HSC and ATAR (7 of 10) - Determining the ATAR

Not all HSC courses contribute to the calculation of ATAR. Only Board Developed courses (Category A and Category B) can contribute to ATAR (hence called ATAR courses). To be eligible for an ATAR, a student must complete satisfactorily at least 10 units of ATAR courses including at least:
. 2 units of English
. 8 units of Category A courses
. 3 ATAR (Category A or B) of 2 units or greater
. 4 subjects

The ATAR is calculated based on the aggregate of 10 units of ATAR courses comprising:
. the best 2 units of English
. the best 8 units from the remaining units, which can include up to 2 units of Category B courses.

The process of determinating the ATAR is as follows:

ATAR courses:                   HSC mark
                                                |
                                            scaling
                                                |
                                        scaled mark
                                                |
                          sum all ATAR-eligible courses
                                                |
                                         aggregate
                                                |
                      rank among all ATAR-eligible students
                                                |
                                   ATAR percentile
                                                |
                             rank among Year 7 cohort
                                                |
                                   Year 7 percentile
                                                |
                                           truncate
                                                |
                                            ATAR

We shall walk through the process in details with Alex as an example.