1. Setting and tracking academic goals

• Estimating Potential ATAR: Calculators allow you to input your predicted or current subject scores to get an approximate ATAR score, helping you understand where you currently stand.
• Reverse Calculation for Target Marks: You can start with your desired ATAR and work backward to determine the indicative marks you need to achieve in each subject, providing a clear pathway for focused study efforts.

2. Informed subject and course choices

• Understanding Subject Scaling: ATAR calculators shed light on the impact of scaling on different subjects, helping you make informed decisions about your subject choices and strategically prioritize your study efforts.
• Researching University Admissions: They can help you gauge whether you're on track to meet the indicative ATAR requirements for your preferred university courses, enabling you to explore alternative pathways if necessary.

3. Improved study planning and time management

• Identifying Strengths and Weaknesses: By analyzing the estimated impact of each subject on your overall ATAR, you can pinpoint areas where you excel and areas that need more attention, allowing you to tailor your study plans and maximize your potential.
• Effective Time Allocation: CNBNews suggests that understanding the contribution of different subjects can help you allocate study time more efficiently, focusing on subjects with the highest potential impact on your ATAR.

4. Enhanced motivation and reduced stress

• Gaining Control and Clarity: Seeing a projected ATAR can give you a greater sense of control over your academic journey and help reduce anxiety about the unknown.
• Motivational Tool: Setting specific goals based on the calculator's estimations can be a powerful motivator to stay focused and dedicated to your studies.

1. Identify Your Top Subjects and Scores

• English Requirement: Your highest scaled study score in one of the approved English subjects (English, English Language, English as an Additional Language (EAL), or Literature) is selected.
• Next Three Best Subjects: The three next highest scaled study scores from your other permissible subjects are identified.
• Fifth and Sixth Subjects (10% Rule): If you have completed a fifth and/or sixth permissible subject, 10% of their respective scaled study scores are also included in the calculation.

2. Calculate the Aggregate Score

• The scores determined in step 1 are added together to create an aggregate score. This aggregate score is the sum of:
• Your highest scaled English study score + The scaled study scores of your three next best subjects + 10% of the scaled study scores of your fifth and sixth subjects (if applicable).

3. Convert Aggregate Score to an ATAR

• The aggregate scores of all eligible students are then ranked from highest to lowest.
• A percentile rank (between 0 and 100) is assigned to each aggregate score, aiming to distribute students as evenly as possible over a 100-point scale.
• This percentile rank is then converted into the final ATAR score, which ranges from 99.95 down to 0, in increments of 0.05. For example, an ATAR of 75 means you performed better than or equal to 75% of the year 12 school-leaver age population in your state.

1. Subject selection and scaling: First, Sarah would input her estimated raw study scores for each of her VCE subjects into the calculator:

Next, the calculator applies an estimated scaling factor to each raw score based on historical data. UAC explains that scaling is designed to ensure that you are neither advantaged nor disadvantaged by choosing one pattern of study over another. This is an oversimplification, but it gives an idea of the concept:

2. Identifying the top subjects for the aggregate

• English: Sarah's English score is 35. This is automatically included as her English subject requirement.
• Next Three Best: Looking at the scaled scores, the next three highest are:
  • Mathematical Methods: 40
  • Physics: 39
  • Chemistry: 37
• Fifth and Sixth Subjects (10% Rule): Her remaining subjects are Biology (31 scaled) and Health and Human Development (27 scaled). The calculator will take 10% of these scores for the aggregate.
  • Biology (10%): 31 * 0.10 = 3.1
  • Health and Human Development (10%): 27 * 0.10 = 2.7

3. Calculating the aggregate score

The aggregate score is calculated by summing these contributions:

• Aggregate Score = English (35) + Mathematical Methods (40) + Physics (39) + Chemistry (37) + Biology (10% - 3.1) + Health & Human Development (10% - 2.7)
• Aggregate Score = 35+40+39+37+3.1+2.7=156.8

4. Estimating the ATAR

• This aggregate score (156.8) is compared to the distribution of aggregate scores from previous years to find a corresponding percentile rank. La Trobe University notes that the ATAR is reported from 99.95 down to 0, in increments of 0.05.
• For example, based on historical data, an aggregate score of 156.8 might correspond to an estimated ATAR of 88.50. KIS Academics provides an example where an aggregate of 172.7 corresponded to an approximate ATAR between ~95.00-96.00 in 2024.
• Therefore, the estimated ATAR for Sarah would be 88.50.