Receiving and Accepting An Offer From the Institute

If your application is successful, you will receive a full or conditional Letter of Offer (or LOO) from the institute (more on conditional offers below). This offer is normally sent to you via email, and/or via your agent (e.g. Urban Student) if you have engaged an education agent to assist you during the application process.

This offer will contain the complete details of the program you have been selected for, the financial assistance you may receive (e.g. scholarships), the duration of the program etc. If you have any queries about this offer or want any clause of this offer clarified, you can contact the institute or run everything by your education agent for clarification.

Once you are familiar with the offer and are confident about proceeding with your enrolment, you are required to formally accept the offer made by the institute.

Here, you need to follow the steps outlined in the respective institute’s terms and guidelines for international students. Usually, you will need to sing the LOO and pay an enrolment fee or deposit (the first term or semester of tuition is often requested upfront, but this varies).

Once you have accepted your offer you receive a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) from the institute which is the official document required to begin the application process for your student visa.

What is a Conditional Offer?

Some institutes may also a conditional Letter of Offer (LOO). This means that they are not in a position to accept your application at the moment, but are willing to make an offer if you provide some additional information or fulfil some requirement. In most cases, a conditional offer is made when the institute requires additional documents such as the result for an English proficiency test, or the English translation of an educational degree or transcript. The exact details of these requirements will normally be included in your Conditional Letter of Offer.

How will my application to study be assessed?

Your application will be judged on several different eligibility criteria that may include a minimum age, academic achievements and qualifications and proficiency in English. You will receive a full offer from the institute promptly if you fulfil all of the entrance requirements specified by the institute (this information can be usually found on the course page, or in the International Student Handbook for each institute). Another possibility is that the institute makes you a conditional offer (above). The last possibility is that the institute does not make an offer to you. This happens if your application is unsuccessful or does not fully meet the entrance requirements of the institute. In such a case, the institute might still make an offer for a less intensive program such as a pathway program, or Urban Student can help you find a course that may be more suitable (or where you have a good chance of being accepted). Read more about the types of courses and what it cost to study in Australia here.

How to Proceed If Your Application is Unsuccessful?

When you apply for admission at an institute in Australia, you have the option of selecting more than one program preference (it is also possible to apply for programs at multiple institutions). If your application for your first program preference, it will still be assessed and processed for the next program preference. Alternatively, you can look at applying for a similar course with another institute (a refusal from one institute does not mean that you will not be able to undertake the courses).

Acquiring a Student Visa

The next step after accepting the offer from the institute is to get your student visa application sorted out. This is a crucial step in the entire process so make sure you get started on this as soon as you have your CoE. Read about 6 common mistakes to avoid when submitting your Student Visa Application.

The Department of Home Affairs is the division of the Australian Government that deals with the issuance of student visas for international students. They have specific eligibility criteria and guidelines that you can find on their website. Your Education Agent (e.g. Urban Student) will help to ensure that your student visa application is well-prepared and addresses all the relevant criteria to ensure that you have the best possible chance of a successful outcome.

Read more about applying with an Education Agent.