Australian Film, Television and Radio School

About Australian Film, Television and Radio School

AFTRS is Australia’s federally established national screen and broadcast school. It was created under an Act of Parliament in 1973 and now operates as a TEQSA-registered University College. The regulator records the legal provider name with commas, while the school generally uses the trading style Australian Film Television and Radio School. TEQSA confirms self-accrediting authority, registration through 13 September 2030, CRICOS registration, and no current regulatory conditions. The institution is highly specialised rather than comprehensive. Its work centres on filmmaking, television, radio, podcasting, screen business, and related creative practice. This concentrated mission affects the student experience: courses are designed around production, collaboration, specialist facilities, and contact with practitioners instead of a wide menu of unrelated majors. AFTRS also offers short and industry-oriented training, but prospective degree students should distinguish those offerings from its formally recognised award courses. The school’s operating status is current. It welcomed a 2026 cohort, and official pages publish application dates and requirements for study commencing in 2027. Applicants comparing institutions should therefore evaluate AFTRS as a small specialist provider with a professional-production environment, not as a conventional multidisciplinary university. Its public status and regulatory standing provide institutional assurance, while its selective, task-based entry process and limited award-course portfolio make academic fit particularly important.

Entry to AFTRS award courses is by merit selection. Applicants must satisfy the course-specific eligibility requirements and complete creative or professional application tasks; meeting a prior-education threshold alone does not guarantee selection. Applications are submitted through the school’s online portal, with supporting identity and qualification documents and the materials specified in each course’s 2027 guidance notes. For the 2027 intake, Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production applications opened on 29 June 2026 and close on 7 October 2026. The course is restricted to domestic applicants, defined by AFTRS to include Australian and New Zealand citizens and specified Australian permanent residents or humanitarian visa holders. Its application includes creative written or screen-related tasks detailed in the official guidance notes. The Master of Arts Screen: Business requires a relevant bachelor-level qualification or equivalent work experience or training. It accepts domestic and international applicants, although international places are limited. The official course page states that international applications close on 13 October 2026 and domestic applications on 3 November 2026; international candidates being considered for admission must attend an interview. The Graduate Diploma in Radio and Podcasting similarly accepts a bachelor-level qualification or equivalent experience but is restricted to domestic applicants, with applications closing on 3 November 2026. Applicants needing accessibility adjustments can request reasonable adjustments during admissions. Requirements differ substantially by course, so candidates should use the relevant 2027 guidance notes rather than assuming that one portfolio or set of credentials applies across all programs.

The 2027 award-course offering highlighted by AFTRS spans undergraduate and postgraduate study. The Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production is a three-year, full-time program delivered on campus, with classes and workshops scheduled on four of five weekdays. It develops multi-skilled screen-production practice across creative roles and formats rather than asking entrants to commit immediately to a single narrow craft. At postgraduate level, the Master of Arts Screen: Business is a one-year full-time program, or part-time equivalent, available online or on campus. It focuses on leadership, research, strategy, and the political, economic, cultural, and social dynamics of screen business. The Graduate Diploma in Radio and Podcasting is also one year full-time or part-time equivalent, with online and campus options. It is a postgraduate award but is not represented as a master’s degree in the verified degree-level field. Learning is supported by purpose-built production infrastructure. The campus page lists film and television studios, radio studios, sound-recording and editing rooms, picture-editing suites, theatres, computer laboratories, cameras, props, costumes, and set-construction support. The Jerzy Toeplitz Library maintains extensive physical and online collections devoted to film, television, radio, scripts, and screen research. AFTRS does not currently advertise a doctoral award in its official course portfolio. The supplied database record’s PhD designation was therefore not retained. Students should also check delivery mode carefully: the bachelor’s course is campus-based, while the highlighted postgraduate programs provide more flexible study options.

Key Highlights

• TEQSA registration runs through 13 September 2030.
• TEQSA categorises AFTRS as a self-accrediting University College.
• Established under an Act of Federal Parliament in 1973.
• Specialist focus on screen, broadcast, audio, and media practice.

Student Life & Environment

Student life at AFTRS is organised around a specialist creative community and collaborative production work. The Moore Park building brings teaching, studios, post-production spaces, theatres, technical resources, and the library into one campus environment. This is likely to produce a more concentrated experience than a large general university, with course projects and production teams forming an important part of day-to-day interaction. Current students can use academic and non-academic support services. Official support information describes individual and group academic assistance through the library, including research methods, referencing, critical evaluation, literature reviews, copyright, and database use. The current support policy also provides for learning-access plans and reasonable adjustments, pastoral care, and free confidential internal counselling. Students experiencing academic difficulty may be directed to tutoring, mentoring, extensions, alternative assessments, or other progression support where appropriate. The Jerzy Toeplitz Library functions as both a study space and a specialist cultural resource, hosting workshops, talks, screenings, and themed displays. Its collections include books, screenplays, audiovisual material, streaming resources, and archived AFTRS student films. AFTRS does not present itself as a residential campus, so applicants relocating to Sydney should independently investigate accommodation, commuting costs, and the social opportunities available beyond the school building.

Location & Surroundings

AFTRS is located at Building 130 in The Entertainment Quarter, Moore Park, New South Wales. This places the school in Sydney rather than on a self-contained suburban or residential university campus. The location gives students access to a major Australian centre for film, television, broadcasting, cultural institutions, and creative employment, while keeping teaching and specialist production resources together in one building. The Moore Park setting should be assessed practically as well as professionally. Bachelor’s students are expected on campus for classes and workshops across four weekdays, so travel time and housing location can materially affect the experience. The Master of Arts Screen: Business and Graduate Diploma in Radio and Podcasting offer online as well as campus study, which may reduce relocation or commuting requirements for eligible students. No current official evidence of AFTRS-operated student residences was found in the selected sources. Prospective students who must move to Sydney should budget separately for private accommodation, daily transport, food, and other living expenses. They should confirm their likely timetable and delivery mode before choosing where to live.

Costs & Career Outcomes

Published indicative tuition for students commencing the Bachelor of Arts Screen: Production in 2027 is AUD 53,712 across three years, shown as AUD 17,904 per year for domestic students. The Graduate Diploma in Radio and Podcasting lists an indicative domestic fee of AUD 31,824 for its one-year full-time structure. The Master of Arts Screen: Business lists AUD 37,200 for domestic students and AUD 64,944 for international students for one year of full-time study. These figures are indicative course tuition amounts, not complete attendance budgets. AFTRS states that tuition is charged by subject and paid semester by semester, that fees are reviewed annually, and that continuing students may face increases during their enrolment. Eligible domestic students may use FEE-HELP or combine the loan with upfront payments. Some subjects may also carry compulsory incidental charges for field-trip food, transport, or accommodation. Personal housing, commuting, equipment-related personal purchases, and everyday living costs should be budgeted separately. Scholarships are available, but eligibility differs by course and applicant circumstances. For the 2027 round, students first submit an award-course application and then access eligible scholarship applications through the portal. A scholarship application is separate from the course application. Career preparation is embedded through practitioner-led teaching, production experience, and industry placements. Official reporting documents placements with broadcasters, production companies, audio organisations, and screen businesses, but placement participation should not be interpreted as a guaranteed job. Applicants should judge value against their intended role, existing portfolio, access to FEE-HELP, and the employment uncertainty typical of project-based creative industries.