South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre

What South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre does

South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre Limited (SATAC) is a non-profit, statutory-style tertiary admissions centre founded in 1977 and headquartered in Adelaide, Australia. It operates as the sole centralized application gateway for tertiary study across South Australia and the Northern Territory, processing undergraduate, postgraduate, and TAFE SA vocational applications on behalf of six participating institutions: Adelaide University, Charles Darwin University, Flinders University, Tabor College, TAFE SA, and Torrens University Australia. SATAC also calculates ATAR-equivalent rankings for SACE and NTCET completers and coordinates equity scholarship processing, adjustment factors, and the Special Tertiary Admissions Test (STAT) pathway.

The platform is built around mySATAC, an online portal where applicants submit applications, manage course preferences, and receive offers through a structured offer-round system (with twice-weekly offers during active periods). Schools Web provides authorized school staff with visibility into their students' applications; Course Search offers a filterable database of open courses; and the platform integrates with Facebook and Google for identity, with the SACE Board of SA, NT Board of Studies, and the International Baccalaureate Organisation for credentialing, and with ACER for STAT delivery. Privacy and data handling are governed by the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles.

Monetization is transaction-based, through per-application processing fees with tiered late-fee escalators after published deadlines; the organization operates on a cost-recovery, not-for-profit basis under the legal entity South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre Limited (ACN 613 691 526). Reach in the most recent measured cycles is approximately 24,874 domestic undergraduate applications (2025/26), 19,317 SACE/NTCET completers (2025), and 32,543 total offers for Semester 1 2025, with a headcount of 51–100 employees. Recent product additions include an AI Assistant on the SATAC website and a third-party AI scoring layer for teaching-capabilities statements on selected teaching courses.

Name

South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre

Legal name

South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre Limited

Website

https://satac.edu.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

SATAC is a non-profit, statutory-style centralized tertiary admissions centre that processes undergraduate, postgraduate, and TAFE SA applications for South Australia and the Northern Territory, serving six participating institutions and tens of thousands of applicants annually through its mySATAC portal.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Tertiary Education Admissions Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Support Services (61171)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Regional Education Service Agencies (ESAs/BOCES/Intermediate Units) (EDADABAC)

Keywords

• Tertiary admissions processing
• University application services
• ATAR calculation services
• Vocational education admissions
• Centralized admissions portal

Headquarters

HQ city

Adelaide

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Application Processing Fees: SATAC charges fees for processing applications for tertiary courses, with fee increases occurring after certain deadlines. The organization operates on a not-for-profit basis as a public institution.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

SATAC provides centralized tertiary education admissions processing for South Australia and the Northern Territory. It operates the mySATAC online portal where applicants submit and manage undergraduate, postgraduate, and TAFE SA vocational course applications, and runs structured offer rounds, ATAR calculation, equity scholarship assessment, subject scaling, and STAT admissions testing on behalf of participating universities and TAFE SA.

Product overview

SATAC operates as a unified tertiary admissions platform offering course application processing across undergraduate, postgraduate, and vocational education levels. The core product is the mySATAC online portal, complemented by the Course Search tool, Schools Web for educational institutions, and the SATAC Guide publications. Key services include the STAT (Special Tertiary Admissions Test), Equity Scholarships processing, and Adjustment Factors calculations. The platform recently introduced an AI Assistant for applicant support. Applications are processed for six participating institutions: Adelaide University, Charles Darwin University, Flinders University, Tabor College, TAFE SA, and Torrens University Australia.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• mySATAC Online Portal Centralized online portal where applicants submit and manage undergraduate, postgraduate, and TAFE SA course applications, check offer statuses, manage preferences, and receive communications. Includes SSO via Facebook and Google.
• Course Search Searchable database that allows applicants to find and filter courses offered by participating institutions that are open for applications.
• Schools Web Portal allowing authorized school staff to view undergraduate applications, offers made, and offers accepted by students at their school.
• Undergraduate Applications Service Processing of applications for Bachelor degrees, associate degrees, and higher education level diplomas across SATAC's participating universities, with structured offer rounds.
• Postgraduate Applications Service Processing of applications for Graduate Certificates, Graduate Diplomas, Masters degrees, and postdoctoral studies at participating universities.
• TAFE SA Applications Service Processing of applications for vocational education and training courses at TAFE SA, South Australia's largest VET provider.
• Special Tertiary Admissions Test (STAT)

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ACTAC (Australasian Conference of Tertiary Admissions Centres)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational coordination body bringing together all Australian tertiary admissions centres to operate Australia's national tertiary admissions system. Ensures ATAR portability across all states and territories.
• Adelaide UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipating university receiving and processing applications through SATAC for undergraduate and postgraduate courses.
• Charles Darwin UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipating university receiving applications through SATAC for courses including Medical Studies/Doctor of Medicine and Bachelor of Clinical Science.
• Flinders UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParticipating university receiving applications through SATAC for undergraduate and postgraduate courses.
• Tabor CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndependent tertiary education provider participating in SATAC application processing.
• TAFE SAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSouth Australia's largest vocational education and training provider, with applications processed through SATAC.
• Torrens University AustraliacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFastest-growing Australian university with national campus network, participating in SATAC application processing.
• SACE Board of SAcoreTechnology or IntegrationSource of student academic records and SACE results for ATAR calculation and application processing.
• NT Board of StudiescoreTechnology or IntegrationSource of NTCET results for students in the Northern Territory.
• International Baccalaureate OrganisationcoreTechnology or IntegrationSource of IB results for conversion to ATAR-equivalent Combined Rank.
• Schools (Participating)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchools provide student information and receive updates on applications, offers made, and offers accepted.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre (QTAC): Centralised admissions body for Queensland, providing undergraduate, postgraduate, and pathway application processing comparable to SATAC's offerings in SA/NT.
• Tertiary Institutions Service Centre (TISC): Western Australia's centralised tertiary admissions service, structurally and functionally analogous to SATAC, handling applications and ATAR-related services for WA institutions.
• Common App: US college application platform enabling students to apply to multiple member institutions through a single portal — analogous to mySATAC's multi-institution gateway model, though non-profit and institution-driven.
• Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre (VTAC): Centralised tertiary admissions centre for Victoria, performing application processing, ATAR calculation, and offer rounds in the same manner as SATAC. Same statutory, non-profit model with shared ACTAC participation.
• UCAS: UK's centralised university admissions service, the international benchmark for SATAC's business model, providing application processing, equal consideration dates, and structured offer rounds.
• Universities Admissions Centre (UAC): The centralised tertiary admissions centre for NSW and the ACT. Operates the same centralised application, ATAR calculation, and offer-round model as SATAC, serving as the closest analogue in a larger jurisdiction.

Broad incumbents

• University of Tasmania (Direct Admissions Pathway): Tasmania does not use a SATAC-equivalent centralised centre, with the University of Tasmania operating its own direct admissions pathway — illustrative of an alternative model that could pressure centralised admissions.

Others

• ACTAC (Australasian Conference of Tertiary Admissions Centres): Peak body coordinating all Australian and New Zealand tertiary admissions centres; SATAC is a member. Not a competitor but the network orchestrator that sets ATAR portability and standards across the system.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/SATACinfo
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@satacinfo
• Facebookfacebook.com/people/SATAC/61562114366746
• Instagraminstagram.com/satacinfo
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/south-australian-tertiary-admissions-centre

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre