14 November 2023
By email
: [FYI request #24712 email]
Tēnā koe Brooke,
I refer to your information request dated 11 November 2023 made under the Official Information Act
1982 (the Act). You have enquired as to whether Whitikahu School (763 Whitikahu Road, Whitikahu
3792) is considered rural for the purposes of entry into the Health Sciences Professional Programmes
in 2025 at the University of Otago under New Zealand Rural Origins sub-category.
In answer to your question, we do not assess rural eligibility ahead of an application and would not be
able to advise for entering one of the Health Sciences Professional Programmes in 2025 as the
eligibility criteria can change year to year. An application is automatically checked by the information
entered in eVision (the University’s student management system), as it requires the verification of the
information provided at the time of application. If the application is found to not be eligible under the
Rural sub-category, the applicant will be notified and the application will continue to be processed
with this category removed.
To perform an informal check of the classification of the residential area provided in your application,
please use the GCH (Geographic Classification for Health) New Zealand Map foun
d here. It is important to note that this should be considered as a guide only and may be subject to change
each year. The Statistical Area 1s (SA1s) of the residential address and/or the school(s) provided will
be checked against the GCH database during the assessment of your application.
It is important to note that whether a school is classified as Rural or Urban is not the sole factor in
determining whether or not a candidate is eligible under the New Zealand Rural Origins sub-category.
Provided applicants have selected this sub-category as part of their application, each applicant’s
particular circumstances are considered individually with respect to the requirements listed in the
Guidelines for Admission for each Professional Programme and a determination made taking all
factors into account.
I trust that this information will be helpful. If you are not satisfied with our response to your
information request, section 28(3) of the Act provides you with the right to ask an Ombudsman to
investigate and review this response. However, we would welcome the opportunity to discuss any
concerns with you first.
Yours sincerely
Jo Pearson
Official Information Act Administrator
Office of the Registrar