Careers Adviser & Teacher Events

2024 Careers Advisers' & Teachers' Day

The 2024 Careers Advisers’ & Teachers’ Day was held at our vertical campus in the heart of Parramatta City. 

It was an opportunity for Careers Advisers and Teachers from high schools across Sydney to get the latest updates and news from Western to take back to their schools to provide course and career advice to students. 

Slides from each information session at our 2024 Careers Advisers' and Teachers' Day are available to view below:

 

2024 Careers Advisers' and Teachers' Day Powerpoint Slides

Speaker: Sophie Partridge
Director, Future Student Engagement Unit

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Speaker: Professor Alphia Possamai-Inesedy
Pro Vice-Chancellor, Engagement and Advancement

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Speaker: Dr Robert Salama
Academic Program Adviser, The Academy

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Speaker: Katie Aguilera
Associate Director, Engagement and Partnerships

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Speakers: Glenn Campbell
Chief Executive Officer, The College

Anthony Mitri
Deputy Chief Executive Officer, The College

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Book a School Visit

Our Future Student Engagement team members and Student Ambassadors can visit your school to deliver presentations and to talk to your year 10-12 students across a range of topics including entry pathways, the range of courses Western offers, scholarships, early offer programs and much more.
We are also available to attend in-school Careers Expos or Year 10 Subject Selection Evenings, as well as drop-in Q&A sessions or one-on-one consultations with students.

If you would like a school visit from one of our team members, please complete the form below and we will be in touch to confirm your booking.

Frequently Asked Questions – Parents and Carers of prospective students

Applying

Applications for university are made when students are in their final year of high school. Although programs such as Western’s HSC True Reward and UAC’s Schools Recommendation Scheme provide offers based on year 11 results, your child will need to wait until they are in year 12 to create their application and receive offers.

HSC True Reward is our main early offer program that will give Year 12 students much needed peace of mind by providing an early offer into most university courses based on their Year 11 or Year 12 subject band results. Those students that apply using their Year 11 results will still need to successfully complete the HSC.

Depending on the undergraduate degree your child is interested in applying for, they will need to achieve a minimum result or subject band in the specified Year 11 or Year 12 subjects. In addition, they are also required to make a free, direct application to Western Sydney University. We have a few offer rounds and some testimonials that you can check out here.

Here at Western, we have $20 million worth of scholarships on offer each year, which provide unlimited opportunities. It is possible to hold up to three different types of scholarships ranging from $1,000 to $50,000. Scholarships are offered in a variety of categories, these include

1.     Indigenous - Scholarships dedicated to providing opportunities for Indigenous Australians.

2.     High Potential - Scholarships recognising excellence, engaged leaders, elite athletes, Western program participants.

3.     Equity - Scholarships to assist students who have experienced disadvantages.

4.     Humanitarian - Scholarships for refugees and asylum seekers.

Our scholarships are available for students based on several different eligibility requirements which can include merit based, superior leadership, outstanding academic ability and more. You can apply for more than one scholarship; we encourage you to head over to our scholarships page to see what we have on offer.

We also have specific International Student Scholarships available, and the information can be found here.

If your child is eligible for a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP), this means that university costs will be subsidised, by the Commonwealth Government, who will pay part of the fees towards your course.

At Western, all Undergraduate courses offer CSP’s to Domestic Students (i.e. Australian Citizens, Permanent Residents and Humanitarian Visa holders). These are offered at point of admission. The Australian Government is responsible for determining the amount of subsidy that they will contribute to an Undergraduate course according to the National Priorities and by The Fields of Education (TFE).

The TFE is grouped into Student Contribution Bands (levels 1-4). You can find the Student Contribution Bands here.

To work out the exact cost of Student Contributions for the semester or year go to the Student contribution calculations page.

We use the term ‘Advanced Standing’ to recognise prior learning, for both experience and/or studies an individual may have previously done. When you apply for Advanced Standing, we will assess your prior learning and may award you Advanced Standing in the course in which you are currently studying in recognition of what you have achieved.

At Western Sydney University, we have two types of credit for previous study:

  • Pathway's credit – if you have completed a Diploma or Advanced Diploma that is listed as an approved Western Sydney University Tertiary Education Pathway, you may be eligible to claim Pathway's credit. Find out if you are in a Western Sydney University Tertiary Education Pathway and claim your pathways credit online.

  • Advanced Standing – if you have completed any previous study (Diploma, Advanced Diploma or Degree level) which is not a recognised pathway as above.

To find out more information on what your child may be eligible for, follow this link

There are several Alternative Entry options available.Our main early offer program, HSC True Reward, provides offers to Western degrees based on your child’s achievement in their HSC subjects, rather than their ATAR. Offers are made based on year 11 and/or year 12 results.

We have embedded Diploma to Degree pathways through Western Sydney University’s The College. Students that complete a Diploma through The College will receive guaranteed entry into the second year of the associated bachelor degree at Western.

If your child is of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent, they can apply via the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Pathway Program, where they will sit English and Numeracy assessments and undergo an interview with an academic. They can then receive an offer based upon those results.

Some degrees have specific entry programs, for example our Design, Creative Industries and Architecture degrees have a Portfolio entrance option, where you can gain entry based upon a portfolio of previous work you have completed. For our Bachelor of Music or Bachelor of Creative Industries with a major in Music, there is an audition requirement as well as the ATAR requirement.

There are also a couple of other programs, including the Schools Recommendation Scheme, where you can receive an offer based upon your application and a recommendation from your child’s school and the Educational Access Scheme (EAS). You can find out more about these schemes and programs by searching for them on our website.

Terminology

A lecture is a fundamental tool at university for teaching and learning. One of our Western academics will present themes and concepts that relate to the specific unit of study you are enrolled in. It is common for a unit of study to run one lecture per week and up to 200 students can attend depending on which unit the lecture is for. Lectures vary in duration but are usually around 1-2 hours long.

Tutorials are small classes of about 25 students, which last about one or two hours. Usually, tutorials are used to discuss and debate the lecture material and have an emphasis on student-teacher interaction and class participation. The term 'tutorial' can also refer to classes like practicals, seminars, and workshops. Some tutorials have compulsory attendance requirements. Check the unit outline for each of your units to make sure you do not risk failing the requirements of that unit.

Please refer to our ‘University Terminology’ guide for a closer look at some of the terms we commonly use here at Western.

The Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) is a number between 0.00 and 99.95 that indicates a student’s position relative to all the students in their year group. Universities may use the ATAR rank and bonus points/adjustment factors to create a lowest selection rank to select students for the courses they are applying for. It is important to remember there are several pathways into university that are not based on ATAR.

Offers

Yes. They can receive multiple offers through the HSC True Reward program and general offer rounds.

They can receive one offer per round and can change preferences after each offer round to be picked up in the next round for a different course. If your child receives multiple offers they can:

1.     Accept and enrol into their main preference and leave the other offer/s.

2.     Accept their first preference and defer the offer/s for 6 to 12 months.

If you need further information on offers, please head to hsc true reward or for more information on how to apply click here

Maybe your child did not get the ATAR they wanted? Maybe your child does not have an ATAR at all? Or something may have been happening for them during their HSC year. If your child does not meet the required ATAR for their desired course, this does not mean you cannot get into university. Here at Western, we want to see you reach your unlimited potential and we have a multitude of pathways on offer for you.

Our HSC True Reward Early Offer program is based on HSC subject results, not the ATAR. If your child is does not receive the required ATAR, or is completing a non-ATAR pathway, they can still receive an offer if they have completed the associated subjects in year 11 or year 12.

We also have pathways for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and some degrees have specific pathway entry options such as portfolio submissions and auditions for our creative based degrees.

If your child is unsuccessful with both the ATAR and HSC True Reward, then The College may be an option. The College offers a range of diplomas to provide support for students prior to their entry to university. If a student completes a satisfactorily completes a diploma they will receive guaranteed entry into the second year of the associated bachelor degree at Western.

We have programs to suit everyone, to check out what best fits your needs please head to our pathway programs page.

This can depend on whether the offer was received as part of an early offer program or through a general offer round. Some programs, such as HSC True Reward, as well as specific degrees like Medicine and Physiotherapy have a deadline for accepting and enrolling. This deadline will usually be included in the initial offer email.

Most offers can also be deferred for 6 or 12 months. This means that the University will hold a place for the student in the next intake round.

All HSC True Reward offers will remain active until 8 April 2022. After this date, any offers that have not been accepted or deferred will no longer be valid.

Although the deadline may be April 8, we do recommend that students plan and accept or defer any offers before the start of their first semester. Semester 1 (start of year/Autumn intake) is due to begin 7th March 2022, in the few weeks prior to this, students will have to select their classes and attend orientation sessions, so it is best to accept and enrol sooner rather than later.

Have a look at the starting at Western Sydney University website to learn more about the transition from high school.

The College provides students with an opportunity to get a head start on their path to Western. Your child can apply for one of the University Foundation Studies or Diploma programs and be on their way to completing a university degree in no time.

Once your child has successfully completed the diploma they are enrolled in at The College, they will automatically transition into their second year of the corresponding degree at Western. Our admissions team will make contact and can help answer any questions they may have. Our Course Information Team can be contacted on 1300 897 669 to aid with any questions during this process. You can find more info here.

Support

We recommend following some of these tips

1.     Encourage them to use all the resources they have available such as our free HSC Study Sessions.

2.     Ask them to teach you  – this can help reinforce what they have learned and identify any gaps in their knowledge.

3.     Remind them not to study ALL the time, balance is key

4.     Ensure that they are well fed and get enough sleep

5.     Inform yourself about further study options, for example attending webinars and reading course guides or checking out early offer programs

6.     Talk to friends and family who are working and/or studying in similar fields to gain experience

7.     Remember that the HSC is only a test, and it is never too late to start studying.

It is important to continue browsing institution websites and using course guides to discover more. Comparing your child’s current interests with different jobs and degrees is an effective way to map out a pathway to success. We encourage you to attend as many Open Days and Webinars as you can, call our contact services team. Developing a good relationship with Careers Advisors is important and working with them to create a Plan B and C. Most importantly we encourage you to keep asking questions.

Yes, Western Sydney University offers a wide range of on-campus accommodation. All our villages are self-catered and full furnished with 24-hour support available. The accommodation has on-campus experiences such as cultural food nights, movie nights and community gardens. Follow the link to find out about pricing and availability.

Western is proudly known for its student-centred ethos and its support systems are an example of that, these can be either face-to-face or online. Whether this is through bridging programs, workshops on public speaking and time management or Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS), we are here to help our students and make the transition to university as smooth as possible.

StudySmart is a service we have available for students of Western, this gives them the opportunity to gain guidance from an academic advisor in areas such as Mathematics and English.

We have a few support systems available to help you find your unlimited – check out the Contact Service Centre (1300 897 669) for more information OR head to this link.

At Western, students have access to several wellbeing services available. Student Central is the first point of contact for enquiries and advice for our enrolled students. Our aim is to support and guide students through their journey. We have a Counselling Service, Disability Service, Badanami Centre for Indigenous Education, CareerHub, MATES and Student Welfare. Students with disabilities and/or illnesses can access the disability service to receive assistance while at Western. This includes a range of conditions, such as physical disabilities, chronic illnesses, mental health conditions (such as anxiety), ADHD, autism and more.

You can find the full list of our support services here.

Contact Schools Engagement