For entry based on NCEA you must first meet the University Entrance (UE) standard UE is the minimum standard needed to enrol at a New Zealand university.
You must also meet the entry requirements for the programme you wish to study. This will be expressed as a ‘rank score’, which we calculate based on your Year 13 results. Some programmes may also require you to have taken specific subjects and gained minimum credits in those.
University Entrance Standard for admission in 2021
You will be qualified for entrance to New Zealand Universities in 2020 if you have obtained:
- NCEA Level 3
- Approved subjects: 14 credits in each of three approved subjects at Level 3.
- Literacy requirement: 10 credits at Level 2 or above, made up of 5 credits in reading and 5 credits in writing.
- Numeracy requirement: 10 credits at Level 1 or above, made up of achievement standards in a range of subjects; or all three numeracy unit standards 26623, 26626 and 26627.
To recognise the disruption caused by Covid-19, there are some changes to UE for 2020, see New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA).
The University of Auckland has also made some changes to the entry requirements for school leavers, see 2021 University entrance for school leavers.
Programme entry requirements for 2021
You must meet the admission requirements for your programme(s) of study.
In addition to achieving university entrance, some of our undergraduate programmes require you to have taken specific subjects and gained minimum credits in certain subjects. Some programmes have other requirements such as a portfolio, audition and/or interview. See the guaranteed entry requirements for your intended programme(s).
How your NCEA rank score is calculated
Your rank score is based on your best 80 credits at Level 3 or higher over a maximum of five approved subjects. These credits are then weighted by awarding points based on the level of achievement — Excellence (4 points), Merit (3 points) or Achieved (2 points) — attained in each set of credits.
A maximum of 24 credits are counted for each approved subject. The maximum rank score is 320. Approved subjects are determined by NZQA.
If you achieve less than 80 credits, the rank score will be based on your total Level 3 credits gained over a maximum of five approved subjects and weighted by the level of achievement.
Credits obtained in required subjects do not have to be among the best 80 credits used to calculate the rank score.
NCEA Level 3 credits achieved before Year 13 can be counted towards the 80 best credits used for ranking.
Calculate an estimated rank score online
To estimate your rank score, you can use our Rank Score Calculator.
To view an example of how your rank score is calculated, visit AskAuckland.
If you need help with the Rank Score Calculator, visit AskAuckland.
NCEA catch-up credits
If you are completing catch-up credits, your application will be considered on a case-by-case basis, taking into account academic merit and availability of places on your chosen programme. Selection into a programme will not be guaranteed.
If you are completing, or have completed, catch-up credits to support your application, please contact us.
If your application is unsuccessful for the upcoming semester, we encourage you to make a new application for a future semester. Rank scores and other programme-specific requirements can change, so please continue to check our website.
NCEA rank scores required for entry for 2021
These are the undergraduate programme admission requirements for school leavers who have achieved University Entrance. Additional requirements apply and where noted against specific programmes. Please visit the specific programme page for full details.
If you achieve the University Entrance standard, but your rank score is not high enough to guarantee selection, your application will be considered, provided places remain available.
Alternative options are available if you do not meet programme entry requirements.
For conjoint programmes, applicants must achieve the greater of the two rank scores for their selected programmes and must meet the entry requirements for both programmes. Not all degree programmes have conjoint options.
Rank score required | Programmes available |
---|---|
150 | Bachelor of Arts (BA)1Bachelor of Dance Studies (BDanceSt) (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Education (Teaching) (BEd(Tchg))3 (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Education (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) (BEd (TESOL)) Bachelor of Fine Arts (BF) (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Music (BMus)7 (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Social Work (BSW)3 (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Sport, Health and Physical Education (BSportHPE)3 |
165 | Bachelor of Science (BSc)8 – excluding Biomedical Science and Food Science and Nutrition |
180 | Bachelor of Commerce (BCom)2 (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Design (BDes) (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Property (BProp)2 (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Urban Planning (Honours) (BUrbPlan(Hons)) |
200 | Bachelor of Science (BSc) – Food Science and Nutrition |
210 | Bachelor of Global Studies (BGlobalSt)9 (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Global Studies conjointsBachelor of Arts conjointsBachelor of Commerce conjoints (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Design conjoints (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Fine Arts conjoints (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Music conjoints7 (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Property conjoints (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Science conjoints |
230 | Bachelor of Architectural Studies (BAS) (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Nursing (BNurs) (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Nursing conjoints (additional entry requirements apply) |
250 | Bachelor of Health Sciences (BHSc) (additional entry requirements apply)Bachelor of Health Sciences conjoints (additional entry requirements apply) |
260 | Bachelor of Advanced Science (Honours) (BAdvSci(Hons)) Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) (BE(Hons))4,5 (additional entry requirements apply) |
275 | Bachelor of Advanced Science (Honours) conjoints Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) conjoints4 (additional entry requirements apply) |
280 | Bachelor of Science (BSc) – Biomedical Science |
Other programmes
Programme | Requirement |
---|---|
Bachelor of Laws (LLB) Part I | Students must be offered a place in another bachelors degree. Students who gain entry to Law Part II can be admitted to the conjoint degree at that stage even if they were not in a conjoint previously. (See Note 6) |
Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBChB) | Applicants must first complete Year 1 of either the BHSc or the BSc in Biomedical Science, or have completed another degree approved by the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences. |
Bachelor of Pharmacy (BPharm) | Applicants should first complete Year 1 of either the BHSc or the BSc in Biomedical Science (or an equivalent programme of study), or have completed another degree approved by the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences. |
Bachelor of Optometry (BOptom) | Applicants must first complete the set courses from the common year of the BSc in Biomedical Science (or equivalent), or have completed another degree approved by the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences. |
Contact
Phone: +64 923 5025 (within Auckland)
Phone: 0800 61 62 63 (outside Auckland)
Phone: +64 9 373 7513 (from overseas)
Email: admission@auckland.ac.nz (domestic applicants)
int-questions@auckland.ac.nz (international applicants)
Notes
- 1. Māori and Pacific applicants, and applicants from refugee or low socio-economic backgrounds, or with declared disabilities, who achieve University Entrance (UE), will be admitted to the BA Targeted Admission Scheme with NCEA or Cambridge International rank scores of 120–149. Equity applicants with rank scores of 119 or below and all other applicants with rank scores of 129 or below will be referred to an appropriate foundation programme. Other applicants with UE and NCEA or Cambridge International rank scores of 130–149 or an IB score of 24–25 will be considered for conditional admission to the BA.
- For more information on the Targeted Admission Scheme for Business School programmes please see www.business.auckland.ac.nz/tas
- School-leaver Māori, Pacific students, students with disabilities, students from refugee backgrounds and students from low socio-economic backgrounds who achieve the UE standard and meet other requirements will be admitted to the programmes in the Faculty of Education and Social Work through the Targeted Admission Scheme (UTAS).
- For Cambridge International students, AS Mathematics and Physics may be accepted based on the level of grade achieved. For IB students, SL Physics and SL Mathematics “Analysis and Approaches” may be accepted based on level of grade achieved. SL Mathematics “Applications and interpretation” will not be accepted.
- The Faculty of Engineering will give consideration to students who missed out on admission to BE(Hons) who are able to demonstrate sufficient ability in engineering-related and approved study in the Bachelor of Science (BSc) programme for admission in Semester Two. www.engineering.auckland.ac.nz/behons-alt-pathway
- Applicants for Bachelor of Laws (LLB) Part II should first complete LLB Part I. Places in LLB Part II are limited, and allocated on the basis of each applicant’s grades in LLB Part I. The Law GPA required to guarantee entry to LLB Part II will not be higher than 6.5 (equivalent to a grade midway between B+ and A-).
- An audition can include evaluations of one or more recorded and/or live performance elements. www.auckland.ac.nz/bmus
- Māori and Pacific applicants and other equity target groups with an NCEA rank score greater than or equal to 140 (Cambridge International 130, IB 25) will be admitted to the BSc, with the exception of specialisations in Biomedical Science and Food Science and Nutrition. Māori and Pacific applicants and other equity target groups with an NCEA rank score greater than or equal to 220 (Cambridge International 260, IB 29) will be admitted to the BAdvSci(Hons). Māori and Pacific applicants and other equity target groups with an NCEA rank score greater than or equal to 260 (Cambridge International 310, IB 33) will be admitted to the BAdvSci(Hons) conjoints. Māori and Pacific applicants and other equity target groups with an NCEA rank score less than 140 and UE will be conditionally admitted to the BSc, dependent on successful completion of the UniBound (Academic Enrichment Programme) (passing all courses).
- Māori and Pacific applicants, and applicants from refugee or low socio-economic backgrounds, or with declared disabilities, who achieve University Entrance (UE), will be admitted to the BGlobalSt Targeted Admission Scheme with an NCEA rank score of 180 or higher or a Cambridge International rank score of 190 or higher or an IB score of 27. Applicants with scores lower than this will be referred to other programmes, as appropriate.