Veterinary admissions FAQs

My GPA is 2.5/4 (or 5.5/7). Will I get a place?

The minimum GPA required to have your application considered is 2.5/4 (or 5.5/7) after any Equity adjustments have been applied (for domestic students).  If your GPA is less than this, you application will not be considered. This cut-off is applied because rigours of the course require that students are able to perform at a level higher than this.

For applicants with a GPA meeting the minimum threshold, your GPA will count towards your admissions score along with your Casper z-score. All applicants are ranked against each other and those with highest admissions score will progress to interview stage.  Applicants with the highest admissions score rankings after inclusion of the interview score will get first round offers.

Whilst applications with 2.5/4 (or 5.5/7) after any Equity adjustments are eligible for ranking, meeting this minimum cut off does not guarantee that applicants will be offered an interview. It is currently not possible to advise what range of GPA are likely to be offered interviews or receive an offer of a place. We appreciate that certainty around typical entry cut-offs will help prospective students make informed decisions about applying for transfer, and our intent is to make this information available to prospective applicants as soon as possible.

The lowest first round offer for 2024 entry into veterinary program was 6.0/7. The lowest ATAR first round offer was 96.75. There is likely to be some fluctuation in minimum GPA (and ATAR) from year-to-year, so it’s not possible to say what it will be for 2025 entry.

There have been exceptional circumstances that have impacted my university grades and GPA. Will this be taken into consideration?

Domestic applicants who demonstrate educational disadvantage may have equity adjustments applied to academic performance scores.

The admissions guide page contains more information about:

• the circumstances under which equity adjustments can be applied
• Process for applying for equity adjustment

The interview process also provides applicants with opportunity to discuss knowledge, skills and attributes that have been acquired in the context of your background and experience.

What is the Casper assessment?

There is more information about the Casper assessment here

How much experience do I need to have?

For entry in 2025 (and onwards) you will need to provide evidence of a minimum of 35 hours of veterinary related experience for your application to be considered. This is only necessary for tertiary applicants. 

Once you have satisfied this requirement (35 hours), the amount and diversity of experience in a veterinary workplace will not contribute to your admissions score prior to ranking for interview.

For applicants that are offered an interview, the interview process provides opportunity for applicants to present the admissions team with information about:

• Previous study at university level, including the relevance of units you have completed in demonstrating your skills, attributes and knowledge relevant to the veterinary profession.
• Paid and unpaid work experience that demonstrate skills, attributes and knowledge relevant to the veterinary profession.
• Experience must be within the last 3 years and may include work experience completed during secondary school, provided you were mentored by a veterinarian in a clinical setting.

The interview process gives the School of Veterinary Medicine admissions team opportunity to consider your previous study and work experience in the context of your capacity to complete the course and succeed within the profession. This can include (but is not limited to) capacity for teamwork, independent learning, problem-solving, communication, organisational skills, reflective practice and understanding of the broad workplace environments in which veterinary professionals work.

I am already studying at university and looking to apply for Tertiary Pathway. Does my selection of units impact my admissions score?

Your GPA is calculated using units completed for your current degree, plus the most recent completed degree (where applicable).

The ‘recent GPA’ score is calculated only using courses/units in a relevant life sciences degree. The Bachelor of Agricultural Science at Murdoch University is considered a relevant life sciences degree.

Your overall and recent GPA are one component of the admissions score.

• GPA and CASPer z-score are used to rank applicants prior to offer for interview.
• For applicants with an admissions score ranked sufficiently high to be offered an interview (based on GPA and CASPer z-score), your final admissions score will be re-calculated to include the score for your interview.

After interviews are completed, applicants are re-ranked based on final admissions score (GPA, CASPer z-score and interview) and those with highest overall admissions ranking will receive offers.

The interview process provides the admissions team opportunity to discuss your previous study, including choice of course and the units studied in the context of relevance to the veterinary program and profession. Your capacity to demonstrate relevant knowledge and experience may impact your interview score. Therefore, students may wish to consider relevance to the veterinary profession when selecting elective units in your current life sciences course.

Apart from potential to contribute to the interview score, students studying the Bachelor of Agricultural Science at Murdoch University may also wish to consider selecting units that have been approved for advanced standing for the BSc/DVM as this may impact overall cost (student contributions) of completing the degree for students that transfer.

I have started studying at university but haven't completed a full year yet, can I still apply?

Yes, we have made provision for applicants in this situation. By 31^st August 2024 you must still meet the other minimum requirements, supply your semester one grades, and you must be enrolled in enough units to complete enough credit points by the end of the year (see admissions requirements). We will take into account your semester two grades before applicant rankings are finalized and offers sent out.

How do units marked as ungraded pass impact to my admissions score for the Tertiary Pathway?

Ungraded pass units count as completed units, but the ungraded pass grade is not included in calculation of GPA and thus does not adversely impact your GPA. That is, you receive credit points for completion of a unit, but the 'ungraded pass' is attributed a score for calculation of GPA.

Example 1: A student that has completed eight units in the 12 months prior to application, including one work integrated learning unit that is graded as ungraded pass:

• will be considered to have completed one year of study at full time load (24 points)
• GPA is calculated using only the 7 graded units. That is, the ungraded pass does not reduce GPA. The ungraded pass unit counts as a completed unit, but not a P grade (50-59%).

Example 2: A student completing 3 units with distinction grade (D) and one ungraded pass (UP) will have the same GPA as a student with four distinction grades (D) in the same period.

A fail grade in an ungraded unit will be scored as a fail and impact your GPA. This will be counted as an unsuccessful attempt in calculating academic progression. If you need to withdraw from an ungraded pass unit, you should aim to do so before the census date.

Relevant experience, knowledge and skills attained in an ungraded pass unit may be discussed in the interview and potentially contributes to the interview score.

Will completing an honours or masters degree improve my admissions score?

Completing an honours or master’s program will contribute to your admissions score:

• Marks for research skills and theses units completed for the honours/masters program will contribute to your overall and recent GPA score.
• For students with admissions score sufficiently high to progress to interview, then relevant skills, attributes and knowledge applied in an honours/masters program may be discussed in the interview and contribute to your interview score.

For students completing honours or masters program, the GPA will be calculated using weighted average for units completed.  For example, students completing honours at Murdoch University, the overall and GPA used to calculate admissions score will include weighted grade for the research methods unit (3 points) and the thesis unit (21 points). That is, a HD in a 21-point thesis unit is weighted as equivalent to HD in seven individual 3-point units. Your grade for each unit is weighted for credit points and used to calculate the recent GPA (last 12 months) and contribute to overall GPA.

For students who progress to interview, the interview may provide opportunity to discuss the project in context of how you have demonstrated skills and attributes relevant to the veterinary profession, and this may contribute to your interview score. Relevant skills, knowledge and attributes demonstrated in honours could include (but are not limited to) written and oral communication, numeracy and data analysis, independent learning and teamwork, organisational skills, animal handling skills, problem solving, scientific ethics, ability to meet deadlines and so on.

Murdoch University offers honours, accelerated masters and coursework masters in Animal Science, Animal Health,  Veterinary Biology and Biosecurity. There are some differences in student fees (contributions) depending on type of enrolment, so please contact the Agricultural Science academic chair for advice.

There are other honours programs offered at Murdoch University that can align to relevant skills including conservation and wildlife biology, and molecular biology. Please see the handbook for more details.

Will part time studies impact my admission score?

The recent GPA is calculated over the period equivalent to 12 months full time load.

For students studying at Murdoch University, recent GPA is calculated using your most recent 8 units (24 points).

For example, if you are studying 2 units per semester (50% load), then recent GPA is calculated over the 8 units that were completed over previous two years.

Why are people with a criminal record excluded from applying?

Completing the BSc/DVM course will give you eligibility to apply to the veterinary registration body in the locality where you intend to work.

Some registration bodies will not allow an individual with a criminal record to practise as a veterinary surgeon. This varies widely throughout the world and is the candidate’s responsibility to check the requirements for the relevant locality.

For this reason, if applicants possess a criminal record likely to prevent them from working as a veterinarian, we cannot allow them admission into the course.

Which other Murdoch courses are recommended entry pathways into Veterinary Science/Veterinary Medicine?

Our recommended pathway into the Veterinary Science (BSc + DVM B1402 course is through our Bachelor in Agricultural Science (B1391) majoring in Animal Science and Animal Health. The Bachelor of Agricultural Science with the double major provides an excellent basis for veterinary studies. The course structure provides students with opportunity to complete units pre-approved for advanced standing in Veterinary Science (BSc + DVM B1402), and thereby reduce the time and costs (student contributions) to complete the BSc/DVM.

Whilst this is the preferred pathway due to close alignment, relevance and potential to reduce time and cost, other courses can provide good background to veterinary studies. Alternatives include Biomedical Science and Conservation and Wildlife Biology.