The University of Notre Dame, Sydney

The information below only applies to The University of Notre Dame Australia, Sydney. Applicants to The University of Notre Dame Australia, Fremantle and KCRMT, Broome must read the separate webpage.

The Objects of The University of Notre Dame are:

1. The provision of university education, within a context of Catholic faith and values; and
2. The provision of an excellent standard of:
   • teaching, scholarship and research;
   • training for the professions; and
   • pastoral care for its students.

 School of Medicine Contact Details

 Places available in 2027*

 Quota includes assured and priority pathways.

Fee-type and Quotas

Applicants must specify which fee-type places they are applying for. Applicants will not be considered for places they have not selected. Offers will be made in the following order: CSP first, BMP second and full-fee third.

Please note once applicants accept their offer, the fee category is confirmed and cannot be changed throughout the duration of the program. It is important that applicants who are not in a position to pay for a full fee (FEE) paying place DO NOT list this type of place in their application

Change of Fee-Type Preferences

No fee-type changes whatsoever will be allowed for Commonwealth Supported (bonded or non-bonded) places.

The only permissible request for fee-type change is a request to add or remove the full-fee category. However, applicants must note that only one change per application per year is permissible. All changes must be submitted no later than 4:00 pm (AEST) on 2 October 2026. Requests received after this date / time will not be considered.

Transfer of Offer between Notre Dame's Fremantle and Sydney campuses.

Applicants should not preference a given campus unless they are willing and able to commit to the full duration of the Doctor of Medicine program at that campus. Transfer between Notre Dame's Fremantle, KCRMT, Broome and Sydney campuses is granted only in the most exceptional circumstances and at the discretion of the Dean, School of Medicine. Applicants are advised not to expect it.

Clinical School Allocations

Clinical placements in Years 3 and 4 of the Doctor of Medicine program are delivered through seven clinical schools in Sydney, Melbourne, rural NSW and Victoria.

Allocation to clinical schools is assigned by a ballot system. Students' preferences are taken into account, however first preferences cannot be guaranteed due to numbers of placements available on each site. For more information on Notre Dame's clinical schools, please visit our website.

Admission Process

All applicants must complete the online GEMSAS Application that will include questions related to rurality and Higher Degrees by Research.

Candidates are ranked for interview by the standardised result of four components weighted 30:30:30:10.

• Unweighted average GAMSAT score: Notre Dame will take an average of the three sections of the GAMSAT. Applicants must achieve a total score of at least 52 with a minimum of 50 in each subsection;
• Grade Point Average (GPA): Applicants must achieve a weighted GPA of at least 5.2, from three years full-time equivalent (FTE) of study with no more than one year of credit below AQF Level 7 to be considered eligible for entry;
• Casper score; and
• Bonus points for rurality and HDR completion

Interviewees are ranked for offer by a combination of the GAMSAT, GPA, Casper and bonus points (50%) and interview (50%).

The interview is conducted using a Multiple Mini Interview (MMI) format. It is delivered via a recorded (asynchronous) online platform.

Please note that no considerations outside the published entry requirements will be taken into account. Strictly no additional factors including but not limited to work experience, field experience, or other extracurricular achievements will be considered beyond the established guidelines.

Qualifying Bachelor Degree

Applicants must have completed a Bachelor degree or be completing the final year of a Bachelor degree at the time of application.

The Bachelor degree must be an AQF Level 7 qualification (at minimum) and must be comprised of at least three full-time equivalent years (3.0 FTE) worth of study.

Domestic qualifications must be completed at a TEQSA-accredited institution. International qualifications must be deemed comparable by the Australian Department of Education (DE) (previously AEI-NOOSR).

Applicants with postgraduate qualifications without an eligible qualifying Bachelor degree will not be considered.

Some institutions changed their grading system to pass / fail for Semester One, 2020 or for the whole of 2020. These qualifications will still be accepted, provided they remain a minimum three-year FTE undergraduate degree, or other accepted qualifying degree.

One and two-year graduate entry Bachelor degrees will be considered only where the applicant has previously completed an AQF Level 7 Bachelor degree comprised of at least 3.0 FTE worth of study.

Two-year accelerated Bachelor degrees (i.e. where 3.0 FTE worth of study is fast-tracked over two years) will be accepted if the degree is due to be completed by COB 23 December in the year of application.

Conversion degrees (any undergraduate qualification below 2.0 FTE standard duration) are not considered eligible Bachelor degrees. In addition, Bachelor degrees that include more than 1.0 FTE of credit from previous studies undertaken below AQF Level 7 (e.g. a Bachelor degree containing prior credit from a TAFE certificate / diploma) are not considered eligible Bachelor degrees.

Previous medical study

Applicants who have incomplete medical studies previously in Australia or overseas are not eligible for entry to the Notre Dame MD program. Applicants with incomplete medical studies who are humanitarian visa holders should contact Notre Dame for advice on their eligibility.

Transferring into the Notre Dame Doctor of Medicine from another medical program is not possible.

Applicants in the Final Year of the Qualifying Degree

Applicants who are enrolled in the final year of their Bachelor degree must complete all requirements of the degree successfully, including any Study Abroad components, as at 23 December 2026. As such, applicants must note their home or international institution’s timeframe for supplying results. As the MD program commences in early 2027, an extension cannot be granted in any circumstances.

Applicants are responsible for coordinating with their institution to ensure all requirements are completed before the deadline.

Where an applicant is in the final year of a three-year FTE degree, the final-year GPA will be calculated from the grades available at the time of assessment. Results for Semester One, 2026, must be available by 31 July 2026 to be used in the GPA calculation for interview ranking.

Any offers made are conditional on the provision of an official academic transcript indicating degree completion as at or prior to 23 December 2026. Where this cannot be supplied, a letter of completion from your institution will be considered on a case-by-case basis only.

GPA Calculation

GPA years will be progressively weighted Final-minus-2 x 1, Final-minus-1 x 2 and Final x 3, to give greatest weight to the most recent results.

An applicant’s GPA will, subject to the exclusions below, be calculated on the most recent three FTE years of study from completed / completing degrees at AQF Level 7 or above. All grades / results (including fail grades, if applicable) will be used. GPAs will be calculated using completed / completing Bachelor, Honours, Graduate Certificate, Graduate Diploma, and Masters by coursework degrees.

Eligible undergraduate qualifications must be completed by 23 December 2026 to be used in the GPA calculation. Eligible postgraduate qualifications must be complete by 31 July 2026 to be used in the GPA calculation.

Qualifications primarily composed of non-graded courses will not be eligible for inclusion in GPA calculations. Not-for-Degree and single-unit study undertaken outside of a AQF qualification will not be used for GPA calculation.

Masters by research, Doctoral degrees, and study below Bachelor AQF Level 7 will not be used in the GPA calculation. Masters by Research or Doctoral degrees, classified by the host institution as Course Complete (or equivalent) by 31 July 2026, will be awarded bonus points. Ungraded Pass results will not be included in the GPA calculation. They will contribute to the ‘credit count’ for a particular GPA year, however, they are excluded from the calculation. That particular GPA year will be calculated based on the available graded course results only.

An applicant must have a minimum of 0.375 FTE of graded results available for a GPA to be calculated for that particular GPA year, i.e. if 1.0 FTE is the equivalent of 8 courses, then using this module, the applicant must have a minimum of 3 courses (0.375 FTE) that are graded for that year.

Applicants must have at least 0.375 FTE of graded results in at least 2 of the 3 GPA years to have a valid GPA calculated.

For more information regarding GPA calculations and this terminology please refer to the GPA Guides on the GEMSAS website.

Currency of Qualification

Applicants are required to have completed their Bachelor degree within 10 years of the closing date of application. If an applicant’s Bachelor degree was completed more than 10 years ago, the '10- year rule' may be waived if the applicant has successfully completed an additional qualification at the Bachelor level (AQF Level 7) or higher by 31 July 2026.

Casper

Casper is an online video-based scenario, situational judgement test and is designed to evaluate aspects of your social intelligence and professionalism such as ethics, empathy, problem-solving and collaboration. It asks what you would do in a tough situation and, more importantly, why.

Casper testing dates (may be subject to change) for the 2026–2027 cycle are as follows:

• Sunday April 12, 2026 – 10:00am AEST
• Tuesday May 5, 2026 – 7:00pm AEST
• Thursday May 14, 2026 – 7:00pm AEST
• Thursday June 11, 2026 – 7:00pm AEST**

It is recommended that applicants register to take the test on the first available date in case of emergencies or technical difficulties. Applicants without a Casper score will not be considered.

** While this test date is AFTER the close of GEMSAS applications, it is still available for applicants for this admissions cycle, providing applicants have completed and submitted the rest of the GEMSAS application as per the GEMSAS deadlines. The 11 June 2026 test is the LAST test result accepted for domestic applicants for the 2026-2027 admissions cycle.

For more information on Casper including practice test content, technical requirements, fees, and registration see the Acuity Insights website.

Higher Degrees (Doctoral Degrees and Masters)

Masters by Research or Doctoral degrees, classified by the host institution as Course Complete (or equivalent) by 31 July 2026, will be awarded bonus points.

Inherent Requirements

The University of Notre Dame Australia supports the national framework outlined in the MDANZ Inclusive Medical Education, prioritising the wellbeing of all our medical students and fostering an inclusive learning environment.

Inherent Requirements for the Doctor of Medicine program can be found in this link.

If applicants have concerns about fulfilling the Inherent Requirements, they are encouraged to contact Notre Dame for a confidential discussion to assess their situation and explore ways to make reasonable adjustments on an individual basis.

Indigenous Applicants

The University of Notre Dame Australia is committed to increasing the number of Indigenous doctors by supporting pathways into medical education. With the Government uncapping CSPs in medical degrees for First Nations students from 1 January 2026, Notre Dame will offer CSPs to all successful Indigenous applicants, beyond the numbers of places estimated above.

We encourage applications from Indigenous applicants and have a dedicated Indigenous application pathway led by the Indigenous Health and Medicine team.

Applicants can apply directly to Notre Dame via the Indigenous entry pathway. For more information regarding this pathway, including entry requirements, please visit the Pathways to Medicine webpage.

Rural Applicants

The equivalent of at least 28.5% of the University’s Commonwealth-supported medical student allocation must be of rural background as defined by the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training (RHMT) Program.

Applicants who come from a rural background (MM2 to 7 area) and wish for this to be considered in their application, will need to provide documentary evidence to GEMSAS and meet the eligibility requirements as defined by the RHMT Program. Eligibility requirements are detailed by GEMSAS in this publication.

Applicants of demonstrated rural background will receive bonus points.

Priority Entry Pathway Admission

The University of Notre Dame Australia will reserve a quantity of places in the Doctor of Medicine program for graduates of their Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences programs (including double degrees). Places will be distributed across each campus and fee type in a similar pattern to general place offers.

All applicants need to meet the standard entry requirements outlined in the guide above, along with the Priority Entry Admission-specific requirements outlined on the Pathways to Medicine webpage.

Facilitated Interview Pathways

The University of Notre Dame Australia, Sydney Campus offers a number of facilitated interview pathways (FIP), including:

• UNDA graduates (undergraduate degree)
• UNDA Graduate Diploma of Health and Medical Sciences graduates
• Australian Catholic University (ACU) Bachelor of Biomedical Science graduates

All applicants need to meet standard entry requirements outlined in this guide, along with the FIP-specific requirements outlined on the Pathways to Medicine webpage.

Interview (MMI)

Applicants are ranked for interview by the standardised results of the combined GAMSAT, GPA, Casper and bonus points, weighted 30:30:30:10.

Interview offers will be made in September 2026. The interview will be online Multi-Mini Interview (MMI). Further details regarding any changes to the interview process or substitution of a suitable alternative will be provided on the Notre Dame website. It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that they inform themselves of these possible alternatives or updates by checking the website regularly.

Offers

Interviewees are ranked for offer by a combination of the GAMSAT, GPA, Casper scores and Bonus points (50%) and interview (50%).

Both interview and place offers are made via email to the email address provided by the applicant in his or her application.

If no acceptance is received from an applicant within the stipulated timeframe, the offer will no longer be valid.

Offers to successful candidates completing their degrees in 2026 will be conditional upon maintenance of a competitive GPA. Offers will be conditional until evidence is received by GEMSAS from the applicant that the applicant has achieved the required GPA as stated in the offer letter. Applicants who are conditionally offered are encouraged to approach their conferring institutions to ensure that their completion will be confirmed by COB 23 December 2026.

Under no circumstances will offers to study the Doctor of Medicine at Notre Dame, Sydney be deferred. Leave of Absences will not be granted to facilitate a deferral. The program will commence on 18 January 2027 with Orientation; in-person attendance is compulsory.

International Students

Places for international students in 2027 are not offered through the GEMSAS application process. International applicants may contact the University's International Admissions Office at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for information on how to apply.

Changes/Updates

All information contained within this guide is subject to change. Any changes made during the 2026-2027 application round in response to government restrictions will be made available on our Doctor of Medicine program page.

Verification

In fairness to all applicants, all information and documentation (material) submitted in support of an application will be subject to strict verification and checking processes. In the event that any material is not verified, the University may request further additional documentation, seek clarification and/or take any action in relation to the application, at any stage in the process that it deems appropriate. Please do not provide documents directly to Notre Dame unless specifically requested. 

Feedback

Individual advice or feedback, including individual scores or rankings, will not be provided to applicants during the application process or at the conclusion of the application cycle. The average GPA and GAMSAT scores of applicants offered an interview with Notre Dame will be published on the Doctor of Medicine program page.