The Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) is a ranking system used in Australia to measure a student's academic performance relative to their peers in the same graduating year. It is a score between 0 and 99.95 and is used by universities and other higher education institutions to determine admission to undergraduate courses.
To get an ATAR, you need 90 credits of Tertiary Admissions Subjects at Stage 2, including three 20 credit subjects. A valid pair of 10 credit subjects can replace one of those. Popular subjects include English, Mathematical Methods and Biology.
You can study more subjects, but only your best 90 credits count.
For SACE subjects, your grade (A+ to E-) shows how you did in that subject. SATAC builds a raw score out of 15 from your assessment results, then scales it to a score out of 20, or out of 10 for a 10 credit subject, so results can be compared fairly across subjects. Two students with the same grade can get different scaled scores, because each grade covers a range.
Your best three 20 credit subjects make up the first 60 credits. The best 30 credits from what's left make up the flexible option, which can use a 20 credit subject, half the score of a 20 credit subject, 10 credit subjects such as Activating Identities and Futures, and up to 20 credits of Recognised Studies. Some subject combinations can't both count.
Your ATAR comes from your university aggregate, which is out of 90. It adds the scaled scores from your best 90 credits. SATAC then converts your aggregate to an ATAR, which shows your rank against everyone of Year 12 school-leaving age in South Australia and the Northern Territory.
It turns each grade into an estimated scaled score, then finds your best 90 credits following SATAC's rules, including precluded combinations and counting limits. Your aggregate is converted using SATAC's 2025 aggregate to ATAR table. SATAC doesn't publish scaled scores for individual subjects, so the grade conversion is our own estimate. If you know your scaled scores, switch to that mode for a closer estimate. The conversion changes every year, so treat the result as a guide.
Choose the overall grade you expect in each subject, based on your school assessment and your expected external assessment. If you already have scaled scores, switch to scaled score mode. A grade covers a range of results, so it's a less exact starting point than a scaled score.
No. Under the universities' Language, Literacy and Mathematics Scheme, you get 2 points for one eligible subject at C- or better, or 4 points for two or more. Eligible subjects are English, English Literary Studies, Mathematical Methods, Specialist Mathematics and 20 credit languages, not including Language and Culture. The points are added to your aggregate to give a selection rank, not your ATAR, and a few courses don't apply them.
No. Your best 90 credits count, whichever subjects they come from. Some university courses have their own English prerequisites, so check the courses you're interested in.
Not all of them. Essential Mathematics, General Mathematics and Mathematical Methods are precluded against each other, so only one can count. Mathematical Methods and Specialist Mathematics can both count, and no more than 40 credits of maths can count.
No. Only Tertiary Admissions Subjects and Recognised Studies can count. Modified subjects, Community Studies, Community Connections and Industry Connections can't, which is why they aren't in this calculator.
Yes. Your 90 credits can come from up to three attempts at Stage 2, which don't have to be in consecutive years. If you studied across four or more years, SATAC uses the three that give your best result. This calculator doesn't check years, so enter the results you expect to count.
It's a guide, not an official result. We apply SATAC's rules and its latest conversion table, but that table changes each year, so 2025 figures won't match 2026 exactly. Results from scaled scores are closer than results from grades, because SATAC doesn't publish how grades become scaled scores in each subject. Our estimates are most reliable for higher grades in common subjects, and least reliable for lower grades and smaller subjects.
If you have more questions about ATAR, you should check out our blog where we cover everything you need to know. For one-on-one help, talk to our SACE tutors
