Western Australia: WACE, Subjects, Assessment & ATAR

Certificate requirements

Requirements include at least 20 units, with at least ten at Year 12 level, plus English, List A/List B breadth, achievement and literacy/numeracy conditions. VET and endorsed-program unit equivalents have limits. In other words, reaching twenty units is not the whole check.

Subjects, school assessment and external assessment

Year 12 ATAR courses generally combine school achievement and statewide examinations, with written and practical components depending on the course. An Externally Set Task in a General course is not the same as an ATAR-course examination. OLNA has a different job again: it relates to the literacy and numeracy standard needed for completion.

Which results contribute to the ATAR?

The TEA starts with the best four scaled scores. Eligible LOTE, Mathematics Methods and Mathematics Specialist bonuses may add ten per cent under TISC rules. These bonuses sit within the ATAR calculation; they are not university selection-rank adjustments. You also need to check which course combinations can count together.

Changing subjects between Years 11 and 12

Choose both the subject and its ATAR/General pathway across English, mathematics, humanities, sciences, arts and languages. Language courses involve background-based eligibility approval. If you want to take fewer subjects in Year 12, first check that you still meet List A/List B, English, four-course ATAR and university prerequisite requirements.

What to keep handy

• The current school course handbook, assessment schedules and official enrolment list.
• Separate certificate/ATAR eligibility audits, course-prerequisite records and any language-eligibility approvals.

Use the state comparison and subject selection guide to put this pathway in context.