ATAR, schmaytar. Look I’m not saying a good ATAR isn’t important, but I’m definitely saying it’s not as important as you think. And it’s most definitely not the only way to get a high paying, popular job that you’ll love. In fact, you’ll be surprised by how many of these jobs don’t require an ATAR at all.
Entrepreneur
Dick Smith, Richard Branson, and Steve Jobs. What do they all have in common? They didn’t graduate from uni and they’re all pretty dang successful entrepreneurs, wouldn’t you say? Even if you just want to slay in the corporate world, you don’t need an ATAR. In fact, technically all you need is a good idea and a bit of sense.
But if you want to give yourself a leg up and a good business knowledge to get started, there are plenty of institutions where you can complete a Diploma in Business or Bachelor of Business.
Electrician
Becoming an electrician requires a traineeship or apprenticeship, but not an ATAR. You’ll also find plenty of VET certifications you can take. There are plenty of jobs, and that number is going up. The best part is your day to day can look pretty different depending on any fields of specialisation you might choose.
Pilot
You know you’ve thought about this at least once in your life. And yeah, some pilots do have a degree in Aircraft Operations but there’s plenty of paths to becoming a pilot that don’t involve an ATAR, like cadetship programs, private training, or becoming that crazy smart impersonator guy they based Catch Me If You Can on. Although that last one is highly illegal so don’t do that.
Construction Manager
Yep, another one that you can get through a Bachelor’s degree, but if planning and directing large-scale building projects floats your boat and uni isn’t your jam, there are plenty of Certificates and Diplomas in construction that’ll do the job just as well.
Web Developers
The world is computers now, so you know jobs aren’t going to be scarce in the future. You don’t really need any formal qualifications as this is a very hands-on type of career, and you’ll probably get some training on the job, but a qualification can help you get leg up on the competition. There are plenty of different VET courses and subjects to help broaden your knowledge without an ATAR.
Film Maker
Well, actually there are a lot of jobs in the film industry you definitely don’t need an ATAR for, from making the films to creating the makeup looks. Whatever it is, there’s a course for that which doesn’t mean getting into a Bachelor’s Degree.
Retail/Sales Manager
You’ll find a huge amount of people working in retail as a career have worked their way up the ranks on the job. No qualifications are needed to get in on the ground floor, and a lot of it is about on the job learning.
It’s certainly an industry where experience is greater than qualifications. However, if you’re willing to put in the hard yards to earn he experience and want to give yourself the best chance to succeed, there are plenty of certificates around to increase your knowledge without any need for an ATAR.
