The University of Melbourne Look Beyond the ENTER

The Age, 17 August 2009

The University of Melbourne has indicated that it is considering a change to the way that it selects students looking to undertake undergraduate degrees at the university.

According to The Age, the University of Melbourne is looking into placing less reliance on students’ tertiary entry scores.

An internal discussion paper has argued that students’ Equivalent National Tertiary Entrance Rank (ENTER) scores were not always a precise measure of academic performance. In particular, the Refining Our Strategy paper noted that students ‘who suffer from systemic or educational disadvantage’ were less likely to receive high ENTER scores, regardless of their academic potential.

The paper argued that students from schools with lower average ENTER scores tended to perform better at university than students from schools with higher average ENTER scores, and suggested that ‘preparation in some schools is focused on achieving ENTER, rather than skills for university’.

The paper outlined a range of options for student selection, including:

• aptitude tests for students with lower ENTER scores
• civics tests or personal essays for students who wish to attend the university that would require the student to outline ‘the contribution to the public good they have made – and intend to make, as a result of their education at Melbourne’
• an expansion of special-entry access schemes.

The Vice-chancellor of the University, Professor Glyn Davis emphasised that no decision had yet been made, but that ‘more should be done to assist students from poorer backgrounds to get into higher education.

Professor Davis stated that ‘you've got to ask yourself all the time, “are we confident that the current ENTER system is the best way and the fairest way of getting the right students?” We haven't concluded that it isn't, but we've asked . . . “are there things we could do to supplement it to get a broader range of opportunities?”’

 

 

Back to News Page