Law Admission Test

UNSW Law and ACER recognise the significant community concerns around COVID-19 and if this will impact the 2020 Law Admission Test. At present the 2020 LAT will proceed as planned on 29 September 2020, with registrations opening on 4 May.

ACER together with UNSW are closely monitoring the situation, heeding government advice and taking all required action to protect the health and wellbeing of members and staff.

If the situation changes, updates will be published on the UNSW Law and ACER websites, and communicated via our Future Student newsletters, which you can sign up for here.

All domestic applicants* who wish to study an Undergraduate Law double degree at UNSW need to sit the LAT^. These include:

• Students enrolled in their final year of secondary schooling (Year 12 HSC or equivalent)
• Students who have already completed their secondary schooling (e.g. those on a gap year)
• Students who are currently studying at another university and wish to apply to transfer to UNSW Law
• Year 11 students who wish to sit the LAT prior to Year 12 (their HSC year). Your results will be valid for two years – so if you sat in 2019, your LAT results will be considered by UNSW for admission in 2021

*Australian citizens and permanent residents and New Zealand citizens. International students are not eligible to sit the LAT. 

^ Indigenous students undertaking the Pre-Law Program at UNSW are not required to sit the LAT as they are assessed under multiple criteria in the Pre-Law Program.

Yes, candidates are advised to attempt the sample paper provided for the LAT which is available on the ACER LAT site. Otherwise, no specific preparation is required. 

Yes, unless you received an offer to UNSW Law for 2020 and have deferred it to 2021 or sat the 2019 LAT.

Yes. Application to transfer is via UAC and you must sit the LAT.

We only consider university studies if you have completed at least one full-time year in your degree (note: shorter periods of study are not added together) and we weight university studies and secondary studies in the ratio 50:50. Transfer applicants generally require a distinction average or above in their university studies and a secondary rank (ATAR or equivalent) in the high 90s to be competitive. Transfer applicants must sit the LAT and are assessed on the basis of both LAT score and academic results. 

No, UNSW Internal Program Transfer (IPT) applicants will be assessed on their UNSW results only. 

No. Students who have not yet reached Year 11 are not eligible to sit the LAT. This includes students in Year 10 or lower who are studying subjects at Year 11 level or higher. 

No. The Law Admission Test is for Domestic applications to UNSW Law’s undergraduate programs. International Students are not eligible to sit the LAT.  

Yes, you can sit the test more than once. Only your best LAT result will be considered for entry.

Note: The LAT will be offered only once per year and results are valid for 2 years. 

The 2020 LAT will be held on Tuesday 29 September 2020. 

The 2020 LAT will be offered in Canberra and Sydney. The exact test venue details will be released approximately 2 weeks prior to the test date.

Yes, you must register for the LAT via the ACER website. Registrations for the 2020 LAT open on Monday 4 May 2020.

On-time registration for the 2020 LAT is $187 (GST inclusive). The registration fee covers online registration, materials required for the test and provision of test results. Registration during the late period incurs an additional $50 late fee. 

All interstate and overseas candidates will be required to pay an interstate/overseas levy of $156 AUD (GST inclusive), in addition to the registration fee if they cannot attend a test centre and need to sit the test via remote proctoring. 

If you are eligible for a concession, the registration fee is $100 (GST inclusive).

A concession registration fee is available to applicants who hold a current Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card (both issued by Centrelink), or who are listed as a dependant on the current Health Care Card or Pensioner Concession Card of a parent or guardian.

Please note that student cards, Medicare cards, transport concession cards, private health insurance membership cards and Community Service cards do not make you eligible for concession. Please also note that the concession registration fee is not available to overseas candidates. For more details, visit the ACER website. 

If you reside outside the greater Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong areas you are now eligible to sit the LAT by remote proctoring. For the 2020 LAT, remote proctoring is now available for candidates who reside outside of Major Cities of Australia (RA2 - RA5 in NSW as per the ABS rural and remote classification site), as well as candidates who reside interstate or overseas and are not able to travel to a test venue.

Remote proctoring involves sitting the test online with ProctorU under live supervision using your own computer in a suitable location with internet connectivity. Remote proctoring is only available on the main test day, Tuesday 29 September 2020. Candidates must apply for remote proctoring as part of the online application process for the LAT. An additional fee applies, except for concession eligible applicants who reside in NSW, in an RA2 - RA5 location in NSW.
For more details on this visit lat.acer.edu.au/register/ apply-for-remote-proctoring

The LAT will be held at major test centres in Sydney and Canberra. Exact venues will be released closer to the test date. 

For the 2020 LAT, remote proctoring is now available for candidates who reside outside of Major Cities of Australia (RA2 - RA5 in NSW as per the ABS rural and remote
classification site), as well as candidates who reside interstate or overseas and are not able to travel to a test venue.

If your address does not fall within one of these locations, you are required to attend one of the two test centres.

All interstate and overseas candidates who are unable to travel to a test centre are eligible for remote proctoring.

All interstate and overseas candidates will be required to pay an interstate/overseas levy of $156 AUD (GST inclusive), in addition to the registration fee if they cannot attend a test centre and need to sit the test via remote proctoring. 

Candidates who reside in RA2 to RA5 locations in NSW and are eligible for the concession fee do not have to pay the remote proctoring levy.

If you are unsure of your eligibility, we advise that you contact the ACER LAT office via phone or email: 
E: lat@acer.edu.au
P: +61 3 9277 5502 

Remote proctoring involves sitting the test online with ProctorU under live supervision using your own computer in a suitable location with internet connectivity. Remote proctoring is only available on the main test day, Tuesday 29 September 2020. 

Remote proctoring is available for candidates who reside in remote and very remote areas of NSW (RA2 to RA5 as per the ABS rural and remote classification site), and candidates who reside interstate or overseas and are not able to travel to a test venue.

Candidates must apply for remote proctoring as part of the online application process for the LAT. For more details on this process please click here. 

Candidates who have a disability or medical condition which might interfere with their ability to sit the test in the standard manner should apply for reasonable adjustments online via their ACER account as soon as possible after registration. All such requests need to be submitted by no later than 5:00pm AEST 9 September 2020.

Please see the reasonable adjustments section of the ACER LAT website for more details. 

Applicants who are prevented from sitting the test as a result of genuine and significant unanticipated illness or misadventure can apply to sit the LAT on one alternative date at a test centre in Sydney. ACER will review each application on its merits and applicants will be notified of the outcome. In the case of a significant unanticipated illness, detailed medical justification from a registered health professional will be required – and in the case of misadventure a statutory declaration will be required.

The alternative test date in 2020 will be scheduled approximately one week after the main test date. For more details on this please visit the Alternative test date section of the ACER LAT website. 

The LAT consists of two questions requiring written responses. You can view the practice material here. 

No. The Law Admission Test is designed to assess your skills rather than your knowledge. It will not require any knowledge specific to law. 

The LAT will be 2 hours in duration, including 10 minutes of recommended reading and planning time per task. We recommend students do the practice paper in preparation for the LAT. 

When you apply through UAC you should enter your most recent LAT registration number. Both LAT registration numbers are linked to your ACER account. ACER and UNSW have developed procedures to ensure both results will be considered for applicants who have sat the LAT more than once. We will use your highest LAT score in the admission process.

Law’s entry requirements fluctuate slightly year-to-year. The best indication we can give you is what was required for 2019 admission:

2019 Lowest ATAR: 91.35
2019 Lowest Selection Rank: 96
2019 Median ATAR: 97.95
2019 Median LAT Score: 77

UNSW Law does not recommend or endorse any commercially available courses offering LAT preparation. Commercial preparation courses could provide misleading information and advice to candidates. The LAT will assess your ability to generate your own ideas and express yourself through writing. Therefore, the most appropriate preparation for the LAT is to continue with your existing high school or tertiary study and exam preparation which should include practice in formal written expression.

The LAT will not require any knowledge specific to law. Therefore, the HSC Legal Studies or similar courses will neither advantage nor disadvantage your performance in the LAT. 

The LAT is a two-hour test designed to assess your aptitudes and skills related to success in studying Law. These include thinking critically, analysing material and organising/expressing ideas. The LAT does not require any knowledge specific to law.

LAT results are released in mid-November.

Your percentile rank is not used to assess you for admission to UNSW Law; your LAT score is what we will combine with your academic results in the
selection process.

A percentile rank indicates how you performed in relation to all other candidates who sat the LAT in the same year. For example, a percentile of 42 indicates that your overall LAT score is equal to, or better than, that of 42% of candidates who sat the LAT in the same year as you.

ACER LAT Office 
Please contact the ACER LAT Office for all enquiries regarding test registration, payment enquiries, remote invigilation procedures, special testing arrangements, and any other test administration matters.

T: +61 3 9277 5237
E: lat@acer.edu.au 

UNSW Sydney LAT Contact Details 

Please contact UNSW Sydney for matters regarding LAT information sessions, admission and selection to UNSW Sydney, and general information on applying to study Law at UNSW Sydney. 

T: 1300 UNI NSW (1300 864 679)
E: futurestudents.unsw.edu.au/ask-question