The relevance of university entrance scores has come under question in a new report that has found just one in four undergraduate students is admitted based on their Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank (ATAR).

Key points: Mitchell Institute director said students choosing to undertake, or not to undertake, certain subjects because it might diminish ATAR

Mitchell Institute director said students choosing to undertake, or not to undertake, certain subjects because it might diminish ATAR Universities looking at different ways they can select students

Universities looking at different ways they can select students NSW Secondary Principals Council president said ATAR still "useful in some respects"

The Mitchell Institute, a think tank at Victoria University, found unis have been moving away from this system to measure student capability in recent years.

Instead, they are turning to aptitude tests, interviews, portfolios, auditions, bridging courses, essays and bonus point schemes to determine whether a candidate is a good fit for a course.

The report found 131,555 people did not go through the typical ATAR application process, up 9.1 per cent since 2016. This includes high school graduates and mature-age students.

"Overall the picture is of an evolving higher education sector, where students from a range of ages and backgrounds come to study via a number of pathways," the report said.

"Much of this change is consistent with policy goals to increase overall levels of tertiary education participation and attainment, and to facilitate access for students from non-traditional backgrounds."

Mitchell Institute director Megan O'Connell said, at a school level, ATARs had been distorting study choices for too long.

"We see students choosing to undertake, or not to undertake, certain subjects because it might diminish their ATAR," she said.

The report said in NSW between 2001 and 2015 there was a 9 per cent rise in students selecting lower-level maths courses to get higher marks and maximise their ATAR scores.

"We also hear that students are choosing to undertake courses because of their ATAR," Ms O'Connell said.

"So if you're a smart student — you get an ATAR of 95 — you might be pressured to go into, for example, law, even though you might want to be doing something quite different with your life."

Universities looking at 'alternative measures'

Ms O'Connell also pointed out, among school-leavers, two-thirds still used their ATAR — but this trend was also on the decline.

She said it was time for a national discussion on whether the measure had become outdated.

"The ATAR does have its place and was set up for a good reason," she said.

"But is there a way we can amend the ATAR or look at smoothing transitions from schooling into further education?"

The report found the courses where the highest numbers of non-ATAR offers were made — seven out of every 10 — included health and teaching.

The report followed a shift to a demand-driven system for university places, which has, over time, eroded the use of ATARs.

Under the policy change, government funding follows students, meaning there are not caps on university places.

"There's now not such a need to ration university places, so universities are looking at different ways they can select students," Ms O'Connell said.

"They are really looking at supplementary and alternative measures to make sure they get the right students for the right courses."

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ATAR 'not reliable but has a place'

New South Wales Secondary Principals Council president Chris Presland said the ATAR was "useful in some respects".

"It's a quick, cheap and nasty kind of way to assess student capability," he said.

"I think we've known for some time that not only is it not the key way that most students get into university but it's also not a particularly reliable predictor of performance at university."

He did not think abolishing the ATAR would reduce teenagers' commitment to high school studies.

"There are plenty of students who don't want to gain an ATAR who still take their HSC very, very seriously because that's the credential they're after.

"There are plenty of students to take [ATAR] very seriously and particularly those that are looking to pursue an academic path, but not exclusively those students."

Mr Presland said he expected many parents were confused by the ATAR but also caught up in the "hype" surrounding it.

"A number of times you still hear around the place, 'Did someone pass their HSC?' Or, 'Did they pass their ATAR?' Or, 'Is 50 a pass mark?'," he said.

"All those kinds of things demonstrate the fact that it's not well understood."