Step 1: Understanding what a foundation programme is

Year 12It is equivalent to China’sYear 12— something most people have a sense of. But what exactly is a foundation programme?

As the first step towards entering an Australian university,a foundation programmeprovides academically accredited, professionally recognised coursework, and gives studentsa preparatory programme before formally entering university— helping international students better adapt to the university life ahead.

A foundation programme is essentially a parallel curriculum to Year 12 in Australia.Students can choose from a range of subjects, which arespecifically designed to meet university entry requirements. During the foundation programme, students need tochoosetheir field of study, and can select their study direction based on their planned undergraduate programme.

Step 2: Australia’s university entry examination system

Although the foundation programme is equivalent to Year 12, the pathway into university is completely different.

For Year 12 students:

For students in Year 12, entering universityrequires sitting the equivalent of a university entry examination.

The name of this exam differs from state to state.In NewSouth Wales (where Sydney is located), it is called the HSC (Higher School Certificate),which is a proficiency examination for secondary school graduates administered by the NSW Education Standards Authority. InVictoria (where Melbourne is located), it is called the VCE (Victoria Certificate of Education). Although the names differ, the nature of the exams is essentially the same, and they are recognised by universities across Australia.

The following discussion focuses primarily on the HSC in New South Wales.

So what does Australia’s university entry exam cover?

The examination content consists ofcompulsory subjects (English) and a selection of elective subjects (languages, maths history, etc.)making up8 subjects in total. The HSC is acompetitive, rank-based examination, in which results are expressed as a percentile score out of 100.

Australian universities generally admit Year 12 graduates based on each applicant’s ranking.Every university publishes a minimum entry score after the exam each year, and only students who meet that score have a chance of gaining admission to their chosen university.

The process in New South Wales is:Submit preferences → Sit the examination → Receive results

Unlike Year 12,the foundation programme uses a pass/fail assessment model, which means that for students who transfer to a foundation programme after completing Year 11, the pathway to university is: achieving the required score set by the university by the end of the foundation programme.In a foundation programme, your ranking has no bearing on your result — all that matters is scoring high enough!

In other words,“a foundation programme is a competition with yourself, whereas the HSC is a competition against others”For almost all international students,transferring to a foundation programme after completing Year 11 is one of the most accessible pathways into a prestigious university.

——Go8——

Australian National University (ANU): ANU Group College

National ranking: 1     QS ranking: 27

University of Melbourne (UMEL): Trinity College

National ranking: 2     QS ranking: 37

University of Sydney: Taylors College

National ranking: 3      QS ranking: 38

University of New South Wales (UNSW): UNSW Global

National ranking: 4      QS ranking: 43

University of Queensland (UQ): IES College

National ranking: 5      QS ranking: 47

Monash University (MONASH): Monash College

National ranking: 6      QS ranking: 58

University of Western Australia (UWA): Taylors College Perth

National ranking: 7      QS ranking: 93

University of Adelaide (UA): University of Adelaide College

National ranking: 8      QS ranking: 108

——Other well-known universities——

University of Technology Sydney (UTS): UTS Insearch

QS ranking: 137

RMIT University (RMIT): RMIT College

QS ranking: 190

Deakin University (DEAKIN): Deakin College

QS ranking: 195

Macquarie University (MQ): MQ International College

QS ranking: 226

Western Sydney University (WSU): WSU College/SIBT

QS ranking: 500+

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