How ATAR Works in Victoria
Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE)
The VCE System
Each VCE Unit 3/4 subject gives you a study score from 0 to 50, based on your School-Assessed Coursework (SACs) and end-of-year exam. VTAC then scales each study score to account for differences in subject difficulty across the cohort. Your aggregate is formed from your Primary Four scaled scores (best English + 3 others) plus 10% increments from a 5th and 6th scaled score if available. This aggregate is then converted into an ATAR — a percentile rank from 0.00 to 99.95 showing your position relative to your age group.
Score Range
0 – 50
Per subject raw score range
English Requirement
Must include an English study (English, English Language, Literature, or EAL)
TAC Body
VTAC
Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre
How Your Aggregate is Formed
Only VCE Unit 3/4 subjects (usually completed in Year 12, some accelerated in Year 11) contribute to your ATAR. Your "Primary Four" is your best English study score plus your next 3 highest scaled study scores — these count at 100% of their scaled value. A 5th and 6th scaled study score (if you have them) each contribute an extra 10% of their scaled value. Maximum possible aggregate is about 210.
Once your raw subject scores have been through the scaling process, they are combined according to the rules above. The resulting aggregate is a single number that represents your overall performance across your best subjects.
Converting Aggregate to ATAR
Your aggregate score is compared against the aggregates of every other student in your state who is eligible for an ATAR. This comparison produces a percentile rank from 0.00 to 99.95, reported in increments of 0.05.
The rank includes the entire age cohort, not just students who completed Year 12 or sat exams. This means an ATAR of 90.00 indicates performance above approximately 90 percent of the relevant age group in your state.
Disclaimer
The information on this page is a simplified overview. Official ATAR calculations involve detailed statistical processes managed by VTAC. Always refer to the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre for authoritative information.