The most important thing in this situation is to get the best mileage out of your preferences (see below). There have been cases of students who received an OP1 but did not receive a single offer from a university - all of their six preferences were courses they only had a slim chance of getting into. Don't let this happen to you!
Some subjects can give you bonus ranks, boosting your eligibility for all courses (see below)
Some students are eligible for special consideration (see below)
Bonus Ranks
or have If you get Sound Achievement or higher in the following subjects, you may be eligible for bonus ranks (equivalent to OP points) at most universities:
Maths C
A Language Other Than English
Physics (QUT only)
Additionally, if you have taken an AMEB (or equivalent) at Grade 7 or higher, QTAC will use this to calculate a Tertiary Entrance Rank which could be the equivalent of an OP 8 - please note the use of conditional here; once again, each uni has different rules for this and you should check their rules carefully.
Getting the Best out of Preferences
Your preferences are the courses you put in applications for through QTAC, The idea is that you list them from first to last preference. Once the OPs are released, the QTAC computer goes through your list from first to last and makes an offer for the first preference it finds which you are eligible for. It will only make one offer at a time so you need to put the courses in the right order!
Special Admissions Schemes
Educational Access Scheme (EAS) for students who have experienced financial, social, or other circumstances which have negatively impacted on their high school studies. Regional preferences schemes either give you bonus ranks for coming from a regional or remote area (yes, Cairns usually counts - especially useful for students wanting to study Medicine at UQ) or give you bonus points for being local (JCU does this). You'll need to check each uni individually to see what they offer. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander schemes are offered by most universities - sometimes there is an alternative entry scheme which allows you to have your application personally assessed by the ATSI unit. See an example here. Once again, each uni has different rules and offers, so you should search one-by-one.
Things to Know About Preference Changes
Once you have submitted your application by paying for it (you should do this by 30 September so you can save money), you are only allowed three changes of preferences - after that you can change, but it costs you money each time!
You won't be able to change preferences after Monday, January 09 for the 'big' offer round which occurs mid-January.