I need practical advice for what I can do with my ATAR (1 Viewer)

[thekid111]

Hey everyone, I've posted this in another section but I don't think it will get much reception there. I graduated last year with an atar of 65. At the end of the day I can only blame myself, but during that time, the whole "studying" thing felt pretty worthless to me. unfortunately a few tragic events occurring outside of my school life during yr 12 effected me deeply causing me to lose diligence and care for the HSC.

I'm back in Sydney and have gained balance of my life, I feel. I want to enter a degree in Semester 2, specifically mechanical engineering. As I said, my ATAR is 65. The lowest cut-off I can find is studying at UWS (Parramatta campus) which requires 75.

I don't know much about uni prestige however the bottom line is i'm capable of working hard. What is the course of action I need to take to study this bachelors? If it's worth going the extra length to study at a better university with a higher cut-off i'll also be prepared to do so.

I have not finalised anything through the UAC yet.

I'm not quite sure how this whole thing works, so I was thinking of my 5 choices:

Select UWS Parrmatta campus for my first priority (75)
UWS Sydney campus for my second priority (78.25)
MQU 3rd priority (80) or UTS
Random low atar course and transfer?? (to usyd or unsw?)
Random low atar course and transfer?? (to usyd or unsw?)

again, idk. that's why I'm on here for advice

I also know internships are also very important for Engineering students. Does the uni you go to effect the chances of receiving an internship? If you hypothetically took two equally high performing students from high cutoff/low cutoff unis.


BTW I did Physics, Adv. Maths, legal studies, English & Modern History in yr 12.


Anyways, thanks all. Appreciate it

 

[sida1049]

If you're willing, I think it's totally worth it to get some kind of a Tafe qualification and then enrolling into a better uni for mechanical engineering. All else being equal, you can imagine that a mechanical engineering student from a more renowned uni is more likely to land an internship. Furthermore, with an ATAR of 65, it's not certain whether you'll be accepted for courses beyond your ATAR (although it's possible).

You want to be around students like yourself who are driven, and be at a position to maximise your opportunities, and I personally think finding your way into UNSW/USYD/UTS is worth it (even at the cost of investing time into a Tafe qualification).

Good luck.

 

[thekid111]

If you're willing, I think it's totally worth it to get some kind of a Tafe qualification and then enrolling into a better uni for mechanical engineering. All else being equal, you can imagine that a mechanical engineering student from a more renowned uni is more likely to land an internship. Furthermore, with an ATAR of 65, it's not certain whether you'll be accepted for courses beyond your ATAR (although it's possible).

You want to be around students like yourself who are driven, and be at a position to maximise your opportunities, and I personally think finding your way into UNSW/USYD/UTS is worth it (even at the cost of investing time into a Tafe qualification).

Good luck.

I appreciate the sound advice

What do you think of going into a bachelors at WSU (granted I get in) and transferring universities after?

or,

Taking an arts degree at UNSW, UTS, or USYD (granted I get in) and transferring degrees internally?

 

[sida1049]

I appreciate the sound advice

What do you think of going into a bachelors at WSU (granted I get in) and transferring universities after?

or,

Taking an arts degree at UNSW, UTS, or USYD (granted I get in) and transferring degrees internally?

I'm not too well-versed in the whole transferring process; I've seen some users here claim that they look at a combination of your wam and your ATAR, while others claim that they look at whichever one's more impressive. I think you should try emailing a couple of the universities about pathways into the degree you want and see what they suggest.

 

[strawberrye]

I think it is better you try to get a qualification or start a bachelor in mechanical engineering in uni or tafe so you can see for yourself whether it is actually something you are genuinely interested in. I think having and keeping this attitude of working hard and focusing is so valuable throughout any degree, and I wish you all the best, and I honesty think that what you do in HSC is not defining who you are, you have acknowledged the experience, accepted responsibility and hopefully learnt from it, which will help you do better in the future. All the best for your UAC application