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Innovative test to transform international student selection

Posted on:Wednesday, 19th September 2001

An innovative test which will transform the way Australian universities select       international students was launched today by the Australian Council for Educational       Research (ACER).

The International Student Admissions Test (ISAT) will provide universities       with the opportunity to use a reliable and efficient way of testing students’ potential       to cope academically with Australian tertiary courses. It will complement       the existing English-language competency tests.

“The test was developed in response to concerns expressed by universities       about the uncertainties associated with some applicants’ credentials,” the       Executive Director of ACER, Professor Geoff Masters, said.

“While Australian universities have a well-defined system of requiring       scores in English proficiency tests, up until now there has been no commonly       accepted method of assessing the preparedness of overseas candidates for       academic studies in Australia. ISAT addresses this concern by assessing cross-curricular       academic abilities.”

ISAT requires students to answer 100 multiple-choice questions in three hours.      The questions measure critical reasoning (humanities/social sciences) and       quantitative reasoning (science/mathematics) abilities which are considered       important for coping with the intellectual demands of most tertiary courses.      The emphasis is on thinking skills rather than curriculum-specific knowledge       and English-language proficiency.

Candidates pay to sit the test in IDP Education Australia’s worldwide       test centres. While candidates receive a copy of their respective results,      they are also listed on a secure ACER database, to be independently verified       by Australian universities.

Professor Masters said this assessment tool will strongly assist universities       in many ways.

“It will provide them with the opportunity to gain an indication of an       applicant’s cognitive abilities, validate their credentials, assist       with decisions about borderline applicants and guide placement into particular       programs or courses,” Professor Masters said.

“ACER has been encouraged by the response from universities in the recently       successful national trials of ISAT. They have shown a keen interest in using       the test for entrance in their respective courses in 2002.”

The first test will be available this year in preparation for the February       2002 entry. There will be at least four sittings of ISAT annually. Students       can only sit for the test once in each university admission period (July-February       and March-June). Several versions of the tests are to be produced each year       to ensure security.

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