University Entrance

University Entrance for senior students is awarded for achievement of NCEA Level 3 (60 Credits or higher), and for achieving UE Numeracy and UE Literacy standards across a range of subjects. 

Below are the current minimum requirements for University Entrance (UE).  

• 14 credits in each of three subjects from the list of approved subjects below.  
• Achievement of NCEA Level 3 (60 credits at Level 3 or higher – 42 must be Achievement standards and remaining 18 credits can be Unit or Achievement Standards, plus 20 credits at Level 2 or higher). 
• UE Numeracy – 10 credits at Level 1 or higher from specified Achievement Standards across a range of subjects as specified for NCEA Level 1, or three specific numeracy unit standards. There is a page for each subject available at the Careers Department or on the NZQA website. 
• UE Literacy – 10 credits at Level 2 (five in reading and five in writing). For standards that meet both reading and writing requirements, it is possible to split one standard to fulfil the literacy requirement. For example, Art History can contribute two credits to the reading requirement and two credits to the writing requirement. 

This is the minimum requirement for entry, which for some programmes may not be sufficient. To increase probability of entry, students should endeavour to meet the criteria for preferential entry. The list of approved subjects will consist of subjects derived from the NZ Curriculum with achievement standards at Level 3. The list of approved subjects will be updated as subjects meet the criteria. Once you have met the requirements for University Entrance this will appear on your Record of Achievement. The following Level 3 subjects on the list of University Entry Approved Subjects are taught at Wakatipu High School: 

The following Level 3 subjects are on the approved list but are not taught at Wakatipu High School. They may be available for study through Correspondence/Distance Learning. Accounting, Agriculture and Horticulture, Chinese, Classical Studies, Construction and Mechanical Technologies, Cook Islands Māori, Dance, Earth and Space Science, Education for Sustainability, German, History of Art, Home Economics, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Latin, New Zealand Sign Language, Print Making (Practical Art), Processing Technologies, Psychology, Religious Studies, Samoan, Sculpture (Practical Art), Spanish, Social Studies, Te Reo Rangatira or Te Reo Māori, Tikanga ā-Iwi, Tongan.

Getting More than the Minimum for Entry to University

University Entrance may no longer be enough to get into first year courses – the reality is that places into specific programmes are being limited by reduced Government funding. This means the Universities will have to operate a Guaranteed Entry Score and ranking system. Each University sets their own system but most will be based on NCEA Level 3 results for subjects from the approved list. This system means students need to aim for Excellence and Merit to ensure a higher Rank Score. It is advisable to consider whether it is advantageous to study higher levels too soon and possibly gain a lower grade. Long term planning is very important.

The Guaranteed Entry Score from NCEA Level 3 varies for all Universities and undergraduate degrees, i.e. higher scores are required for some programmes (up-to-date information is available at the Careers Office). Where numbers are limited then the Rank Score will be applied.

Preferential Entry increases probability of getting into the desired First Year Programmes. UE must be achieved and one of the following criteria met:

• NCEA Level 2 endorsed with Merit or Excellence
• Achieve NCEA Level 3 with the Guaranteed Entry Score/Rank Score required for your intended Programme (degree) — see how points are calculated on the following page
• Acceptance into a Residential College
• Māori or Pacific ethnicity identified

For some Universities and courses, students who do not meet Preferential Criteria will be ranked and offered a place if available. Universities accept students for limited entry courses and provisionally accept students based on their Year 12 results. This makes it very important for school students to aim to achieve the best possible results at all levels of learning, so that the flow on to Year 12 results are the best possible. Year 12 outcomes hold great importance, as they play a pivotal role in determining eligibility for tertiary monetary scholarships and applications to residential halls. This significance arises because Level 3 results are not yet available when these awards and hall applications are being reviewed. Certain universities provide automatic monetary awards to students who have attained Excellence across NCEA Level 2 and 3. 

How to Calculate Your NCEA Guaranteed Entry/Rank Score

This is based on your 80 best credits in University Entrance approved subjects at Level 3 or higher and weighted by the level of achievement. A maximum of 24 credits in each subject will be counted. If you have fewer than 80 credits at Level 3 or higher the rank score will be based on those you have achieved (you will be disadvantaged). Unit Standards can be counted only at the Achieved rate for points.

Rank Score – calculated by awarding points as follows:

• Excellence: 4 points
• Merit: 3 points
• Achieved: 2 points

NOTE: Count up all your Excellence Credits, the Merit Credits, then as many Achieved Credits as you need up to a maximum of 80 credits. In this example the student can only count 42 of their Achieved credits, as 38 credits are of Excellence (12) and Merit (26)

New Zealand Scholarship Year 13

Scholarship provides recognition and monetary reward to top students in their last year of schooling. Scholarship exams enable candidates to be assessed against challenging standards and are demanding for the most able candidates in each subject. Scholarship candidates are expected to demonstrate high-level critical thinking, abstraction and generalisation, and to integrate, synthesise and apply knowledge, skills, understanding and ideas to complex situations.

Entry to Scholarship

Students can enter for Scholarship through an accredited New Zealand secondary school. For full details of the entry requirements, see NCEA Rules and Procedures – Secondary Schools. There are separate fee structures for domestic and international students, see fees for NCEA.

Eligibility to Receive a Monetary Reward

To be eligible to receive a scholarship award, the student must be enrolled in tertiary study in New Zealand for the years in which they receive monetary awards. For awards with second or subsequent year payments, recipients must maintain a ‘B’ grade average during their tertiary study in New Zealand. For full details of the eligibility requirements, see NCEA Rules and Procedures – Secondary Schools through the NZQA website.