Special Tertiary Admissions Test (STAT)
Eligibility to use STAT:
Ø Can I use STAT to enter the course of my choice?
The STAT is an appropriate entry level program for most university undergraduate courses in South Australia and Northern Territory. To find out if you are eligible to use results from the STAT for entry to your preferred course/s you should check if:
1. you are eligible for consideration in the Special Entry subquota
2. your preferred courses have a Special Entry subquota
Results from the STAT Multiple Choice can also be used to meet the Minimum Entry Requirements and contribute to the selection score for TAFE SA Bachelor degrees.
If you are applying for courses outside South Australia and the Northern Territory you should check your eligibility for STAT with the institution providing the course or the tertiary admissions centre in that state.
Ø Am I too young or too old to sit the STAT?
There are no lower or upper age limits on sitting STAT, but your STAT result cannot be used for entry to university if you are too young to be considered as a Special Entry applicant.
For entry to university in semester 1: If you are applying for university courses in South Australia you must be at least 18 years of age before 1 February in the year of entry to university. For Charles Darwin University the minimum age for Special Entry applicants is 19 years before 1 January in the year of entry to university.
For entry to university in semester 2: If you are applying for university courses in South Australia you must be at least 18 years of age before 1 July in the year of entry to university. For Charles Darwin University the minimum age for Special Entry applicants is 19 years before 1 July in the year of entry to university.
If you are applying for a TAFE SA bachelor degree there is no age requirement for sitting the STAT.
Ø How many times can I sit the STAT?
No candidate is permitted to sit the STAT more than once in each admissions period (August to February and March to July).
Which STAT should I sit?
There are a number of different versions of the STAT. Candidates applying for courses through SATAC will sit the STAT Multiple Choice paper. STAT Written English is not used for entry to university or TAFE SA courses through SATAC.
SATAC applicants who have previously sat STAT series A, STAT series D or STAT series F can use the results for entry to undergraduate university courses and TAFE SA courses offered through SATAC. STAT series E, STAT series G and STAT series T will not be considered.
Ø What is STAT Multiple Choice?
STAT Multiple Choice is the version accepted by the three universities in South Australia, by Charles Darwin University in the Northern Territory, and by TAFE SA. It is a two hour test under exam conditions containing 70 multiple-choice questions, half of which are verbal reasoning and half quantitative. The questions are designed to assess the ability to think critically and to make sense of a variety of material. For instance, applicants may be required to read and think about a prose passage, interpret a graph, use basic mathematical relationships or make inferences from a table of data.
Ø What is STAT Written English?
STAT Written English is a one hour test under exam conditions. Candidates write two essays, one argumentative and one personal, to demonstrate their ability to communicate effectively in writing.
How do I register to sit STAT:
Ø for entry to university undergraduate courses in SA and NT?
You can apply for STAT Multiple Choice as part of your application for university undergraduate courses on UniWeb. If you have already submitted a university application to SATAC you can apply to sit STAT Multiple Choice by completing a Request to sit STAT form and sending it to SATAC with payment.
Ø for entry to TAFE SA Bachelor degrees?
You can apply to sit STAT Multiple Choice by completing a Request to sit STAT form and sending it to SATAC with payment.
Ø for entry to courses outside SA and NT?
You can apply to sit STAT Multiple Choice and/or Written English by completing a Request to sit STAT form and sending it to SATAC with payment.
If you are located in South Australia or the Northern Territory, SATAC can arrange a STAT sitting for you. If you are located elsewhere in Australia you should contact the tertiary admissions centre in your state (see below) to arrange a test sitting.
Victoria and Tasmania: Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC)
New South Wales and
Australian Capital Territory: University Admissions Centre (UAC)
Queensland: Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre (QTAC)
Western Australia: Tertiary Information Service Centre (TISC)
If you will be overseas at the time the STAT sittings are held contact SATAC to discuss alternative arrangements. If you reside overseas, register online with ACER.
You do not need to apply to sit the STAT through SATAC if you are sitting overseas. However, you will need to indicate in your SATAC university or TAFE application that you intend to sit the STAT overseas.
Preparation for STAT:
Ø Should I do a STAT preparation workshop?
ACER and SATAC do not endorse STAT workshops, but recognise that some candidates may find them useful as a means of allaying anxiety about the test through providing an opportunity to talk with other candidates about the STAT. Workshops usually focus on test taking strategies and skills and may be helpful to candidates who have not sat a test in recent years.
The following organizations offer STAT workshops in South Australia:
Professional and Continuing Education, University of Adelaide telephone (08) 8303 4777 or email pce@adelaide.edu.au.
University of South Australia telephone Future Student Enquiries on (08) 8302 2376 or 1300 UNINOW or email study@unisa.edu.au.
TAFE SA telephone (08) 8207 3150.
WEA (Workers’ Educational Association) 223 Angas Street, Adelaide: telephone (08) 8223 1979.
ACER does not provide past STAT papers to any of the STAT workshops and the only sources of past STAT questions are the Candidate Information Booklet and Sample Collection of Questions. SATAC will send a copy of the Candidate Information Book to every STAT candidate after they have paid for the test. The Sample Collection of Questions can be purchased from the SATAC office.
Ø What should I bring to the test?
Bring current photo identification with signature and date of birth (such as a driver’s licence or passport), your STAT Authority to Sit letter, 2 pencils (B, HB or 2B), a pencil sharpener and an eraser. Calculators, highlighters, dictionaries, mobile phones, pagers and rulers are not permitted.
STAT Results:
Ø Why is my STAT result reported as a score instead of as a percentage?
There is no pass or fail mark on the STAT. Reporting the score as a percentage might lead some individuals to assume that a result of 49% or less indicates a fail. This is not true. The STAT score scale reflects the differing abilities of the candidates and the different degrees of difficulty of the test items and provides a suitable scale for ranking candidates according to their performance on the test. The STAT score is calculated on a scale which proportionally equates the raw score with the STAT score. The scores for verbal and quantitative items are calculated individually.
Ø How long is my STAT score valid?
The STAT score is comparable across years, so there is no formal limit on the length of time for which it remains valid for applications through SATAC. Some interstate tertiary institutions may impose their own limits, so you should check with the tertiary admissions centre or institution to which you apply.
Ø How can I get a copy of my STAT result?
STAT answer sheets are marked by ACER and the results are returned to the admissions centre or tertiary institution through which the candidate sat the STAT. Queries about results for STAT sittings conducted by SATAC should be directed to SATAC information staff. Use the ‘Contacting SATAC’ link at top left of this page.
Ø Who should I contact if I have any further queries?
Contact SATAC information staff using the ‘Contacting SATAC’ link at the top left of this page.