VTAC for international students

Applying via VTAC as an international student

As an international student, you can apply for higher education courses, including bachelor, associate and honours degrees via the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC), if you are currently ​studying:

  • an Australian Year 12 ​(in Australia or overseas) for example: VCE, VM, HSC, NTCE, QLD Senior Certificate, SACE, TCE or WACE.
  • an International Baccalaureate ​(​in Australia or New Zealand).

Courses codes listed in the VTAC website ending in ‘3’ (e.g. 3223445153) are available to international students.

Every RMIT course has its own specific entry requirement that may include a selection task. Please check the requirements on the relevant course page or the course entry on VTAC.

Important dates for international VTAC offers

Offers for courses available via VTAC are released via VTAC offer rounds. In order to be considered for the VTAC offer rounds, you must apply and pay for your course application processing fee via VTAC by the relevant deadline(s).

International offer round Release date
December offer round* 23 December 2025
January offer round 1 13 January 2026
January offer round 2 27 January 2026
February offer round 1 3 February 2026
February offer round 2 10 February 2026
February offer round 3 17 February 2026

*VCE and selected interstate year 12 students only

Offers are emailed to applicants on the day of release and available in the VTAC account from 2pm the same day (10am for December round only). RMIT will endeavour to send official offers to international students within 48 hours of VTAC offer.

Understanding ATAR and Change of Preference

What is an ATAR?

ATAR stands for Australian Tertiary Admission Rank, and as the name says, it’s a rank, not a score.

The ATAR is a number between 0 and 99.95 that measures your Australian Year 12 results (ie VCE) against other students in your age group. 

Universities use the ATAR as a minimum entry requirement for Australian domestic and international students studying year 12 in Australia for various courses, alongside other criteria such as portfolios, auditions, interviews and more – depending on the course.

Learn how your ATAR is calculated

Understanding how your ATAR is calculated can help you plan your pathway to university.

The ATAR requirement depends on how many students apply for a course, how many places are offered, and the ATARs of these students.

If there is high demand for a course in a given year, this will increase the ATAR requirement for that year. If the demand drops off the next year, it will decrease. 

It is impossible to predict whether ATARs will go up or down from year to year. We suggest that if you wish to do a certain course, keep it on your preference list and make good use of your other preferences in order to maximise your chances of receiving an offer.

Change of Preference are periods of time when you can reorder, add or remove courses from your VTAC preference list. After ATAR results have been released, the final rounds of VTAC Change of Preference begin, and you can make an informed decision on what you’d like to study. This might be the case if you've changed your mind or you didn't get the results that you expected and need to consider a pathway option into your dream course. 

Find out what to expect after exams, how to change your preferences and get answers to commonly asked questions on our Change of Preference page.

Pathways

Didn't get the ATAR you needed? Pathways may be available

There are a variety of options for you at RMIT including pathways through vocational education courses including certificates, diplomas, and advanced diplomas. You can apply for these pathway options directly to RMIT via our online application portal

Please refer to RMIT Pathways to find the possible pathways that students can undertake.

Please note: Some courses are not available for international students intending to study on a student visa.

Entry requirements

Prerequisites

Prerequisites refer to studies you must have completed to be eligible for a course. This information can be found on an RMIT course page under Entry Requirements or on the VTAC website.

Interstate applicants and IB applicants

Interstate applicants and International Baccalaureate (IB) applicants can refer to the VTAC Interstate Scoring Conversions page to check which studies from your curriculum are equivalent to the VCE prerequisites.

Selection tasks

For some courses you need to complete a selection task as part of your application. In the VTAC guide these are referred to as selection requirements.

Selection tasks might include:

  • attending an interview
  • submitting a portfolio
  • completing a supplementary information form or pre-selection kit.

If a course requires you to complete a selection task, this will be stated under the heading Entry requirements in the course summary in Study with us, or in the VTAC website

Submitting a selection task

If you add a course requiring a selection task to your VTAC preferences, you will receive an email to complete it. You must complete the seletion task by the stated deadline to be considered for an offer.

The minimum English language requirement for RMIT courses are listed below by level of study.

Study level EAL English
Foundation studies and VE programs (Certificate, Diploma, Advanced Diploma) 20 15
Diploma of Commerce 23 20
Diploma of Nursing / Bachelor of Nursing (from 2020) Academic IELTS 7.0 (7.0) N/A
Associate Degree 23 20
*Bachelor Degrees (Bachelor Degree, Double Degree and Honours Degree) 27 25

*Some bachelor degrees may require a higher EAL / English study score.

If you do not meet the English requirements

If you meet all the entry requirements for an RMIT course except the minimum English language requirement with your EAL/English score you can:

Additional English language studies

The table below provides a guide for the number of weeks you will be required to complete an English for Academic Purposes program to meet the requirements of your chosen RMIT course.

To apply for a package that includes an English for Academic Purposes program and your desired RMIT course please reach out to our Study@RMIT team.

Achieved score Weeks of English that can be offered Intended level of course
EAL 25–26 10 Bachelor degree
EAL 20–24 20 Bachelor degree
EAL 20–22 10 Associate degree or Diploma of Commerce
EAL <20 N/A N/A

2026 pilot – alternative ways of meeting minimum English language requirements

RMIT is running a pilot for the 2026 intakes that allow international applicants to meet minimum English language requirements through the completion of one of RMIT’s approved English language proficiency tests and achieve the required scores.

The following English language proficiency tests are accepted:

  • IELTS (Academic) / IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake – Please note that IELTS (General) is not accepted for admission into RMIT university programs.
  • TOEFL (Internet Based Test – iBT)
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A))
  • C1 Advanced (formerly known as Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE))
  • C2 Proficiency (formerly known as Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE)).

Note: Tests are valid for 2 years from the test date. Tests which fall outside of this validity period will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

RMIT does not accept scores from 'at-home' or 'online' testing.

Based on the level of study to which you are seeking admission, you are required to meet the following minimum English scores, unless specified under the exception table:

Entry to vocational courses (certificate, diploma, advanced diploma)

English proficiency tests

Minimum scores required

IELTS (Academic) / IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake

5.5 (no band less than 5.0)

TOEFL (Internet Based Test - iBT

Overall score 50 (with minimum score of 5 in Reading, 5 in Listening, 14 in Speaking and 15 in Writing)

Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A))

42 (no communication band less than 36)

C1 Advanced (formerly known as Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE))

162 with no less than 154 in any component

C2 Proficiency (formerly known as Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE))

Not applicable

Entry to associate degrees

English proficiency tests

Minimum scores required

IELTS (Academic) / IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake

6.0 (no band less than 5.5)

TOEFL (Internet Based Test - iBT

Overall score 60 (with minimum score of 10 in Reading, 9 in Listening, 16 in Speaking and 19 in Writing)

Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A))

50 (no communication band less than 42)

C1 Advanced (formerly known as Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE))

169 with no less than 162 in any component

C2 Proficiency (formerly known as Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE))

169 with no less than 162 in any component

Entry to undergraduate degrees (bachelor and honours)

English proficiency tests

Minimum scores required

IELTS (Academic) / IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake

6.5 (no band less than 6.0)

TOEFL (Internet Based Test – iBT)

Overall score 79 (with minimum score of 13 in Reading, 12 in Listening, 18 in Speaking and 21 in Writing)

Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A))

58 (no communication band less than 50)

C1 Advanced (formerly known as Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE))

176 with no less than 169 in any component

C2 Proficiency (formerly known as Cambridge English: Proficiency (CPE))

176 with no less than 169 in any component

Exceptions – specific scores required

The following programs have specific minimum English language requirements for entry:

Course/s

English language proficiency tests and minimum scores required

C5417 / C5417BU Diploma of Nursing

The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) requires all applicants for the Diploma of Nursing to provide evidence of meeting the required English proficiency level prior to entry.

Please refer to the NMBA English skills registration standard for details of which tests are accepted and what scores are required.

C6188 Advanced Diploma of Building Design (Architectural)
  • IELTS (Academic)/IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake: minimum overall band of 6.0 (with no individual band below 5.5)
  • TOEFL (Internet Based Test - IBT): minimum overall score of 60 (with minimum of 10 in Reading, 9 in Listening, 16 in Speaking and 19 in Writing)
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A)): minimum score of 50 (with no communication band less than 42)
  • C1 Advanced: minimum of 169 with no less than 162 in any component.
  • C2 Proficiency: minimum of 169 with no less than 162 in any component.

BH105 Bachelor of Social Work (Honours)

BH106 Bachelor of Social Work (Honours)/Bachelor of Social Science (Psychology)

  • IELTS (Academic)/IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake: minimum overall band of 7.0 (with no individual band below 7.0)
  • TOEFL (Internet Based Test - IBT): minimum overall score of 94 (with minimum of 24 in Reading, 24 in Listening, 23 in Speaking and 27 in Writing)
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A)): minimum score of 65 (with no communication band less than 65)
  • C1 Advanced/C2 Proficiency: minimum of 185 with no less than 185 in any component.

BP320 Bachelor of Education

  • IELTS (Academic)/IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake: minimum overall band of 7.5 (with 7.0-reading, 7.0-writing, 8.0-listening, 8.0-speaking)
  • TOEFL (Internet Based Test – IBT): minimum overall score of 102 (with minimum of 24 in Reading, 28 in Listening, 26 in Speaking and 27 in Writing)
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A)): minimum overall score of 72 (with minimum communication band of 65 in Reading and Writing and 79 in Listening and Speaking)
  • C1 Advanced/C2 Proficiency: minimum of 191 with no less than 200 in Listening and Speaking, 185 in Reading and Writing
  • ISLPR Professional / Teacher Registration Module: Achievement at Level 4 in all four areas of speaking, listening, reading and writing.

BP032 Bachelor of Nursing

The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) requires all applicants for the Bachelor of Nursing to provide evidence of meeting the required English proficiency level prior to entry.

Please refer to the NMBA English skills registration standard for details of which tests are accepted and what scores are required.

BP231OST Bachelor of Biomedical Science (Osteopathy)

The Osteopathy Board of Australia requires all applicants (both domestic and international) for the Bachelor of Biomedical Science (Osteopathy) program to provide evidence of meeting the AHPRA English Language Skills Registration Standard prior to entry.

Please refer to the AHPRA website for further information on how to demonstrate the Standard and any conditions that apply.

BP321 Bachelor of Medical Radiations (all streams)

  • IELTS (Academic)/IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake: minimum overall band of 7.0 (with no individual band below 7.0)
  • TOEFL (Internet Based Test - IBT): minimum overall score of 94 (with minimum of 24 in Reading, 24 in Listening, 23 in Speaking and 27 in Writing)
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A)): minimum score of 65 (with no communication band less than 65)
  • C1 Advanced/C2 Proficiency: minimum of 185 with no less than 185 in any component.

BH102 Bachelor of Pharmacy (Honours)

  • IELTS (Academic)/IELTS (Academic) One Skill Retake: minimum overall band of 7.0 (with no individual band below 6.5)
  • TOEFL (Internet Based Test - IBT): minimum overall score of 94 (with minimum of 19 in Reading, 20 in Listening, 20 in Speaking and 24 in Writing)
  • Pearson Test of English (Academic) (PTE (A)): minimum score of 65 (with no communication band less than 58)
  • C1 Advanced/C2 Proficiency: minimum of 185 with no less than 176 in any component.

Ready to apply?

The application method you choose will depend on when you apply and the qualification you are applying for.

Apply via VTAC

You can apply via the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC) if you complete one of the below qualifications by 13 January 2026:

  • an international student ​currently ​completing ​an​ Australian Year 12 ​in Australia; or
  • an International Baccalaureate ​(​in Australia or New Zealand).

You can apply for an undergraduate qualification including:

  • a bachelor degree
  • an honours coursework degree
  • an associate degree
  • the Diploma of Commerce

VTAC applications after 27 January 2026

After January Round 2 offers are released on 27 January 2026, all international applicants (including those who applied via VTAC) can apply directly to any RMIT course. Please note that course places may be limited and availability is not guaranteed. If you have questions about how to apply please contact our Study@RMIT team.

Apply direct to RMIT

You must apply direct to RMIT via the online application portal if you:

  • are applying for a Certificate, Diploma, Advanced Diploma, Foundation Studies or English for Academic Purposes (EAP) program; or
  • you are submitting your application on or after 14 January 2026.

Need help with your application?

Our team is here to support you and answer any questions you have about studying at RMIT or preparing your application.

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Acknowledgement of Country

RMIT University acknowledges the people of the Woi wurrung and Boon wurrung language groups of the eastern Kulin Nation on whose unceded lands we conduct the business of the University. RMIT University respectfully acknowledges their Ancestors and Elders, past and present. RMIT also acknowledges the Traditional Custodians and their Ancestors of the lands and waters across Australia where we conduct our business - Artwork 'Sentient' by Hollie Johnson, Gunaikurnai and Monero Ngarigo.

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