Does order of preference matter?

[nacho]

I was wondering, if the order in which we put our preferences in affects our chance of being accepted into a course.
eg.
if i have course 'ABC' as preference number 1
and course 'XYZ' as preference number 12

am i less likely to be offered XYZ, than if i had it as preference 1, /
am i more likely to be offered ABC, than if i had it as preference 12.

My careers counsellor said the uni's didnt know what preference you put each course as, however, a friend of mine tells me there is a teacher at his school saying that
'that if u put something as 5th pref, u wont get in/have less chances as opposed to putting it as 1st.'

[Zebra]

a friend of mine tells me there is a teacher at his school saying that
'that if u put something as 5th pref, u wont get in/have less chances as opposed to putting it as 1st.'

^ same. idk how it actually works though.

[Russ]

You don't have less chance per se, but you're more likely to get an offer from another course if it's low down on your list.
Basically, VTAC just run down your preference list - can you get into course 1? If yes, give offer. If no, go to preference 2. Repeat.

[nacho]

You don't have less chance per se, but you're more likely to get an offer from another course if it's low down on your list.
Basically, VTAC just run down your preference list - can you get into course 1? If yes, give offer. If no, go to preference 2. Repeat.

oh okay,
but its not like this is it:
can you get into course 1? no
repeat for course 2 - yes
stop process -

[chem-nerd]

The selection officers can see what preference you've put them in but are not allowed to use that as part of their selection process.  You get considered for every course you enter on your list (provided you've met the prerequisites and your ATAR is above their clearly-out cutoff).  The selection officer sends back a yes/no to VTAC and then VTAC sends you the highest yes on your list.

[Gloamglozer]

The selection officers can see what preference you've put them in but are not allowed to use that as part of their selection process.  You get considered for every course you enter on your list (provided you've met the prerequisites and your ATAR is above their clearly-out cutoff).  The selection officer sends back a yes/no to VTAC and then VTAC sends you the highest yes on your list.

Perfectly summarised. 

[HarveyD]

what happens if you've changed your mind by that time and want something lower down on the list?

[luffy]

The selection officers can see what preference you've put them in but are not allowed to use that as part of their selection process.  You get considered for every course you enter on your list (provided you've met the prerequisites and your ATAR is above their clearly-out cutoff).  The selection officer sends back a yes/no to VTAC and then VTAC sends you the highest yes on your list.

I don't get it. Why would they show the selection officers the preferences if they are not allowed to use it anyway...

[chem-nerd]

what happens if you've changed your mind by that time and want something lower down on the list?

Then you can put in an irregular offer.

I don't get it. Why would they show the selection officers the preferences if they are not allowed to use it anyway...

Good question - and one that is being reviewed/debated by VTAC, institutions and careers teachers.  Whilst they're not allowed to use the knowledge to decide whether or not to offer they can use it in their planning (eg if lots of applicants have placed that course low down on their preferences they may make more offers) and also for marketing purposes.

[SamiJ]

what happens if you've changed your mind by that time and want something lower down on the list?

Then you can put in an irregular offer.

How do you do this? Just out of curiosity

[Gloamglozer]

what happens if you've changed your mind by that time and want something lower down on the list?

Then you can put in an irregular offer.

How do you do this? Just out of curiosity

How Do Tertiary Offers Work?

[nacho]

You don't have less chance per se, but you're more likely to get an offer from another course if it's low down on your list.
Basically, VTAC just run down your preference list - can you get into course 1? If yes, give offer. If no, go to preference 2. Repeat.

oh okay,
but its not like this is it:
can you get into course 1? no
repeat for course 2 - yes
stop process -

Is someone able to confirm the above scenario?
nvm, just read gloamgloazer's thread,
it appears to be true, as i feared.

[Ematuro]

Sorry if this is off-topic, but what if by chance you don't get the required ATAR for ANY of your preferences? o_O

[funkyducky]

Basically, the universities will give you a 'yes' or 'no' for the highest course on your preference list at that uni, then from all the uni offers you get, vtac notifies you of the highest one on the list. You accept it. If it's not your first preference, then all the courses higher on the list that you weren't offered will be re-submitted to the unis for second round offers. They will give you a yes or no, then VTAC notifies you of the highest one, if you get one. You can accept this and cancel your first round offer. Then there's the supplementary round after this which is pretty much a free-for-all.

Sorry if this is off-topic, but what if by chance you don't get the required ATAR for ANY of your preferences? o_O

After you get your atar, there's a chance to change your preferences, including adding and removing courses from your list (though there are some that can't be added at this stage, eg. mbbs)

[Eriny]

Just remember that you also have quite a lot of time to change your preferences, but if you want to do this you need to make sure to change them by the correct date (idk when it is exactly, probably sometime in January).