ACS ICT Major vs Minor: How to Tell Which Bucket Your Qualification Falls In (and Why It Matters for Skilled-Migration Points)

Vikrant Gungash
59 minutes ago
4 min read

By Vikrant Singh, July 13 , 2025

Learn ACS rules for ICT “Major” & “Minor”, the % of computing you need in each degree type, and how it affects the work-experience you must show.

1 | Why the Major/Minor verdict is mission-critical

Before the Australian Computer Society (ACS) will vouch for your tech skills, it checks whether your degree is an ICT Major, ICT Minor or Non-ICT. That single label controls:

how many years of paid IT work you must prove;
whether those years must be “closely related” to your ANZSCO code;
the earliest date from which your experience starts counting for immigration points.

2 | How ACS measures ICT content

Qualification level	ICT Major threshold	ICT Minor threshold	Non-ICT
Bachelor (3 yrs+)	≥ 33 % of total units (≈ 1 academic year)	22 – 32 % (two-thirds of a major)	< 22 %
Diploma / Adv. Dip. / Associate Deg.	≥ 1 full academic year of ICT (e.g., 50 % of a 2-yr program)	Minor category not available	< Major
Post-graduate (2-yr Grad Dip / Master)	≥ 50 % ICT content (≥ 67 % if the course has only 12 subjects)	33 – 49 %	< 33 %
Research Master / PhD	Thesis must be demonstrably ICT-centred	—	—

Key rule: at least 65 % of your ICT units must align with the tasks of your nominated occupation for the qualification to be counted at all .

3 | What each bucket means for work-experience requirements

ACS verdict	Occupation match	Work experience needed*
ICT Major (Bachelor+)	Closely related	2 yrs in the last 10 yrs or 4 yrs anytime
ICT Major (Bachelor+)	Not related	4 yrs anytime
ICT Minor (Bachelor+)	Closely related	5 yrs in the last 10 yrs or 6 yrs anytime
ICT Minor (Bachelor+)	Not related	6 yrs anytime
ICT Major (Diploma/Associate)	Closely related	5 yrs in the last 10 yrs or 6 yrs anytime
ICT Major (Diploma/Associate)	Not related	6 yrs anytime

*All employment must be paid, 20 h +/week, and at the right skill depth.

4 | DIY audit: three quick ways to check your own degree

Count units, not credit hours. ACS looks at the number of subjects with professional computing content.
Exclude soft electives. Intro maths, generic business or English units won’t boost your ICT %.
Map subjects to ANZSCO tasks. Prepare a one-page matrix showing how each “Programming 101” or “Database Systems” unit supports, say, Software Engineer duties.

5 | Upgrade strategies if you fall short

Top-up with a Graduate Diploma – eight ICT subjects can flip a Minor into a Major in just two semesters.
Stack vendor certs + write an RPL – if you have lots of hands-on experience but thin academics, an ACS Recognition of Prior Learning submission can still save the day.
Bundle sequential qualifications – ACS will combine ICT credits across back-to-back degrees when clearly linked.

6 | Common pitfalls that trigger an “Insufficient ICT” result

Submitting only a master’s transcript while hiding a non-ICT bachelor.
Counting project units that were actually business capstones with minimal coding.
Relying on course names (“Digital Innovation”) without syllabus extracts.

Final takeaway

An ICT Major can slash up to four years off the experience you must evidence—often the difference between receiving an invitation this year or sitting out another migration cycle. Audit your transcripts now, plug any gaps, and present a crystal-clear mapping of subjects to your chosen ANZSCO code. When the ACS assessor opens your file, the verdict should be obvious.

Need help? Our MARA-registered consultants offer a free 15-minute call to sanity-check your ICT percentage before you lodge. Book your slot today and fast-track your Australian tech future!

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