Hey Dilmah,
These are just my thoughts so don't take them as fact. I think that the qualities assessed in both entry types are not necessarily different, however I think that DEO applicants would have to be showing certain qualities at the time of recruitment, whereas ADFA applicants would have to show the potential to develop these qualities (whilst undertaking they're 3/4 year degree) if they don't already have them. For example, an ADFA applicant might be assessed on their potential to develop strong leadership skills while a DEO applicant would be assessed on whether they have those skills at the present time.
Having said that, I think that someone applying to ADFA would need to be showing the required qualities to a certain extent in order to be competitive.
Once again just my thoughts, it would be interesting to know what anyone else thinks about this?