Some of the state's top International Baccalaureate students are set to receive lower ATARs under changes aimed at stopping high achievers getting an unfair advantage.

The overhaul follows criticism that IB students have an edge over their VCE counterparts when their results are converted into ATARs and they apply for university.

Around 40 per cent of IB students will be impacted by changes to the way their results are converted into ATARs Credit:Martin Hunter

For the first time in 2021, Australian admissions centres will draw on more detailed data about IB students’ performance before converting their scores into ATARs.

According to the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre, the ATARs of about 15 per cent of IB students, the majority of whom receive top marks, will go down.