It is. Today at 7 am I received my ENTER (Equivalent National Tertiary Entrance Rank) score, the final score you get for your VCE (Victorian Certificate of Education). It’s basically equivalent to a GPA, for all you non-Australian readers.
The ENTER is a percentile ranking of your aggregate score, the combined total of all your individual subject scores (which are out of 50) – and as such it has a maximum of 99.95, which means, if you get that ENTER, that you received a better aggregate score than 99.95% of all the other students that year. An ENTER of 100 would mean that you received a better aggregate than yourself – only slightly impossible.
My ENTER was 98.80.
I’m planning on using it to get into the University of Melbourne and do a Bachelor of Science degree, majoring in Genetics. My parents are trying to persuade me to apply for the Bachelor of Biomedicine, which would allow me to do Graduate Medicine at Melbourne, something I don’t really want to do – the curse of the high ENTER score, I guess.
Bring on university next year though – I don’t think I could be more ready.
Wow…Wow wow wow. Well done. That's all I can say. Really, really well done.
Thanks! Pity I'm not really going to "use" the ENTER to its full potential – the Bachelor of Science at Melbourne only requires 85.00.
You're pure, distilled awesome.
So, ENTER is essentially just a percentile ranking, such as with the PSATs? In 10th grade, most American students take the PSATs, and everyone is then sent a score sheet that has your score along with what percentage of students you scored better than. It doesn't officially go towards college applications, but there are lots of perks if you're one of the highest scorers.
And, I can relate to not using scores to their fullest potential. In theory–according to my test scores, anyway–I should be in an Ivy League school studying mathematics. In reality? Going to the University of Teas for anthropology. Ha. Take that, College Board!
And, congrats!
Unlike the PSATs, the ENTER is the most important university application score – in fact, it's the only one.
It's the ONLY one? That seems odd to me. They only consider one score? Is the ENTER extremely important regarding your admission, then, or is it sort-of like a suggestion? Do you also submit grade transcripts and such, or what?
In the States, there's either the ACT or the SAT test, depending on the area. Some people take both, depending on the schools they're applying to. More and more private schools, though–mostly smaller liberal arts colleges–are starting to make SAT or ACT scores optional, as they don't find them good indicators of academic potential. All schools require grade transcripts, though, aside from community colleges, which basically just require that you have an official "high school education," whatever that means. Then, of course, there are essays and all kinds of nonsense depending on the university.
To get into any undergraduate university course in Australia, ie. a Bachelor degree, you need a specific minimum ENTER score and a certain number of prerequisite subjects.
For example, say I want to do the Bachelor of Biomedicine at the University of Melbourne. That requires me to have at least an ENTER of 95, plus I must have completed an English subject with a study score of 30 or over and Chemistry with a score of 35 or over.
Of course, some courses don't require ENTERs – they are given out based on folios or interviews etc. To get into undergraduate medical school you have to sit an extra exam called the UMAT (Undergraduate Medical Admission Test). I suspect there are things like that in the US as well.
Wow. I guess I never realized how young you were. Congrats on surviving high school. I'd offer to buy you a drink but I have no idea what your local liquor laws are like.
Congratulations again! Just remind your parents that doing Science still leaves graduate medicine open 'if you change your mind'. That should placate them and you can go ahead with genetics without the battle. I did a Science degree in Microbiology and loved it.
In Australia we can drink at 18, but I'm not one to dabble with alcohol, so a lemon, lime & bitters will suffice, thanks.
Congrats Jack! Great work.
I know how relieved you must be that it's over.
And you've definitely got the right idea … study what you enjoy studying!
Hi! My name is Sara Brocklesby, I work in the Faculty of Science at the University of Melbourne. I stumbled on your post googling – congratulations on your score! We look forward to having you here. If you have any questions about the differences between Biomedicine and Science just email me s.brocklesby@unimelb.edu.au
Well done! Remember, choose the one which seems the best (most fun) for you. I am speaking from experience as a recently completed PhD. You can always change specialisations later. For instance, you might find yourself later doing Biomed related Postgraduate work. I would also note that as a major in genetics, your should back it up with some biochemistry or immunology.
Best of luck!