The ATAR in Victoria is calculated by VTAC, not by your school and not by VCAA. VTAC adds your scaled English study score, your next three highest scaled study scores, and 10% of a fifth and sixth scaled score. That total is your aggregate, and every student’s aggregate is then ranked on a percentile scale from 0.00 to 99.95. So how is the ATAR calculated in Victoria in practice? It is a ranking built from scaled scores, which is why two students with identical study scores can finish with very different ATARs.
Every rule in this guide comes from VTAC’s ATAR and Scaling Guide 2026 and every number from its 2025 Scaling Report, both read this week. Year 12s finish their written exams on 18 November and get their ATAR at 7am on Thursday 10 December 2026, so this is the month families start doing this sum on the back of an envelope. Here is how to do it properly. At NextStepAcademy we tutor VCE students online, and it is worth understanding this before results arrive.
Who calculates the ATAR in Victoria: VCAA or VTAC?
Two organisations do two different jobs, and parents often merge them.
- VCAA runs the exams, moderates school-based assessment and issues your VCE study scores. A study score is a number from 0 to 50 showing how you performed against everyone else in that study. We explain it in our guide to what a VCE study score actually is.
- VTAC takes those study scores, scales them, adds them up and produces the ATAR. A scaled study score runs from 0.00 to 55.00.
What is the formula for the ATAR in Victoria?
VTAC calls the first part your “primary four” and the rest “increments”. The aggregate is:
- Your scaled score in one English study (English, English as an Additional Language, Literature or English Language)
- plus your next three highest permissible scaled scores
- plus up to two increments, usually 10% of a fifth and 10% of a sixth scaled score
The English score always counts, even when it is your lowest. That single rule surprises more families than any other. VTAC says the aggregate can range from 0 to over 210 in exceptional cases.
What does “permissible” mean in the ATAR rules?
Not every combination is allowed to count. VTAC’s main restrictions for students finishing Year 12 in 2026 are:
- At most two results from the same study area grouping can sit in your primary four, and at most three can contribute to your aggregate. So Mathematical Methods, Specialist Mathematics and General Mathematics cannot all sit in the primary four. The third can only count as an increment.
- Equivalent studies cannot both count. English and English as an Additional Language is the classic pair.
- If you have more than six results, VTAC uses the six permissible results that give you the highest ATAR.
To receive an ATAR at all you must qualify for the VCE and have study scores in at least four permissible Unit 3 and 4 studies, including one from the English group. VCE Vocational Major subjects do not receive a study score and cannot be used in the ATAR.
How do scaled study scores change your result?
Every study score has a mean of 30 before scaling. VTAC then adjusts each study according to how strong the students in it were in their other studies. A 35 in a highly competitive study becomes more than 35. A 35 in a less competitive one becomes less. These are VTAC’s rounded 2025 figures, and we cover the method in how VCE scaling works and the full list in which VCE subjects scale up the most.
| 2025 VCE study | A 35 became | A 40 became |
|---|---|---|
| Mathematical Methods | 41 | 46 |
| Chemistry | 39 | 44 |
| Biology | 36 | 41 |
| Legal Studies | 34 | 40 |
| Psychology | 34 | 39 |
| English | 33 | 39 |
| Business Management | 32 | 38 |
| Health and Human Development | 31 | 37 |
| Food Studies | 29 | 35 |
Source: VTAC 2025 Scaling Report, dated 11 December 2025. Rounded to the nearest integer. The formal calculation uses two decimal places.
What does a worked ATAR calculation look like?
Here are three students. They are illustrative, not real people, and they use the rounded 2025 figures above. VTAC’s table says it can be used to check an ATAR calculation “roughly”, and that is all this is.
| Student A: six 35s | Student B: six 35s | Student C: six 40s | |
|---|---|---|---|
| English (must count) | 33 | 33 | 39 |
| Next three | Methods 41, Chemistry 39, Biology 36 | Legal 34, Psychology 34, Business 32 | Legal 40, Psychology 39, Business 38 |
| Primary four total | 149 | 133 | 156 |
| 10% of fifth and sixth | Psychology 3.4, Legal 3.4 | Health 3.1, Food 2.9 | Health 3.7, Food 3.5 |
| Aggregate | 155.8 | 139.0 | 163.2 |
| Roughly, on the 2025 table | ATAR just over 90 | ATAR about 82 | ATAR just under 93 |
Two lessons sit in that table. Students A and B have identical study scores and finish about eight ATAR points apart. That is scaling doing its job. But Student C, doing the same lower-scaling subjects as Student B, beat Student A simply by scoring 40s instead of 35s. A strong score in a study you are good at outranks a mediocre score in a study that scales well. VTAC makes the same point in its own guide, calling the belief that you must choose scaled-up subjects a myth that can work against you.
How do you turn an aggregate into an ATAR?
VTAC publishes a table with the minimum aggregate needed for each ATAR. These are some of the 2025 lines. The 2026 table will differ a little, because it is rebuilt from each year’s students. Last year’s report was dated 11 December 2025.
| 2025 ATAR | Minimum aggregate |
|---|---|
| 50.00 | 94.06 |
| 60.00 | 107.03 |
| 70.00 | 120.42 |
| 80.00 | 135.65 |
| 90.00 | 155.19 |
| 95.00 | 169.85 |
| 99.00 | 192.10 |
| 99.90 | 208.08 |
Source: VTAC 2025 Scaled Aggregate to ATAR Table.
Why does one ATAR point cost more at the top?
This is the part of the table almost nobody reads, and we worked it out directly from VTAC’s figures. Between ATAR 50 and 60, one ATAR point costs about 1.3 aggregate points. Between 90 and 95 it costs about 2.9. Between 95 and 99 it costs about 5.6, more than four times as much.
So a student sitting around 60 can see a real jump from one better study score. A student around 95 cannot, and needs improvement across several studies. Worth remembering when you set a target.
Is a fifth or sixth study worth doing?
Usually yes, but know what it is worth. Each increment adds only 10% of a scaled score. Take away both increments from Student A and the aggregate drops from 155.8 to 149, which is roughly ATAR 87 instead of 90. That is real, but it also means one extra point in the primary four is worth as much as ten extra points in a sixth study. If a student is overloaded, the primary four is where effort pays first. Other increments exist as well, including an approved higher education study, worth between 3.0 and 5.0 points depending on the mark.
When will VCE students see their 2026 ATAR?
The VCE results and ATAR service opens at 7am on Thursday 10 December 2026, and you must register first using your VCAA student number. VTAC’s dates page shows that current VCE students can change preferences until 12 noon on Saturday 12 December, digital ATAR statements come at 9am on 15 December, and December offers arrive at 10am on 23 December. That change of preference window is only about two days, so have your list thought through before results day. Our VCE results day guide covers the morning itself.
What should families do with this now?
- Year 12s: finish the exams first. Your aggregate cannot be calculated from home with any precision before scaling is known. After exams, use the 2025 table for a rough range and nothing firmer.
- Year 10s and 11s: choose subjects you are good at and engaged in, then check the study area grouping rules so you do not end up with a study that cannot count.
- Everyone: treat English as compulsory in the sum. Time spent lifting a weak English score counts every single time.
If a student needs help lifting a specific score, our VCE tutoring in Melbourne and high school tutoring in Melbourne run online with one-on-one tutors matched to the study. See also our Melbourne tutoring page for younger students.
Frequently asked questions
Does English always count towards the ATAR in Victoria?
Yes. One study from the English group must be in your primary four, even if it is your lowest scaled score. English, English as an Additional Language, Literature and English Language all qualify.
How many subjects count towards the VCE ATAR?
Up to six. Four count in full (the primary four) and up to two more count at 10% as increments. You need at least four permissible study scores to receive an ATAR at all.
What ATAR does a study score of 35 give you?
There is no fixed answer, because it depends on which studies. In our illustration using VTAC’s 2025 figures, six 35s produced roughly ATAR 90 in one subject mix and roughly 82 in another.
Why is there no ATAR of 100?
The ATAR is a percentile rank, not a mark out of 100. It runs from 0.00 to 99.95 in steps of 0.05, and VTAC explains that the top group cannot perform better than themselves.
Can you calculate your exact ATAR before results day?
No. Scaling and the aggregate table are rebuilt each year from that year’s students, so the previous year’s figures only give a rough range.
Want a tutor focused on the study scores that will move your ATAR most? NextStepAcademy matches VCE students with one-on-one online tutors. If the first lesson isn’t right, you don’t pay. Book your first lesson here.
Sources: VTAC Results and the ATAR, ATAR and Scaling Guide 2026, 2025 Scaling Report and Key Dates 2026-27, all read 7 November 2026. Worked examples are illustrative and use rounded 2025 figures. The 2026 values will differ.