Fees and Admissions

The University of Melbourne prides itself on the high calibre of its students. Students who achieve an ENTER of 90 or above, and who meet the prerequisite requirements, will be guaranteed a place in the Bachelor of Commerce at Melbourne.

Commonwealth supported places will be offered first based on academic merit. All remaining eligible applicants will be offered an Australian fee place, provided they have applied for one of these places. Melbourne offers flexible entry programs to meet the needs of more students. The information below details the necessary prerequisite studies and range of entry options available.

Entry Requirements

Flexible Entry Choices

The Bachelor of Commerce at Melbourne offers different entry pathway options for prospective students. Each of the pathways is described below:

Commonwealth supported places
A proportion of Commonwealth supported places are available. If you accept a Commonwealth supported place then the Australian Government will contribute towards the cost of your course. The Government will also set a maximum limit on how much the University can require you to contribute for a Commonwealth supported place. That limit depends on the degree that you do and the subjects you choose. For the Bachelor of Commerce, yearly student contributions for 2005 will be $6,837. Updated information about student contributions to Commonwealth supported places can be found at: www.service.unimelb.edu.au/admissions/coursefees/ . If you accept a Commonwealth supported place, you do not have to pay your contribution fees immediately. The Government will lend you the money and allow you to defer payment until after you begin earning $35,000 per year (indexed from 2004). This loan is known as a HECS-HELP loan and is detailed further in the section 'Study now, pay later' on page 18 of this brochure. For more information about Commonwealth supported places in general, refer to www.unimelb.edu.au/highereducationreforms/

Access Melbourne
The Access Melbourne scheme is part of the University's commitment to increase the number of students from educationally, financially or socially disadvantaged backgrounds enrolling in undergraduate programs at Melbourne . The Access Melbourne scheme is a new combined special entry and access scholarship scheme. In 2005, 20 per cent of the university's new undergraduate Commonwealth supported places (also known as HECS places) will be offered to students who have applied through the Access Melbourne scheme. This quota will be separate to the other Commonwealth supported places on offer. A range of Melbourne Access scholarships offering a HECS-exempt place plus $2,000-$4,000 per year will also be available. For more information, see the University's Access Melbourne brochure or visit www.access.unimelb.edu.au

Australian fee places
For students who meet the entry requirements for Melbourne but do not receive a Commonwealth supported place, Australian fee places are available. For students studying eight commerce subjects (100 points) in the Bachelor of Commerce in 2005, the yearly student contribution will be $18,400. If you accept an Australian fee place then the Australian Government will not contribute towards the cost of your course, and you will need to pay the full tuition fee for the course as set by the University. The fees you pay enable the University to cover the costs involved in delivering the place. Students in Australian fee place enrolment can pay their fees in yearly, semester or bi-semester instalments. The Government's Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) can also assist students in fee-based enrolment. The HELP scheme operates in a similar way to HECS in that students can borrow the money they need to complete their course and repay it once they are working and earning $35,000 or more per year (indexed from 2004). At present, you can borrow up to $50,000 from the Government. Depending on your subject choices, this will cover most if not all of the fees for your degree. See the 'Study now, pay later' section on page 18 for further details about HELP.

*If you are eligible for an Access Melbourne place, the required ENTER may be below 90.

Other Australian fee-paying options
Students who have enrolled in a course as an Australian fee student and have subsequently achieved excellent results will be given the opportunity to transfer for the remainder of their course to a Commonwealth supported place. This is because for some students, performance at Year 12 is not the best indicator of future academic success. Some students mature academically at a later stage of their development and subsequently prove to be outstanding students. From 2005, if you meet an academic achievement standard in your first or second year of study in an Australian fee place in the commerce degree, you are assured of a transfer to a Commonwealth supported place for the remainder of your course. To be eligible for a transfer, you must achieve an average of 75% in your first year of study, or an average of 75% across your first and second years of study combined.

Combined degree options
Students that meet specific eligibility requirements can apply to study the Bachelor of Commerce in combination with another degree. Eligible students have the option of studying a 'dual fee' degree - that is, one degree is a Commonwealth supported place, while the other degree is an Australian fee place. It is also possible to study a combined degree on an Australian fee basis for both degrees. For more information on combined degree options and eligibility, see page 18 of this brochure or refer to the VTAC Guide 2005 or visit www.vtac.edu.au

Loans and Scholarships

The Higher Education Loan Program (HELP)
The Australian Government's HELP scheme will offer loans to eligible students so that they can pay their student fees. There are two main types of loans:

1. HECS-HELP - for eligible students in a Commonwealth supported place; and
2. FEE-HELP - for eligible students in an Australian fee place.

If you receive a HELP loan in either a Commonwealth supported place or an Australian fee place, you do not have to repay the loan until your income reaches $35,000 (indexed from 2004). The amount of your repayments will depend on your income, which means that you can repay the loan gradually.

For more information about HELP loans, please see the Our Universities: Backing Australia's Future web site at: www.dest.gov.au.

Scholarships
To further assist students with the cost of tuition, Melbourne offers a range of scholarships through the Access Melbourne scheme. The Faculty of Economics and Commerce also plans to offer a number of exclusive scholarships to help subsidise costs for Australian fee-paying students. These may be awarded to Australian fee place students in final year towards course costs so that the total cost of the degree does not exceed $50,000. For more information about Access Melbourne, see the University's Access Melbourne brochure or visit www.access.unimelb.edu.au .

In addition to Melbourne Access scholarships, the University awards 30 Melbourne National Scholarships annually to very high achieving students. More information is available at www.services.unimelb.edu.au/scholarships/ugrad/

How to apply

In today's evolving workforce, employers are increasingly looking for graduates with the right mix of skills. As the number one undergraduate business course in Victoria , the Bachelor of Commerce at Melbourne gives you the training you need to cut it in the job market. Don't take the risk of missing out. To maximise your chance at securing your future, make sure you fill out your VTAC application carefully.

1. Read the VTAC Guide 2005 carefully before applying in order to understand the course requirements and application procedures. The VTAC Guide 2005 will be available from late July in major newsagencies throughout Australia . Alternatively, Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC) information, including application closing dates, can be viewed at www.vtac.edu.au, where an online application can also be made.

2. Apply through VTAC. VTAC acts on behalf of participating universities and other tertiary institutions to facilitate and co-ordinate the selection system. Although VTAC processes the applications, it is universities that are responsible for selecting students.

3. Choose your preferences. The application process allows you to apply for up to twelve courses in total. You have the option to apply for both Commonwealth supported places and Australian fee places. To secure your place in the Bachelor of Commerce at Melbourne , make sure you place BCom

Commonwealth supported as your first Commonwealth supported place and BCom Australian fee place as your first Australian fee place preference. Remember, the University of Melbourne makes very few second-round or late offers, so don't take the risk of missing out on a Melbourne BCom offer by placing another Commonwealth supported or Australian fee course higher than the BCom at Melbourne on your application form.