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JMP Admission and Selection Policy (Bachelor of Medicine / Doctor of Medicine)

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Section 1 - Introduction

Bachelor of Medical Science / Doctor of Medicine – JMP (UAC Course Code: 785000)

(1) The Joint Medical Program (JMP) consists of the Bachelor of Medical Science and Doctor of Medicine undertaken consecutively and offered jointly by the University of Newcastle and the University of New England.

(2) Admission to the JMP is administered at the University of Newcastle and managed through a common selection process.

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Section 2 - Application Process

Application Process

(3) All applicants are required to:

  1. complete an on-line direct university standard or rural (application under the Rural Remote Admission Scheme) application by midnight on the stated closing date in the year prior to that in which admission is sought. The Joint Medical Program Admissions Committee will set the closing date for direct applications. Details will be available on the JMP website. Applicants will have the opportunity to indicate their preferred enrolment location (University of Newcastle or University of New England) when they lodge their on-line direct application to the University.
  2. lodge a UAC application to the Universities Admission Centre, which includes a preference for the Bachelor of Medical Science / Doctor of Medicine by UAC’s November closing date for late applications.
  3. register to undertake the approved selection test by the final closing date set by the organisation responsible for delivering the selection test. Details regarding the selection test will be available on the JMP website.

(4) If an applicant does not complete the steps outlined in Clause 3 by the respective closing dates, they will not be eligible for consideration.

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Section 3 - Admission Requirements

(5) To be eligible for admission, applicants must satisfy both the academic requirements and the Personal Qualities requirement as specified below.

Academic Requirements

(6) To satisfy the academic requirement, an applicant must:

  1. have achieved an ATAR of at least 94.30 in the New South Wales Higher School Certificate (or equivalent), or 91.40 (or equivalent) at a school in a designated rural or remote location. All applicants applying on the basis of secondary examination results, regardless of the year the examination was undertaken, will be considered for the Rural Bonus Scheme. Determination of eligibility for the Rural Bonus Scheme will be based on the postcode of the high school attended by the applicant at the time of completion of the examination. The postcode classification is based on the Federal Government’s ASGC-RA classification; or
  2. have completed at least one full-time (or equivalent) of approved study (1 FTE excluding credit) in a single program of study at a higher education institution and have achieved in that study a UAC (ATAR Based) Rank of 88.40 or better. An applicant’s most recent program of study which satisfies the 1 FTE requirement will be used to assess academic eligibility.

(7) Where an applicant has undertaken one or more years of tertiary study and subsequently completes secondary studies, eligibility will be based on the most recent tertiary studies.

Personal Qualities Requirement

(8) The Assessment of Personal Qualities consists of two stages:

  1. Stage 1 comprises a selection test as approved by the JMP Admission Committee; and
  2. Stage 2 comprises interview(s) as approved by the JMP Admission Committee and approved by the relevant Board at each University.

(9) Stage 1 details will be available on the JMP Website at the beginning of each year for candidates applying in that year for admission the following year.

(10) To be eligible for Stage 2 of the Assessment of Personal Qualities an applicant must achieve the required score in Stage 1 as determined each year by the JMP Admission Committee. Applicants who achieve the required score in Stage 1 will be invited to progress to Stage 2. Applicants who fail to meet this requirement will not progress.

(11) Only those applicants who satisfy Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the Assessment of Personal Qualities and the minimum academic requirement will be eligible for consideration for admission.

(12) Applicants who do not attend Stage 1 and/or Stage 2 of the Assessment of Personal Qualities will have their application withdrawn and are ineligible for consideration.

Personal Health Requirements

(13) Applicants will be provided with a statement about recommended levels of personal health and fitness to undertake the program when they attend Stage 2. Applicants will be required to confirm that they have read and understood this statement.

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Section 4 - Selection Criteria

(14) Applicants shall be ranked for selection in descending order of merit according to results in Stage 2 of the Assessment of Personal Qualities. Applicants with the same score in Stage 2 will be sub-ranked on the basis of their performance in Stage 1.

(15) The available positions will be allocated to rural and non-rural applicants at each University in the proportions determined by the JMP Admission Committee and approved by the Dean of Medicine, taking into consideration applicants preferred enrolment location provided in the on-line direct application.

(16) The Dean of Medicine – Joint Medical Program (or nominee) shall ensure that sufficient offers of admission are made each year to the first year of the degree to fill the various quotas: Rural / Non-rural, Bonded Medical Places and Indigenous. The number of commencing domestic students will be determined by each University based on the number of places allocated by the Federal Government.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Applicants

(17) Provisions for the selection of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Applicants are contained in the Bachelor of Medical Science / Doctor of Medicine – Joint Medical Program – Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island Selection Procedure.

International Applicants

(18) The international quota for the program will be filled via agreements that the Faculty of Health and Medicine, University of Newcastle have with specific overseas institutions / organisations. A limited number of positions are available to students entering via the Newcastle International College at the University of Newcastle.

(19) The selection criteria for international applicants will include:

  1. Academic Eligibility – assessed as being equivalent to the domestic academic requirements as defined in Section 3.
  2. Personal Qualities Assessment – to be determined by the JMP Admission Committee.

(20) International applicants will be ranked for selection based on their Personal Qualities Assessment. Offers will be made in descending order to fill the available places. The Joint Medical Program Admissions Committee is responsible for managing the quotas for the international pathways and ensuring that successful applicants satisfy all selection criteria.