How the WACE ATAR is calculated (2026): TEA, bonuses and TISC scaling
Your WA ATAR comes from your Tertiary Entrance Aggregate (TEA): the sum of your best four ATAR course scaled scores, plus 10% of your Mathematics Methods scaled score, 10% of your Mathematics Specialist scaled score, and 10% of your best language (LOTE) scaled score, each added even if that course isn't in your best four. TISC converts the TEA to an ATAR. In 2025 a TEA of 269.6 was the minimum for an ATAR of 90.00.
In Western Australia, the School Curriculum and Standards Authority (SCSA) runs the WACE and the ATAR course exams, and TISC (Tertiary Institutions Service Centre) calculates the ATAR and handles university applications and offers.
From marks to scaled scores
TISC's marks adjustment process has four stages:
- Moderation. SCSA moderates your school's assessment marks against the exam results.
- Combined mark. Your moderated school mark and raw exam mark (both out of 100) are averaged. Courses with a practical, performance or oral exam combine the written and practical parts in the proportion set by the syllabus.
- Standardisation. Each course's combined marks are standardised to the same shape, so a harder or easier exam in a given year doesn't distort results.
- Average Marks Scaling (AMS). TISC scales each course so its average scaled score matches the average that the same group of students achieved across all their courses. If a course's students do well across the board, that course is scaled up.
After scaling, the mean of all scaled scores across all students and courses is 60. A course with a scaled mean above 60 has been scaled up; below 60, scaled down. This can change from year to year as cohorts change.
The Tertiary Entrance Aggregate (TEA)
| Component | Contribution |
|---|---|
| Best four ATAR course scaled scores | Up to 400 |
| Mathematics Methods bonus | 10% of your Methods scaled score (if you have one) |
| Mathematics Specialist bonus | 10% of your Specialist scaled score (if you have one) |
| LOTE bonus | 10% of your best language scaled score (only one) |
- The bonuses apply even if the course isn't one of your best four.
- You need at least four scaled scores for an ATAR.
- Scaled scores can be accumulated over five consecutive years, but each course counts once. If you repeat a course, TISC uses your best score.
- Some course combinations are unacceptable; for those, only your better score counts.
TISC's 2025 information sheet says the highest possible TEA in 2025 was 430.
From TEA to ATAR
TISC ranks TEAs and uses the proportion of WA's school-leaving-age population who took at least four ATAR courses to decide how many students go in each ATAR band. TISC's 2025 table gives the minimum TEA for selected ATARs:
| ATAR (2025) | Minimum TEA |
|---|---|
| 99.95 | 405.5 |
| 99.00 | 348.1 |
| 95.00 | 295.3 |
| 90.00 | 269.6 |
| 85.00 | 251.7 |
| 80.00 | 237.9 |
| 75.00 | 226.4 |
| 70.05 | 215.7 |
| 60.00 | 197.2 |
| 50.00 | 178.4 |
In 2025, 10,265 school leavers received an ATAR and 18 achieved 99.95.
TISC proposed in 2024 to change how the WA TEA is calculated, with a proposed start in 2028. In 2026 the TISC Board postponed that change until further notice, so the current method (best four plus 10% bonuses) still applies.
An ATAR isn't the only requirement
For standard school-leaver entry, WA universities also look at WACE achievement, competence in English and course prerequisites. For example, a scaled score of 50 or more in English, Literature or EALD ATAR meets the English requirement at every WA university; from 2025 there are other ways to meet it, which vary by university. TISC's Admission Requirements for University Admission 2027 brochure sets out the rules for your year.
Forgetting the bonuses. A student taking Mathematics Methods and Mathematics Specialist gets 10% of both scaled scores added to the TEA, whether or not they are in the best four.
For subject choice, see choosing WACE ATAR courses with scaling in mind. For release dates and offer rounds, see WACE results day and TISC offers.
Sources & how we know this
- About the ATAR — Tertiary Institutions Service Centre (TISC) (2026)
- The marks adjustment process — Tertiary Institutions Service Centre (TISC) (2026)
- 2025 Scaling and ATAR information — Tertiary Institutions Service Centre (TISC) (2025)
- School leaver admission requirements — Tertiary Institutions Service Centre (TISC) (2026)
Last updated: 2026-09-23. Rules change. For the official source see SCSA.