The University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney) 2026 admissions schedule released
UNSW Sydney
Please see below for updates from UNSW.
The University of New South Wales in Sydney is ranked 20th in the world and 2nd in Australia in the 2026 QS World University Rankings, marking its third consecutive year in the global top 20. This recognition reflects our ongoing profound impact in global research exploration, graduate employability, learning experience, international exchange, and sustainable development.As a top 20 global university, we are committed to attracting the best students from around the world. Today, we are releasing the 2026 international admissions process and schedule to you, which includes anew grouped admissions mechanismfor high-demand courses, designed to provide higher certainty and transparency to agent partners and applicants.
1. 2026 Regular Admission Round Schedule (Applicable to Most Courses)
UNSW will issue admission notices to international students on a weekly basis for most courses, with postgraduate and undergraduate admissions alternating.
The application deadline remains four weeks before the intended issuance date, but the admissions team may issue admission notices earlier in earlier rounds if conditions permit.
All rules regarding the expiration of formal and conditional admissions still apply.
👉 To view the full schedule, please visit our 2026 International Admissions page:
https://www.unsw.edu.au/study/international-students/admissions-info?mc_cid=31ea475b99&mc_eid=9378fb249f#2026
2. 2026 Grouped Admission Round Mechanism – Exclusive to High-Demand Courses
To ensure a fair application process and provide more opportunities for high-quality students, UNSW will implement a new 'Grouped Admission Round' system for high-demand courses.
This system will apply to applicants for the following courses and their related programs:
- Bachelor of Exercise Science / Master of Physiotherapy and Exercise Physiology
- Bachelor of Commerce
- Master of Laws
- Master of Information Technology
In each grouped admission round, applicants will be assessed collectively and ranked based on academic performance, with admission notices issued to the top performers.
There will be three rounds of grouped assessments each semester, with the number of admissions per round flexibly determined based on course capacity.
Applicants must meet the minimum entry requirements listed in Degree Finder to be eligible for assessment. Please note that these scores are for reference only and do not guarantee admission.
Assessment results will fall into three categories:
- Top-tier applicants: Will receive formal admission in that round;
- Second-tier applicants: Will be carried over to the next round of grouped assessment (if there are still vacancies in that semester);
- Applicants not meeting the above two categories: If they have other alternative courses in their UNSW application and are eligible, they may receive admission to that course; otherwise, they will receive a notification of non-admission to make other decisions as early as possible.
At present, we are unable to provide estimated cut-off scores for each grouped round, but all minimum scores for admission will be uniformly published on the respective course pages after all grouped assessments for Term 1, 2026 are completed.
Please note: UNSW reserves the right to issue individual admission notices to exceptionally outstanding applicants outside of the grouped rounds.
We will also continue to issue admission notices through UAC (University Admissions Centre), with admission rankings consistent with the grouped rounds.
For more details and specific dates of each round, please see our 2026 International Admissions page.
3. Invitation to the 2026 International Admissions Online Briefing
This new assessment process will be a significant change in UNSW's future admissions mechanism.
To help you better understand, we will hold an online briefing on Thursday, July 10, 2025, detailing the 2026 admissions process and the grouped admission mechanism. This briefing will also coincide with the release of the first round of grouped admissions for Term 1.
You are welcome to click the link below to register for the meeting and submit your questions of interest in advance:
https://unsw.us6.list-manage.com/track/click?u=a8f413ea842f87cb70f1566f9&id=34bc72d864&e=0cce9da8ec