From Thanawiya Amma to an Australian degree: direct entry, foundation or diploma?

Australian universities do not use the Kuwaiti percentage directly. Each one publishes a table that converts the General Secondary School Certificate (Thanawiya Amma) into the Australian score it requires for each course. The same average can open direct entry at one university, a diploma at another and a foundation year at a third.

This guide shows how to read those tables, how the three routes compare, and the Kuwaiti checks that should shape your choice as much as the entry score.

How a university reads your average

Take RMIT University in Melbourne as a worked example, because it publishes a clear table for Kuwait [S1]. RMIT states each course's entry requirement as an Australian score, then shows the Kuwaiti average that corresponds to it. The average is your overall percentage across all academic subjects.

Source: RMIT University, Kuwait country equivalency, checked 28 September 2026 [S1]. Tables change between intakes.

Two things follow from a table like this:

• The requirement depends on the course, not just the university. A bachelor course listed at an Australian score of 65% needs about 80%; a high-demand course listed at 90% needs about 95%.
• Other universities publish their own tables, and their conversions differ. Always read the current table on the university's own site, and note the date.

The three routes

Direct entry into a bachelor degree. If your average meets the course's converted requirement and you meet the English requirement, you can apply straight into first year.

Foundation year. A foundation program prepares you for first-year university study. At RMIT, completing the Kuwaiti certificate at any grade meets the academic requirement for Foundation Studies [S1]. You then progress to a bachelor degree if you achieve the result your chosen degree requires.

Diploma or fast-track pathway. A diploma is a qualification in its own right that can lead into a related bachelor degree, sometimes with credit for what you have already studied. Whether it shortens the degree depends on the course, so check the progression and credit rules before you enrol. At RMIT, diplomas start from a 65% average [S1].

A foundation or diploma year is a normal route, not a failure. For many students it is the most realistic way into a good course. The trade-off is time and money: plan and budget for the extra year from the start.

Choosing your route

English sits on top of the academic score

Meeting the average is only half of the entry requirement. The university sets its own English score for each course, and the Student visa has separate minimums. For tests taken on or after 7 August 2025, the visa accepts IELTS 6.0, or 5.5 if your main course is packaged with a Foundation program or at least 10 weeks of English [S2]. This is one practical reason families choose a packaged foundation route. See our guide to the three English scores for the full picture.

The Kuwaiti side: recognition shapes the route

If you want your degree recognised in Kuwait, or you are on a Ministry of Higher Education (MoHE) scholarship, the route has to work for MoHE as well as for the university.

• The university and the programme must be on Kuwait's approved list and meet MoHE's conditions when you enrol [S4]. Check this before you accept any offer, including a pathway offer.
• Kuwait's equivalency regulation expects a bachelor degree to take at least three academic years after the Kuwaiti secondary certificate, and a diploma at least two years [S3].
• Foundation and diploma programs are often delivered by a college linked to the university rather than the university itself. Ask the Kuwait Cultural Office in writing whether the pathway you are considering is accepted, especially if a scholarship pays for it, and keep the reply.

A worked example

Sara finishes Thanawiya Amma with a 78% average and wants to study business at RMIT. The business degree she likes is listed at an Australian score equivalent to an 85% Kuwaiti average, so she does not meet direct entry. She has three options:

1. apply for a related diploma, which at a 60% Australian score requires a 75% Kuwaiti average under RMIT's table;
2. take Foundation Studies and aim for the progression result her degree requires; or
3. look for a similar degree at a university whose Kuwaiti conversion or course requirement she already meets.

Before choosing, she checks that the university and the degree appear on Kuwait's approved list, and asks KCO whether the diploma provider is accepted for her scholarship. (Illustrative example; figures from RMIT's published table [S1].)