With an ATAR of 70, you have access to many university courses, especially in Arts, Humanities, and Business, and can also use pathways like enabling courses, TAFE qualifications, or portfolio applications for more competitive degrees, with options to even upgrade later by achieving good first-year results. It's a solid score that opens doors, especially with flexible strategies like applying for a related degree and transferring or using entry schemes.
An ATAR of 70 opens doors to many university courses, including broad degrees like Bachelor of Arts, Science, and Business at various Australian universities, often acting as a solid baseline for entry into fields like Media & Communication, International Relations, or even pathways to Health Sciences, with specific requirements varying by institution and course. Many universities offer entry with an ATAR around 70 for general degrees, though specialized programs or honours often require higher scores, so checking university websites (like ECU, UOW, UWA) for specific course codes is key.
Yes, an ATAR of 70 is generally considered good; it's slightly above the average (around 70), placing you in the top 30% of your year group, and it qualifies you for many university courses, especially arts, business, and some sciences, though highly competitive degrees like medicine or law usually require much higher scores.
An ATAR of 70 means you performed better than 70% of your entire year group (the 16-20 age cohort in Australia), placing you in the top 30% overall; it's a percentile rank, not a score, indicating your position relative to other students, often used for university entry, with some courses accepting 70+ while more competitive ones need higher.
2025 ATAR Results NSW: Key Statistics
High ATAR attainment remained strong: 17.3% of students achieved an ATAR of 90.00 or above. 34.6% achieved an ATAR of 80.00 or above. 51.3% achieved an ATAR of 70.00 or above.
So an ATAR of 70 doesn't mean you got 70 percent – it means that you're in the top 30 percent of your year group. _self. This information is for domestic high school students. h3. cmp-callout--informational-blue.
The ATAR is a number from 0 and 99.95 in intervals of 0.05. The highest rank is 99.95, the next highest 99.90, and so on. The lowest automatically reported rank is 30.00, with ranks below 30.00 being reported as 'less than 30'. Find out more about how ATARs are calculated.
What grade is 70 percent in Australia? In most of the universities, it will be considered as Credit (C) or Distinction (D) in Australia.
Just a reminder that the median ATAR is usually around 70 anyway. I landed on 63. I spent the morning feeling like a failure until I realized I'm literally just an average student.
A 70% is often a B or a C, depending heavily on the grading system, but in many US systems it's a low C or C-, while in Australia, 70-74% is typically a Distinction (D), and 60-69% is a Credit (C). It's crucial to check your specific school or country's scale, as 70% can range from a solid pass to a high B or low Distinction.
A 70% university grade typically falls into the Credit (C) or Distinction (D) range, often considered a strong pass in Australia (70-79%), sometimes a C- or B in North America, but it depends heavily on the country and university's specific grading scale, with many systems defining it as a high Credit or solid Distinction level, showing good achievement.
Yes, getting a 70 ATAR is quite achievable for most students who complete Year 12, as it's close to the median ATAR (around 70) for completers, requiring roughly study scores of 30 in subjects, which is more attainable than a 50 average, though it depends on your cohort and scaling. It's considered the average performance for those who stay to get an ATAR, not necessarily an "easy" score, but definitely within reach with consistent effort, not necessarily top marks.
Best Short-Term Job-Oriented Courses
The ATAR's importance significantly drops as you get older; it generally becomes irrelevant for university entry after about 2-5 years from high school, with many universities offering non-ATAR pathways (like mature-age entry or foundation courses) for students typically 21 or over, focusing on life experience, work history, or recent studies instead.
In most American high schools, a score of 70 typically corresponds to a grade of "C-" or slightly below average. However, keep in mind that grading scales can vary by school and even by individual teachers within a school.
This means that if your ATAR is too low for your dream course, it might still grant you entry into an institution with lower demand that offers a very similar course, or allow you to take a slightly different route to your end goal.
An "okay" ATAR score is subjective but generally starts around 70, which opens doors to many university courses, with scores from 70-89 considered average to strong and allowing access to most fields like arts, science, and business, while 90+ is excellent for competitive degrees like medicine or law. The average ATAR for students aiming for university is around 70, meaning you performed better than 30% of your peers, but an ATAR of 80 means you're in the top 20%.
To study law in Australia, you generally need a high ATAR, often 90+, with top universities like UQ, ANU, or Monash requiring 97+, especially for Honours or combined degrees, while others like JCU or Griffith might have entry around 78-90+, but always check specific university requirements and subject prerequisites, like English, as these figures are guides and can vary yearly.
No, a 70 ATAR is generally too low for direct entry into an undergraduate medicine degree in Australia, as competitive scores are usually 95+, but you can use it as a stepping stone through pathways like completing a science degree (e.g., Biomedical Science) and applying for postgraduate medicine, aiming for high grades (WAM 70+) and strong GAMSAT/UCAT scores, or exploring rural/Indigenous entry schemes, as some universities (like UWA with specific criteria) might offer adjustments or pathways.
Remember, your ATAR is not a grade out of 100. It's a ranking. So, an ATAR of 80 means you performed better than 80% of your peers – not that you scored 80/100 overall. All ATARs below 30 (sometimes referred to as a "mystery mark ATAR") are reported as 30. The highest possible ATAR achievable is 99.95.
Yes, you can absolutely go to university without an ATAR by using various alternative pathways like TAFE diplomas, foundation courses, bridging programs, experience-based entry, or STAT tests, as most universities offer multiple routes to entry beyond just high school results, recognizing skills from work, vocational training, or life experience.