Get the best ATAR score you can possibly get.
That's the message the Universities Admissions Centre has delivered to HSC students studying for their exams later this month.
While the ATAR is not the only important story to be told about the class of 2019, it is important for those hoping to head straight off to uni next year.
Comprehensive analysis of HSC data by UAC shows that the single biggest indicator of success in first year university is a student's ATAR.
UAC marketing and engagement general manager Kim Paino said everybody hates the ATAR because it is seen as adding more stress to students.
"We agree that's a real problem and it can be very negative for students. But at the same time the reality is that it's important for students to try to focus and do their best in the exams," she said.
"When they get their ATAR it won't just be their entry ticket into a uni course, it will also tell them whether they're ready for it."
The support for the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank, comes after a new paper argued the ATAR should be replaced by a 'learner profile', which would list students' academic results in different subjects alongside other skills and extra-curricular achievements to better reflect their abilities.
Beyond ATAR: A Proposal for Change was commissioned by Australian Learning Lecture to build on the ideas presented to a forum in Melbourne last year, which involved university, school and TAFE authorities.
But UAC warned the proposal could open avenues for gaming the system and advantage privileged students.
The ATAR is a rank based on a student's final school results.
It is used by universities to determine who is offered places in courses, although many institutions are opening entry pathways that do not rely solely on the final score.
The paper, written by academics, argued the ATAR encouraged students to spend the final two years of education focusing on optimising their rank "to the exclusion of developing broader capabilities for the future".
