year the student turns 17 years of age.
Further information and application forms will be available from the school in February 2009 and eligibility
assessed at the time of application.
Youth Allowance
Youth Allowance is financial assistance available to secondary and tertiary students of 16 years and
over. Applicants are means tested to see if they are eligible. Applications and further information should
be sought from Centrelink.
Abstudy
This grant is available to Aboriginal full time students at an approved secondary school. Applications and
enquiries should be made to Centrelink.
It Pays to Learn Allowance
The government provides an allowance of $200 to parents in public schools in Year 11 or 12 who are
turning 16 or 17 in the current school year. This allowance is intended to assist parents with the costs
of schooling, including the payment of compulsory course charges which apply in Years 11 and 12.
Parents are able to apply for this allowance at the public schools attended by their children.