As Australia uses a Federal system of government, responsibility for education, and admission to Technical and Further Education colleges and undergraduate degrees at universities for domestic students, are in the domain of state and territory government (see Education in Australia). All states except Tasmania have centralized processing units for admission to undergraduate degrees for citizens of Australia and New Zealand, and for Australian permanent residents; however applications for international and postgraduate students are usually accepted by individual universities. The Australian government operates the Higher Education Contribution Scheme (This has been replaced by the very similar HECS-HELP - Higher Education Loan Program) for undergraduate students, so admission is rarely limited by prospective students' ability to pay up-front. All states use a system that awards the recipient with an ATAR, and the award of an International Baccalaureate meets the minimum requirements for admission in every state. ATARs are awarded based on the level of attainment in each State's individual secondary schooling exams (such as the NSW HSC). For individuals without an ATAR, or recent secondary schooling certificate, the Special Tertiary Admissions Test is used as the standard test to provide an ATAR. The maximum possible ATAR is 99.95, indicating that the student has achieved better than 99.95% of their peers.
New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory
The Universities Admissions Centre (UAC) processes applications for admission to most undergraduate courses at participating institutions, mainly in NSW and the ACT.
It also:
processes applications for admission to many postgraduate courses
calculates the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) and notifies NSW HSC students of their ATAR
administers tertiary admissions tests, such as the Special Tertiary Admissions Test (STAT)
processes applications for Educational Access Schemes (EAS) and for some Equity Scholarships.
Northern Territory
The South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre accepts applications for Northern Territory tertiary institutions. Year 12 students are awarded the Northern Territory Certificate of Education and must meet course requirements.
Queensland
The Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre accepts applications for Queensland tertiary institutions. Year 12 students are awarded an Overall Position, based on their performance in class subjects and their school's average result in the Queensland Core Skills Test, as well as meeting course requirements.
South Australia
The South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre accepts applications for South Australian tertiary institutions. Year 12 students are awarded the South Australian Certificate of Education, and must meet course requirements. Their year 12 results are compared with students from the same year to determine their Australian Tertiary Admission Rank.
Tasmania
Tasmanian school leavers applying for entrance at the University of Tasmania need to apply directly to the university. Tasmanian school students receive a Tertiary Entrance Rank on successful completion of the Tasmanian Certificate of Education. Students from interstate wishing to study at UTas may apply through either the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre, or directly through the University.
Victoria
The Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre accepts applications for Victorian tertiary institutions. Applications consist of standardized test results and meeting institutional requirements. The standard certification for school-leavers is the Victorian Certificate of Education.
Western Australia
The Tertiary Institutions Service Centre accepts applications for Western Australian tertiary institutions. The standardised test for school-leavers is the Tertiary Entrance Examination.