Why do Australian universities seem to admit students with weak academic profiles, and how meritocratic is the process really?

You are right to notice that entry into many Australian courses looks easier than in the US or East Asia, but that does not mean the system lacks standards. Australia runs on a model where getting in is comparatively open, while staying in and graduating is where the real filtering happens. Recent visa reforms have also made entry itself far more selective than it used to be.

Why Entry Looks Easy On Paper

Where The Real Meritocracy Kicks In

• Medicine, dentistry, and law keep near perfect entry standards regardless of fees.
• First year courses are intentionally rigorous, and weak students fail out quickly.
• Engineering, nursing, teaching, and accounting bodies enforce strict exit competency exams.
• Genuine Student visa checks now screen out weak profiles before they even enrol.

My Advice

Do not choose a course just because its entry bar looks low. Pick one where you can genuinely handle the first year workload, because that is where Australian universities do their real filtering, and a fail heavy first year can also hurt your future visa applications.