Education Requirements

Australian Defence Force Academy

To be eligible for admission to UNSW@ADFA, applicants must have completed Year 12 and obtained an entrance rank high enough to qualify for entry to the relevant degree program.

Further information on studying at ADFA is available here.

Assumed Knowledge Requirements

Assumed Knowledge is the level of subject knowledge that a lecturer or a tutor of a first year UNSW@ADFA course could reasonably expect of students enrolled in that course.

Assumed Knowledge is fundamental to the assessment of whether or not an applicant is likely to succeed and is taken into account by the ADF (during the recruiting process) and by UNSW@ADFA when assessing the application.

The specific Year 12 subjects that currently satisfy the UNSW@ADFA Assumed Subject Knowledge requirements for engineering applicants are (by State):

• ACT: Majors in English, Mathematical Methods and Physics. Chemistry desirable;
• NSW: 2-Unit English; Mathematics (previously called NSW 2 Unit Mathematics), 2-Unit Physics or 2-Unit Senior Science (Multi-strand, including Physics) and 2-Unit Chemistry (desirable) or 2-Unit Senior Science (Multi-strand, including Chemistry) (desirable);
• QLD: English, Mathematics B and Physics. Chemistry is desirable;
• SA/NT: English (or Year 11 plus Year 12 Language-rich subject), Mathematical Studies and Physics. Chemistry is desirable;
• TAS: One of the TCE English Group Choices; Mathematics Methods 5C and Physics 5C. Chemistry 5C is desirable;
• VIC: One of the VCE English Group Choices, Mathematical Methods 3 & 4 and VCE Physics. VCE Chemistry is desirable; and
• WA: English Literature or English, Mathematics (Calculus or Mathematics 3DMAT) and Physics. Chemistry is desirable.

Requirements are expressed as a minimum.

In States where Year 12 English may be replaced by a Humanities subject for the purposes of meeting Year 12 certificate requirements, the Assumed Knowledge is Year 11 English plus a Year 12 Humanities subject.

Note: All applicants for undergraduate programs at ADFA must also apply to the Universities Admissions Centre (NSW and ACT) for entry to the University of New South Wales. The Universities Admissions Centre website is http://www.uac.edu.au

ADF Service Requirements

You should be aware that in addition to the UNSW @ ADFA Assumed Subject Knowledge requirements, there may be some Year 12 subjects that are ADF Service requirements.

Graduate

The minimum requirement for entry as an Aerospace Engineer is a four (4) year Bachelor of Engineering Degree permitting graduate membership of Engineers Australia (EA) as a professional engineer.

Engineering Degrees deemed suitable are as listed below. The applicant's discipline will govern the sub-specialisation in which the person will be employed. Engineering degrees other than those listed below will be considered on a case by case basis.

• Aerospace/Aeronautical;
• Mechanical;
• Mechatronics;
• Manufacturing/Materials; and
• Systems/Technology.

You may commence the selection process if you are in the final year of a four year Bachelor of Engineering Degree and can present your completed third year academic transcript. Your appointment will be subject to successful completion of the final semester of your Engineering Degree.

Undergraduate

You may commence the selection process if you have completed at least 6 months of a four year Bachelor of Engineering Degree and can present your first Semester academic transcript. Your appointment will be subject to successful completion of:

• A minimum of one full year of study of a Bachelor of Engineering Degree; and
• Have no more than three years of study outstanding to complete all of the requirements for the award of your Degree; and
• Year 12 with passes in English and three other Board of Secondary School Studies registered subjects (Air Force ONLY).

Applicants attempting Double Degrees will only receive funding allocation for one Degree.

Engineering Degrees deemed suitable are listed below. The applicant's discipline will govern the sub-specialisation in which the person will be employed. Engineering degrees other than those listed below will be considered on a case by case basis.

• Aerospace/Aeronautical;
• Mechanical;
• Mechatronics;
• Manufacturing/Materials; and
• Systems/Technology.