Rural and equity entry in Australia
How medical and dental schools count your background
Australia has no single scheme for counting your background. Medical schools must keep a share of places for rural-origin students, usually defined as five consecutive or ten cumulative years in a rural area. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants have separate pathways. Admissions centre equity schemes can lift a selection rank, but many medicine programs limit them. Rules change by school, so check each one before you rely on it.
- Usual rural residency test
- 5 straight or 10 total years
- Most common rural scale
- Modified Monash MM2 to MM7
- GEMSAS rural floor, 2027
- 25% of CSPs at most schools
- Adjustment factors change
- Selection rank, never ATAR
Photo: Content Charles Sturt · CC BY-SA 4.0 · cropped
Photo: Nielg · Public domain · Photo: Bob T · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Photo: JVPurvis · CC BY-SA 3.0
Rural and equity entry: how Australian schools count your background
Australia has no single national scheme for counting an applicant's background. Each medical and dental school uses its own mix of four tools: reserved places, lower minimum scores, adjustment factors and separate pathways. A scheme that helps you at one school may count for nothing at the next.
Three examples show the spread for 2027 entry. UNSW lowers its ATAR minimum for rural applicants, but that minimum must be met without adjustment points. James Cook University reserves rural places yet says rank adjustment schemes are not available for medicine or dentistry. UQ adds adjustments to your rank for its MD provisional entry, up to a cap of five.
Two terms matter throughout this guide. Your ATAR is the national rank you receive with your Year 12 results. Your selection rank is the number a university uses for one course: your ATAR plus any adjustment factors. Adjustment factors used to be called bonus points. They change your selection rank, never your ATAR.
Reserved places
A set share of places goes to one group, who compete with each other. Curtin allocates up to 25 per cent of its places to rural applicants from WA, the NT and SA, and those applicants compete only with other rural applicants.
Lower minimum scores
UNSW asks for an ATAR of 91.00 on its rural and Gateway routes, against 96.00 for general entry. Western Sydney asks for 91.5 on its rural scheme and 93.5 for Greater Western Sydney residents, against 95.5.
Adjustment factors
Points added to your selection rank for one course. Some schools count them before testing a minimum score. Others make you reach the minimum without them.
Separate pathways
A different assessment altogether. UNSW's Indigenous Entry Scheme needs no UCAT-ANZ and runs through a three-week residential program.
The Commonwealth rural requirement: why rural places exist
Rural places exist because of Commonwealth policy. Under the Department of Health's Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training (RHMT) Program, universities must take a set share of medical students from a rural background. The department's reasoning is that health students from a rural background, and those who train rurally for extended periods, are more likely to take up rural practice.
The program framework published for 2019 to 2020 set the floor at 25 per cent of a university's Commonwealth-supported medical allocation. GEMSAS, the graduate medical admissions system, still states the figure for the 2027 intake as at least 25 per cent at most medical schools. A Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) is a place subsidised by the Australian Government.
Many schools now publish a higher share. Notre Dame says at least 28.5 per cent, ANU says 29 per cent, and Melbourne says at least 30 per cent. Use the school's own figure, not the national floor. The rule concerns medical students: dental schools make their own rural arrangements, covered in the dentistry section below.
How schools define rural background: Modified Monash and ASGS
Check your address on the exact scale and edition each school names. A rural claim that works at one school can fail on a technicality at another.
Two scales are in use. The Modified Monash Model (MMM) runs from MM1 for metropolitan areas to MM7 for very remote communities. Most schools count MM2 to MM7 as rural, and GEMSAS uses the 2023 edition for the 2027 intake. You can check an address on the Department of Health's Health Workforce Locator.
The Australian Statistical Geography Standard Remoteness Areas (ASGS-RA) runs from major cities to very remote. Schools that use it count RA2 to RA5, which means inner regional, outer regional, remote and very remote areas. For 2027 entry, Western Sydney, Sydney, Charles Sturt and Flinders use this scale.
Editions matter too. Adelaide's page names the 2019 MMM, not the 2023 version. Sydney's guide tells applicants whose address moved from RA2 to major cities in the 2021 classification to contact its admissions office.
When the clock runs
Five consecutive or ten cumulative years is the usual test, but the window differs. UNSW counts between ages 5 and 18. Western Sydney counts from age five. Sydney counts from birth. Curtin counts from Year 1 to 31 December before the admission year. UQ says the timing does not matter.
Which address counts
Schools look at your primary home. UQ and Curtin exclude holiday homes, and GEMSAS excludes holiday homes and temporary stays. Boarding students can use the family home at UQ and Curtin. GEMSAS counts campus accommodation only if the campus itself is in a rural area.
School, not home
Newcastle's Rural Bonus Scheme looks at the postcode of your high school rather than your home address. If you finished Year 12 at a designated rural or remote school, the ATAR you need falls to 85 from 94.30.
Near misses do not count
Sydney's guide says four years and eleven months in a rural area is not enough, and an address 20 metres outside a rural boundary does not qualify. GEMSAS also says future time cannot be claimed.
| System or school | What you provide | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| GEMSAS | Rurality section of the application, a statutory declaration, evidence of residence for every claimed year, and a Rural Coversheet | Due 15 June 2026 last cycle. Rates notices are not accepted. Holiday homes do not count. |
| QTAC Rural Access Scheme | Cover sheet and supporting documents showing primary residence | QTAC says statutory declarations are strictly not accepted, the opposite of GEMSAS. |
| University of Sydney | Confirmation of Rural Origin form completed by a doctor, dentist, pharmacist, lawyer, school principal or employer | The university audits rural applicants and may contact the person who signed. |
| Western Sydney | Community Member Confirmation form uploaded with your UAC application | Documents sent after the closing date are not considered. |
| Curtin | Rural entry form sent to Curtin Medical School, separate from your TISC application | Proof must cover primary residence and schooling. |
Rural entry to medicine, school by school (2027 entry)
These tables list only what we could confirm on each school's page, GEMSAS or its admissions centre. Minimums are hurdles, not the scores that win a place.
School-leaver and undergraduate-entry medicine
| School | Route | Who counts as rural | What changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNSW | Rural Entry Admission Pathway | MM2 to MM7, five consecutive or ten cumulative years between ages 5 and 18 | ATAR 91.00 without adjustment points, not 96.00. UCAT-ANZ 40th percentile, not 50th. Most offers are for Port Macquarie or Wagga Wagga. |
| Western Sydney | Rural Entry Admission Scheme | ASGS RA2 to RA5, five consecutive or ten cumulative years since age five | ATAR 91.5, not 95.5. At least 15 places. You choose this or general entry, not both. Citizens and permanent residents only. |
| Charles Sturt | Rural Entry Admission Scheme | RA2 to RA5, five consecutive or ten cumulative years since age five, confirmed by a community member | ATAR 91.5, not 95.5. |
| Newcastle and UNE | Rural Bonus Scheme and Rural and Remote Admissions Scheme | Rural Bonus: postcode of your high school. Admissions Scheme: a period of rural or remote residence | ATAR 85, not 94.30, on the Rural Bonus Scheme. Minimum target of 30 per cent of students from a rural or remote background. |
| Monash | Dean's Rural List | MM2 to MM7, five consecutive or ten cumulative years at your principal home address | 27 per cent of MD places go to rural or regional applicants. First-round interview offers use UCAT-ANZ total score alone. |
| UQ | Rural Background Sub-quota | MM2 to MM7 (2023), five consecutive or ten cumulative years, at any time of life | 28 per cent of new domestic MD places. Two rank adjustments. For the 2026 intake the lowest UCAT-ANZ interview score was 1,960, against 2,290. |
| Adelaide | Rural background places | MM2 to MM7 (MMM 2019), five consecutive or ten cumulative years | Approximately 41 places reserved. |
| Flinders | Rural and remote sub-quota, Clinical Sciences and MD | RA2 to RA5, five consecutive or ten cumulative years | A yearly sub-quota. Statutory declaration to SATAC within 10 working days of applying. |
| UWA | Rural quota, Assured Pathway | MM-2 to MM-7, five consecutive or ten cumulative years | A rurality rating makes up 25 per cent of the rural ranking. Minimum ATAR 98 after Broadway adjustments. |
| Curtin | Rural entry pathway | MM2 to MM7, five consecutive or ten cumulative years since Year 1. WA, NT and SA applicants only | Up to 25 per cent of about 110 places. Up to five adjustment points, from one scheme only. |
| Tasmania | Rural Application Process | Regional or remote MMM areas, five consecutive or ten cumulative years | Up to five ATAR points for rural school leavers. 20 Rural Training Stream places at Cradle Coast. The page last showed previous-cycle dates. |
| James Cook | QTAC Rural Access Scheme places | QTAC test: MM2 to MM7, 60 consecutive or 120 cumulative months | Reserved places. No rank adjustment for medicine. |
| Charles Darwin | CDU Menzies Medical Program sub-quotas | NT residency, including an MMM 4 to 7 group. Rural and Remote for non-NT applicants | Of 40 CSPs: NT First Nations 40%, NT residents 30%, NT MMM 4 to 7 15%, other First Nations 10%, Rural and Remote 5%. |
Graduate-entry medicine
| School | Rural share or route | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| ANU | 29 per cent of domestic places | Rural background is judged on MM2 to MM7 residence, with documents through GEMSAS. |
| Deakin | At least 25 per cent of domestic places, plus 30 Rural Training Stream places | Rurality adjustment of 4 per cent for MM2 or Geelong MM1, 8 per cent for MM3 to MM7. The stream adds a written application and a four-year rural commitment. |
| Griffith | Griffith University Rural Priority Access Scheme | CSPs are set aside for applicants with five consecutive or ten cumulative years in MM2 to MM7. |
| Macquarie | No separate rural quota listed | A 3 per cent bonus on your weighted GPA, capped at 5 per cent if you belong to more than one bonus group. |
| Melbourne | Priority access to at least 30 per cent of CSPs, plus the MD Rural Pathway | The pathway has 32 places: 17 for La Trobe Biomedical Science (Medical) students and 15 open to others with a GPA of 5.0 or more. It is applied for directly. |
| Notre Dame | At least 28.5 per cent of the CSP allocation | Rural bonus points count in the 10 per cent bonus part of interview ranking. |
| UQ | Rural Background Sub-quota | Two adjustments to your unweighted average GAMSAT, and regional pathways in Central Queensland and the Darling Downs. |
| UWA | About 30 per cent of domestic places | Rural ranking is GPA 22.5, GAMSAT 15, interview 37.5 and rural rating 25 per cent. |
| Wollongong | Rural Entry Pathway, ranked separately | NSW rural-origin applicants who list UOW first and meet the minimums receive a guaranteed interview. |
| Sydney | Rural Applicants Facilitated Entry Scheme, plus 24 Dubbo stream CSPs | Minimum GPA 4.5, not 5. The GAMSAT minimum of 50 in each section stays. Dubbo adds a personal statement and possibly an interview. |
| Flinders | At least 28 per cent of SA places, plus up to 60 South Australia Rural Medical Program places | The 2027 interview cut-off was GAMSAT 61 for Rural Bedford Park applicants, against 76 for non-Flinders, non-rural applicants. |
GEMSAS calls its figures indicative. UQ's own site says 28 per cent where its GEMSAS entry says 28.5 per cent. Our graduate entry medicine guide covers the rest.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander entry pathways
This guide says Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander or First Nations, and keeps each school's own wording in a pathway's name. Each pathway has its own assessment.
GEMSAS says all its participating medical schools offer entry pathways for First Nations peoples, and most schools outside GEMSAS run one too. A pathway usually replaces part of the standard process. Many waive UCAT-ANZ or GAMSAT, and several use a panel that includes Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander staff or community members.
GEMSAS's Notre Dame entries say CSPs were uncapped for First Nations students from 1 January 2026, and that Notre Dame will offer a CSP to every successful Indigenous applicant. ANU says its places are uncapped, and UQ says it has no set quota.
Most schools ask for written confirmation of identity. The usual form is a letter from an incorporated Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander organisation under its common seal. Western Sydney and Flinders accept a statutory declaration if you cannot get that letter, and Western Sydney also wants supporting material. Ask early.
Undergraduate-entry and provisional medicine
| School | Pathway | What is different |
|---|---|---|
| UNSW | Indigenous Entry Scheme, through Nura Gili | No UCAT-ANZ. Assessment through the three-week residential Pre-Medicine and Health Program. Bonded places are not offered. |
| Western Sydney | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicant process | NSW HSC or tertiary equivalent. Interview in early November with the Dean, a professor, an academic and a community member. |
| Newcastle and UNE | Miroma Bunbilla | A pre-entry program with up to 17 places. UAC gave 30 September 2026 as the closing date. |
| Monash | Indigenous entry | Exempt from competitive ranking. An all-Indigenous panel interview replaces the MMI and, on direct entry, UCAT-ANZ. |
| UQ | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander pathways | UCAT-ANZ encouraged but not compulsory for provisional entry. GAMSAT not required for graduates. A semi-structured interview plus an MMI. |
| Adelaide | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants | No UCAT-ANZ. Statutory declaration to SATAC within five working days. Panel of three to four after an informal yarn. |
| Flinders | Sub-quota and Indigenous Entry Stream | Up to five places on the Clinical Sciences and MD double degree. Graduates without a valid GAMSAT use the Indigenous Entry Stream. |
| James Cook | Indigenous Selection Pathway | Medicine only, with a confirmation of Indigenous status letter. |
| Curtin | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander entry pathway | Apply directly to Curtin Medical School. No TISC application, UCAT-ANZ or Casper needed. |
| UWA | Indigenous quota and Boola Boola Djinda | Minimum ATAR 90 for school leavers, against 98. Up to 10 per cent of domestic places. Graduates work with Boola Boola Djinda. |
| Charles Darwin | First Nations sub-quotas | 40 per cent of CSPs for NT First Nations applicants and 10 per cent for First Nations applicants elsewhere. |
| Sydney | Indigenous Facilitated Entry Scheme | GAMSAT waived from 2027 entry. Sydney also has a separate route for applicants with a postgraduate degree. |
Graduate-entry medicine
| School | Pathway | What is different |
|---|---|---|
| Melbourne | Indigenous MD Student Entry Pathway | GPA of 5.0 or more and a passed MMI, without ranking. No GAMSAT or GEMSAS if Melbourne is your only preference. |
| ANU | Indigenous entry pathway | Reserved places, uncapped and on top of the CSP and BMP numbers. Automatic scholarship consideration. |
| Griffith | First Peoples Health Pathway | GPA of 5.0 or more. No GAMSAT or GUMSAA, and a separate panel interview. A $20,000 scholarship is available. |
| Macquarie | Indigenous Pathway | Considered case by case. GAMSAT optional. A 3 per cent bonus on weighted GPA. |
| Deakin | Indigenous Entry Stream | GEMSAS applicants needed Confirmation of Aboriginality signed and stamped by an incorporated organisation by 30 June 2026. |
| Notre Dame | Indigenous entry, applied for directly | CSP for all successful applicants, through a separate application to Notre Dame rather than GEMSAS. |
| Wollongong | Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Pathway | Direct application with no fee, open 1 March to 31 August 2026. No Casper or GAMSAT. UOW aims for 15 per cent of places. |
Not every school appears. We left a school out where we could not confirm current details, so ask its Indigenous health or admissions team directly.
EAS, SEAS and the equity schemes at each tertiary admissions centre
Each state's tertiary admissions centre runs an equity scheme for school leavers whose study was disrupted by hardship. The names differ. So does what they can do for medicine.
| Centre | Scheme name | What it looks at | How it works |
|---|---|---|---|
| UAC (NSW, ACT) | Educational Access Scheme (EAS) | Eight categories, including financial support, health and disability, home circumstances, caring duties, refugee background, English language and a regional school | Institutions raise your selection rank, each with its own rules. UAC does not publish how many points you will get. |
| VTAC (Victoria) | Equity schemes and scholarships, formerly the Special Entry Access Scheme (SEAS) | Personal information and location, financial hardship, disability or medical condition, and difficult family and life circumstances | An independent panel assesses claims, then each institution decides how to use them under its own policy. |
| QTAC (Queensland) | Educational Access Scheme (EAS), with a separate Rural Access Scheme | Circumstances that hurt your recent study. Rural Access looks at primary residence in MM2 to MM7 | You may receive a selection rank adjustment, financial help or both. |
| SATAC (SA, NT) | Universities Equity Scheme | Either your school, or individual factors such as a School Card, a Health Care Card, or means-tested income support | Five points added to your university aggregate. Applies to all courses at participating institutions. No application is needed for a qualifying school. |
| TISC (WA) | Education Access Scheme (EAS) | School environment, financial circumstances, family situation, personal health and other circumstances | May improve your selection rank. The adjustment does not appear on your Universities Admission Advice Letter. |
| University of Tasmania | No admissions centre | Rural residency, through the Rural Application Process | Applications go straight to the university through its usual online application. |
For 2027 entry, VTAC's window ran 3 August to 9 October 2026. TISC closed on 30 September 2026 for medicine.
These schemes share three limits. They change your selection rank and not your ATAR. They do not waive prerequisites or English requirements. They do not guarantee an offer, and you must still reach any published minimum and compete with other applicants.
They are also mainly for school leavers. UAC says Charles Sturt, UNE, Sydney, Wollongong, UNSW and Western Sydney give no EAS consideration for prior tertiary study. TISC says its scheme is not considered for conditional early offers, because adjustments rest on actual results.
Where adjustment factors do not apply to medicine and dentistry
This is the most common misunderstanding in this area. An adjustment that works for a science degree often does nothing for medicine.
| School | Position | What the school or centre says |
|---|---|---|
| Sydney | Limited | MySydney and the Regional and Remote scheme add 0.45. UAC excludes Medicine, Dentistry and Oral Health courses from EAS. |
| James Cook | Not available | Regional Preference, Educational Access and Subject Adjustment schemes are not available to medicine, dentistry or veterinary science applicants. |
| UNSW | Limited | The ATAR minimum must be met without EAS. EAS is considered only for applicants without tertiary study. HSC Plus excludes medicine. |
| Western Sydney | Limited | Location and subject adjustments do not apply to course 725505, the medicine double degree. |
| Newcastle and UNE | Limited | Newcastle's regional and rural adjustment excludes the Joint Medical Program. It lists up to four EAS points with no stated exclusion for the program. |
| Adelaide | Limited | Medicine accepts only the Universities Equity Scheme, not subject adjustments. |
| Flinders | Limited | The Universities Equity Scheme is open to applicants. SATAC excludes the Clinical Sciences and MD double degree from the Language, Literacy and Mathematics Scheme. |
| Monash | Limited | Equity adjustments count, up to 20 aggregate points, which Monash equates to up to 10 ATAR points. Monash's course pages say medicine offers no subject adjustment. |
| UQ | Applies, capped | Up to five adjustments in total: School Opportunity up to 4, Rural Access up to 2, Subject Incentive up to 3, EAS up to 5. The 95 minimum is an adjusted figure. |
| UWA | Applies | EAS or Uway adjustments are counted for all quotas, and the ATAR 98 minimum for Broadway and rural applicants is tested after Broadway adjustments. |
| Curtin | Applies, capped | The ATAR 95 minimum can include bonus schemes. Rural applicants get up to five points from one scheme, to a maximum of 99.95. |
| Charles Darwin | Applies | The CDU Menzies Medical Program asks for an ATAR of 85 after adjustment factors. SATAC excludes the separate NT Clinical Sciences double degree from its subject scheme. |
Your ATAR is 93.00, you are not rural, and you have an approved EAS claim. Can you apply to UNSW medicine through general entry?
No. General entry needs an ATAR of 96.00 without EAS adjustments, so EAS cannot lift you over that line. Your route would be the Gateway Entry Scheme, if you attend a Gateway school or live in a low socio-economic area, where the minimum is 91.00.
Your ATAR is 93.50 and you are approved for the Rural Access Scheme. Do you meet UQ's MD provisional minimum?
Yes on paper. Two adjustments take you to 95.50, above the adjusted minimum of 95. But a minimum is not a target. For Semester 1, 2026 the lowest non-bonded offer was 98.10 with adjustments, and the lowest bonded offer was 97.25.
School recommendation, subject bonus and school-based equity schemes
School recommendation schemes
UAC's Schools Recommendation Scheme (SRS) gives Year 12 students early offers using criteria beyond the ATAR, including school ratings. Newcastle's UAC page excludes the Joint Medical Program from it, so check each institution's criteria and do not plan on it for medicine.
Subject bonus schemes
Subject bonuses rarely reach medicine. UNSW's HSC Plus excludes medicine. SATAC's Language, Literacy and Mathematics Scheme excludes medicine at Adelaide and Flinders. Western Sydney's subject adjustment excludes its medicine course. UQ is the exception here: its Subject Incentive Scheme can add up to three adjustments, inside the overall cap of five.
Western Australia works differently, because its bonuses sit inside the ATAR itself. TISC adds 10 per cent of your scaled score in a language other than English, and 10 per cent of your Mathematics Methods and Mathematics Specialist scaled scores, to the aggregate behind your ATAR. Medicine sees them because they are already part of the rank.
School-based and low-income routes
UNSW Gateway Entry Scheme
For Year 12 students at a Gateway school or living in a low socio-economic area under the 2021 Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas. ATAR 91.00 without EAS and UCAT-ANZ 50th percentile. About 20 offers are made, and bonded places are not offered.
Western Sydney residency
Applicants who have lived in Greater Western Sydney for at least five consecutive years before starting need an ATAR of 93.5, not 95.5. They are considered for a set share of interview places.
Curtin Equity entry
For WA school leavers who qualify for the StepUp Bonus, through a listed school or financial hardship. StepUp adds five points, up to 99.95. These applicants compete only with other equity applicants.
UWA Broadway
If you complete all of Year 12 at a Broadway UWA school, you receive an automatic ATAR adjustment and can be considered as a Broadway Assured Pathway applicant for medicine.
Regional pathway degrees into UQ
UQ's Central Queensland and Wide Bay pathway starts with CQUniversity's Bachelor of Medical Science (Pathway to Medicine) and has about 60 domestic places. Its Darling Downs and South West pathway starts at the University of Southern Queensland, with about 36. QTAC says applicants from those regions may receive extra adjustments.
Graduate equity measures
Deakin adds 2 per cent for financial disadvantage. Wollongong gives a bonus for qualifying Centrelink income support within the past five years. Melbourne runs Graduate Access Melbourne, and Flinders holds up to four places for humanitarian visa holders.
Rural and equity entry to dentistry
The Commonwealth's rural quota covers medical students, and the Bonded Medical Program covers medicine only. Dental schools set their own rules. Sydney and UWA also run rural and Indigenous routes into graduate dentistry, covered in our graduate entry guide.
| School and course | Rural route | Equity and First Nations route |
|---|---|---|
| Adelaide, Bachelor of Dental Surgery | Approximately four places reserved. MM2 to MM7, five consecutive or ten cumulative years. | Both SATAC schemes apply. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants do not sit UCAT-ANZ, and a number of places are allocated to them. |
| UQ, Bachelor of Dental Science (Honours) | Adjustments can count toward the 99 adjusted minimum. For Semester 1, 2026 the lowest offer was 95.7 before and 99 after adjustments. | Applicants through the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Admissions Scheme are not required to sit UCAT-ANZ. |
| James Cook, Bachelor of Dental Surgery | Places reserved through QTAC's Rural Access Scheme. | Regional Preference, Educational Access and Subject Adjustment schemes are not available. |
| Griffith, Bachelor of Dental Health Science | Commonwealth Supported Places set aside under the Griffith University Rural Priority Access Scheme. Closed 30 September 2026 for 2027 entry. | Check Griffith's First Peoples Health Pathway. |
Charles Sturt, Melbourne and La Trobe also run rural or Indigenous dental routes, but we could not confirm current details on their own pages, so they are not listed. Ask each school.
How rural and equity entry interact with the Bonded Medical Program
The Bonded Medical Program (BMP) gives you a CSP in return for working in eligible regional, rural or remote areas after you qualify. UQ describes the commitment as three years after completing the MD. GEMSAS's Griffith and UWA entries put the BMP share at 28.5 per cent for 2027.
A rural pathway and a bonded place are separate things. GEMSAS says rural quotas may be filled across place types and are not limited to bonded places. A rural applicant is not automatically bonded, and a bonded student need not be rural. UQ and UNSW both consider rural applicants for bonded and unbonded places.
Some routes have no bonded places
UNSW does not offer bonded places through its Gateway Entry Scheme or Indigenous Entry Scheme.
Some rural routes are bonded
At Melbourne, the 32 MD Rural Pathway places are counted inside the 71 BMP places, so read the terms before choosing that route.
Rank decides unbonded places
Flinders says its highest-ranked applicants normally receive non-bonded places, and UQ offers non-bonded places before bonded ones. Listing bonded places as well gives you more places to be considered for.
Citizenship limits
UNSW and Flinders say bonded places are not available to New Zealand citizens. Western Sydney's rural scheme is also closed to them. Check your status before relying on either.
How to prepare a rural or equity claim
Most 2027 deadlines have passed and most 2028 dates are not out yet, so treat last cycle's dates as a guide only.
Map where you have lived
List every address, with start and end dates, since you started school. Check each one on the Health Workforce Locator using the 2023 MMM, and on the ASGS remoteness map for schools that use that scale.
Sort schools by what each one counts
Use the tables above. For each school, note whether it offers reserved places, a lower minimum, adjustment factors or a separate pathway, and whether your scheme counts for medicine or dentistry.
Collect proof early
Ask your GP, school or bank for dated letters on letterhead, and keep bills and statements that show your family's address. GEMSAS wants every claimed year covered with no gaps. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants should request confirmation letters well in advance.
Sit UCAT-ANZ unless you are exempt
Rural applicants usually still need it, and only some First Nations pathways waive it. The 2026 test ran from 1 July to 5 August. The concession fee was $240 in Australia, against the standard $335.
Complete every separate form
Your admissions centre application often does not cover a rural claim on its own. For 2027 entry QTAC wanted rural documents by 30 September, and Western Sydney closed on the same date. Curtin and UWA need their own forms.
Watch your offer letter
TISC reports adjustment eligibility in your Universities Admission Advice Letter, but EAS adjustments do not appear there. VTAC does not tell you your equity outcome.
Six mistakes that cost applicants a rural or equity advantage
Rural and equity entry in Australia: your questions answered
Where this guide's facts come from
Checked against these sources on 7 November 2026. Rules change between cycles, so confirm anything that decides your application on the official page for your entry year.
Turn your background into a realistic school list
Run the free Where to Apply tool with your results, then check each school's rural and equity rule against this guide.