International Student Admissions Guide

Change in immigration status during the application process

• If you are an international applicant to the Bachelor of Science (Veterinary Bioscience) degree and your residency status changes during the application process (i.e. you obtain permanent residency or some other immigration status that entitles you to the educational benefits of permanent residency), you will no longer be eligible for an international student place.
• If you are an international student and your immigration status changes prior to 30 September and you have NOT lodged a parallel domestic application and/or you do not meet the additional entry requirements for domestic applicants, you cannot be considered for a domestic offer and can no longer be considered for an international offer. You will need to re-apply for domestic entry the following year, in accordance with the entry policy of that year.
• If you are an international student and your immigration status changes after 30 September and prior to the release of international offers, you will no longer be considered for the international cohort. You will need to re-apply for domestic entry the following year, in accordance with the entry policy of that year.

Change in immigration status prior to release of offers

• Offers for international places in the Bachelor of Science (Veterinary Bioscience) degree cannot be made to applicants who are Australian/ New Zealand citizens or Australian Permanent Residents.
• If you obtain permanent residency (or some other immigration status that entitles you to the educational benefits of permanent residency) after 30 September and prior to acceptance of your international offer, you will not be eligible for an international offer and you will need to re-apply for domestic entry the following year, in accordance with the entry policy of that year.

Change in immigration status after accepting an offer

Due to strict domestic quotas for commencing students, if you obtain permanent residency (or some other immigration status that entitles you to the educational benefits of permanent residency) after you accept your offer and before you complete your first year of study in the B.Sc (Veterinary Bioscience) program, you will not be able to remain in the degree. 

Change in immigration status during studies

If you are an international student and you obtain permanent residency (or another applicable immigration status that entitles you to the educational benefits of permanent residency) after you complete your first year of study, you will only be able to remain in the Bachelor of Science (Veterinary Bioscience) degree if there is a domestic place available at that time. With strict quotas across the breadth of the veterinary program, availabilities of domestic places at any given time cannot be guaranteed. These are at the discretion of the Executive Dean and subject to availability. 

If a domestic place is available, you must pay domestic tuition fees for the remainder of your studies in the degree (i.e., you cannot be transferred to a Commonwealth supported place). If a domestic place is not available, you will not be able to remain in the veterinary program. 

Prerequisite subjects

Prior to submitting an application for admission, all applicants are advised to check that they have either completed, or are in the process of completing, the prerequisite subjects:

You must have successfully completed the prerequisite subjects.

• Australian Year 12, SACE Stage 2: Biology or Mathematical Methods or Chemistry.
• IB Biology (SL grade 4/HL grade 3) or IB Mathematics: Applications and Interpretations (HL) or Mathematics: Analysis and Approaches (SL); or IB Chemistry (SL grade 4/HL grade 3).
• International qualifications: Biology or Mathematics or Chemistry.

FAQ: I don't meet the subject prerequisites

Academic score

Students who don’t meet the academic requirements or who have other qualifications from the South Pacific Islands, Japan, Korea, Philippines or Taiwan may be eligible to apply for a Pre-University Pathway to prepare for or gain entry into the University’s undergraduate academic programs.

Secondary school qualification and score

• Selection Rank (International) - 90
• Alternative academic entry requirements

English language requirements

The IELTS (International English Language Testing System) Academic Test is the preferred English language proficiency qualification, but the University may accept other evidence of proficiency in English in individual cases.

English Tests accepted by the University of Adelaide

Australian Year 12 / IB

All international students who have successfully completed an Australian Year 12 program and have met the overall selection rank (based on ATAR or equivalent) as well as any specific program prerequisite requirements will be deemed to have met the English Language Proficiency requirements of the University. Additional English Language preparation programs, e.g. Academic English Pre-Enrolment English Program (PEP) can also be arranged upon request.

Successful completion of the International Baccalaureate Diploma meets the English language requirements of the University of Adelaide.

Inherent requirements

There are inherent requirements associated with the University of Adelaide veterinary program that prospective students need to be aware of before applying.

These requirements include, but are not limited to, physical fitness, physical capacity to learn how to handle a range of large and small animals; required vaccinations (specifically Q fever); and effective written communication.

Applicants must read the inherent requirements and vaccination guidelines before submitting their application.

All international applicants for the Bachelor of Science (Veterinary Bioscience), including International students studying in Australia, should submit an application online.

Applications must be submitted prior to 11:59pm (ACST time) 30 September.

Even if you have not yet completed your current qualification, you will still be required to apply by this date. Late applications will not be accepted.

Apply now Agent login

As part of the application process, applicants are required to complete and submit a prescribed questionnaire, which will be available in the Admissions @ Adelaide online portal. The International Admissions Office will email applicants a link to the login portal and their login credentials.

As part of the questionnaire, applicants will be required to outline their experience with animals and upload supporting documentation for the information they provide. Questionnaires will not be considered without supporting documentation.

The School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences will assess the questionnaire and determine if an applicant will progress to the interview stage of the admissions process. Applicants who progress to the interview stage will be notified via email.

Only applicants who progress to interview may be considered for an offer. 

Please note: The University cannot be held responsible if your email set-up filters the University’s email into a SPAM, Junk or other such folder – you are advised to check your email settings.

Applicants who have been shortlisted for an interview based on their questionnaire responses will undertake a short interview via Zoom. 

• An interview will not be rescheduled for reasons such as (but not limited to): you did not check your eligibility or book an interview within the timeframe.
• All interview bookings are scheduled in Adelaide Central Standard Time.
• It is important that applicants are aware of the time difference from their location. Arriving late due to time zone miscalculation is not grounds for reschedule or appeal (e.g. 12pm ACST (Adelaide) = 12:30pm AEST (Sydney, Melbourne)).

A request to reschedule under medical or compassionate circumstances can be made via email to the Admissions Operations Team (with supporting documentation) for consideration within three days of the original interview.

Please submit your request to uoaapplications@adelaide.edu.au. No requests on behalf of an applicant will be considered

Offer outcomes are based on a combination of the following components:

• Questionnaire results
• Interview results*

The University of Adelaide’s International Admissions Service will make offers progressively as applications are assessed. They will issue conditional offers pending final results for International applicants.

If you applied through an agent, your offer will be forwarded to the agent’s email address submitted in your application.

To accept your offer, you must return the required acceptance payment and documents before the acceptance closing dates specified in your offer letter. To secure your place in the Bachelor of Science (Veterinary Bioscience) degree, you must enrol in all first year courses by the deadline stated in your offer letter.

Information regarding enrolment will be provided by the Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology once offers are made.

Please note: Feedback on your performance and overall ranking will not be released by the University. Information regarding applicants and the status of their applications is confidential and will only be released to the applicant or their agent. No appeals on behalf of an applicant will be considered.

*Only applicants who progress to interview may be considered for an offer.