Secondary school students

Start planning your exciting future career! If you’re in Year 10-12, we can help you decide what you want to do after school and direct you to courses that could lead to a job you’ll love.

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Quick guide to courses & careers

Vocational Education & Training Delivered to Secondary Students (VDSS)

Choosing a career

If you're not sure what you want a career as, think first about what you enjoy doing right now. You’ll be happiest studying a course and working in a job that matches your interests and strengths.

Ask yourself:

what are my favourite subjects and activities at school?
what activities do I enjoy outside of school?
what am I really good at?

Your answers to these kinds of questions will give you a starting point for the courses and career paths you could choose. Volunteering or applying for work experience in areas that interest you are other good ways to find out if you like them.

Check out our quick guide to courses and careers if you need further help to decide what job would suit you.

You can also take the National Careers Institute's Your Career quiz to help you understand what areas of work you may enjoy.

Find the right course

Once you have a better idea of your strengths and interests, you can search for university or TAFE courses that match those fields.

For example, if your favourite subjects at school are science and physical education, and you love playing team sports in your spare time, you might want to study a Bachelor of Sport Science. This course could help you find work as an exercise physiologist or sport scientist for a professional sport team.

TAFE or university - What's best for you?

There are several differences between TAFE and university study.

You can choose to first study at TAFE, and then at university. We make it easy for you to transfer from TAFE courses to degrees at VU through our pathways program.

: Types: Certificates, diplomas and apprenticeships

Length: 6 months—3 years

How courses are taught: Classes, interactive workshops, practical training

How you learn: Supported learning (more hours are spent learning in the classroom)
: Types: Bachelor degrees (with the option to continue studying a graduate certificate, graduate diploma, masters or PhD)

Length: 3 - 4 years

How courses are taught: Theory-focused classes and workplace learning

How you learn: Individual learning (for each hour in the classroom, students are expected to study 3 hours on their own)

Maximising Your Preferences - transcript

How to make the best university preference list for you

Here are four quick questions you can ask yourself to make sure you stay true to yourself when picking your courses.

Getting into a course

Entry into your chosen course depends on whether or not you meet the admission criteria, which are different for each course. In most cases, admission criteria include the study score (raw score) you obtain in certain prerequisite VCE subjects.

Once you have chosen the courses you would like to study, be sure to check the admission criteria for prerequisite VCE subjects. By basing your VCE subject selection on the admission criteria for your desired course, you will give yourself the best chance of gaining a place.

Some courses at VU will also use your Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR) to determine your eligibility for entry. Your ATAR is based on the total of all your Year 12 subject scores and received at the completion of your VCE.

Certain courses at VU also include an audition or interview in their entry requirements. The specific entry requirements for each course are outlined on course pages.

Why choose VU

We offer many workshops and activities for secondary school students so that you can experience university life:

engineering - hands on activities for Year 9-12 students
legal studies:
- Michael Kirby Contract Law moot competition
- Legal studies Head Start day for Year 11 students
sport and exercise science - Sport and Recreation Industry Pathway (SARIP) program for VCE students.

We encourage you to contact your school's career practitioner to find out more and register for these activities.

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Study with VU Block Model®

We've developed our exciting VU Block Model® - to help you ease into university study and the pressures of adulthood, while making sure that you graduate ready to succeed in your chosen career.

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Our interactive, workshop style classes - transcript

Regional school students

When considering university, regional students should focus on factors like course offerings, campus environment, support services, cost of living, and potential career opportunities after secondary school.

Researching these aspects can help you make an informed decision about the most suitable university for your academic and personal needs. Here at VU, we welcome and invite all students from all regions to succeed in an inclusive, supportive environment.