I received a 99+ ATAR and a perfect GPA - ask me anything.

[Joseph41]

What do I do if I have a bad teacher for biology?
Thanks 

Hey chiecemi.

Having a teacher you don't get on so well with or don't find efficient or whatever else can be pretty frustrating (I'll note here that that doesn't necessarily make them bad - just not as effective for you, which is fine). I've had my fair share of similar frustration, so like, feels haha.

I think my advice here would depend on the details of the situation at hand. What about their teaching style makes them poor for you? Is it a matter that could pretty easily be remedied, like pace of the class? Or is it something more fundamental? It could be a good idea to simply jot down (to yourself) what it is exactly that's causing the issue, and that might give a better indication of how to deal with the situation.

If you feel comfortable and it's appropriate, I'd recommend speaking to the teacher one-on-one to raise your concerns. At the end of the day, your teachers will want you to score highly, and if they can modify something in their own teaching style, they probably will. I've had a few instances like this. For example, one of my teachers spent a few lessons in English Language playing some linguistics-y sort of movie/documentary things, but she knew I didn't learn well that way (as I had raised it), so she let me make summaries of stuff instead. This was a much better outcome for me than getting bitter throughout what would have been pretty fruitless classes for me.

If you don't feel comfortable speaking with them one-on-one, or it wouldn't be appropriate for whatever reason, it could be a good idea to speak to whomever's in charge of that subject, or your VCE Co-ordinator. If the issue isn't resolved, it'll probably just continue as is with no positive solution. But before doing so, really think about what it is specifically that's causing the issue, and also consider (before taking action) if there's anything you can do to remedy the situation.

Also, a related piece of advice: if you end up speaking to somebody about your thoughts, please (for your sake) be respectful as possible. Being brash or abrasive won't be good for anybody - particularly you.

And, of course, if you feel like you need to clarify any Bio content, you can always ask any questions in our VCE Biology questions thread.

How many hours did you study every day?

Hey madisonkilleen,

Welcome to ATAR Notes. A quick disclaimer before answering this: studying more doesn't mean you'll necessarily score more highly. I'm sure you know that already, but I just wanted to emphasise the point haha.

Anyway, I had a pretty consistent routine, I think. I got to school at about 8am every day - so an hour before school actually started. I went to the library (which opened at , read the newspaper for a while, and then did some revision for like 30-40 minutes. Then I had school, obviously, which finished at 3.15 - I don't know if you count those hours as studying. Where I perhaps differed to some people was that I didn't go home when school finished; I stayed until about 5pm. I did this for a few reasons:

* I just find it a whole lot easier to get study done early. "Work now, play later" sort of thing. So by being at school from 8am - 5pm, it meant that basically all of my study was done for that day, and I'd got through probably 2-3 hours of decent revision per day (further to school) before 5pm.
* The subsequent benefit for me was that I (virtually) never studied after this time. So, for (virtually) the entirety of Year 12, I didn't study at night. I had nights to myself to do whatever - watch sport, read, chill. My time. Having this time meant I could be refreshed for the next day, because I hadn't been studying all night.
* And in general, I'm more productive in the morning, so I was just being strategic in my study times (a very personal thing).

This definitely wasn't every day, by the way - there were many days where I did go home early. This was particularly true on Mondays, where we finished at 1.50pm for some unknown reason.

Weekends and holidays? To be honest I find it difficult to put a number on it, largely because I very much adopted an "I'll study when I feel it necessary" approach. I've spoken before on these forums about one of my favourite teachers in high school. He was a really amazing artist - and quite prolific. One day, I asked him what he did when he didn't feel like painting, and he said, "I don't paint". And that really influenced the way I looked at studying. There will, of course, be times when you have an upcoming exam or something, or you're feeling a bit behind - and you'll just need to buckle up and get some revision done. But for me, if I didn't feel like studying at any given time, I didn't. I found it counter-productive, because I'd just get frustrated or angry, and the entire session would be pretty pointless.

Instead, I think a lot of my motivation came from inner drive or whatever - or just wanting to do as best as I possibly could in my final years of high school. And what that meant was that I actually did want to study. Not necessarily because I enjoyed the process, but because I wanted to do well - and that acted as a big incentive for me. So, frankly, I never really saw study or revision to be a big burden or anything like that; I instead saw it as an opportunity to improve, to learn some cool stuff, and to put myself in a better position that what I was in to do really well.

My answer here has become pretty tangential and diverted from the original question haha, but to answer you directly: probably a bit before and after school on week days, and sporadically on weekends/holidays (definitely ramped up toward the end of the year, though).

Bit broad, but how did you study during uni?

Broad indeed! But hmm, basically:

* Did my readings. I tried to do these really actively, by which I mean not just reading them for the sake of reading them. I'd highlight key parts, take notes etc. Doing this made me feel prepared for class, and more confident in voicing opinions etc. in tutes.
* I went to my lectures and took notes. For my first year or so, I listened to the majority of my lectures online - it seemed a pretty good life, and was easier for me logistically. But after a while, I made the decision to actually go to my lectures, because I wasn't feeling all that engaged with uni. My marks were fine when I was listening online, but they improved a fair bit when I started going to lectures. I think the reason for this is that I was less distracted and more connected with the content when I was physically present.

Honestly, that's practically all I did on the content side of things. I didn't feel I needed too much more than a really focused effort when doing my readings and when in class. If I wanted to test myself on the content, I tried to verbally explain how things worked to my mirror (or, y'know, another human haha).

As for assignments:

* I really tried hard to start early and to stay on top of things. I had an assessment timeline each semester, where I could tick things off as I went. Having this right from Week 1 meant I could prepare for busy periods, too. So like, if I knew I had four essays due in Week 8, I'd internally change those deadlines so that they were more spread.
* I studied pretty hard for exams, because I figured that might be the difference between me and other people studying that unit. I've spoken about summaries before in this thread in relation to high school, but I also used them a lot at uni. The process itself of summarising stuff really helped to solidify what information was most important, and how different parts of the content linked to each other.

Arts, I'm sure, is quite different to other degrees, but that's what worked for me (broadly).

Also (afterthought), I tried to study at uni as much as I could, because I find home really quite distracting, and I'm not as productive as a result. It's all about knowing how you study best, and then playing to those strengths.

At the moment it's very full on hahahah. I have 3 assignments due within the next month and a bit  :// I know once I start them though it will be easier to get done, so I'm kinda looking forward to the mid-sem break just so I can stop stressing about finding time to actually make a start. There's also so much content so revising by summarising notes from lecture slides is very time-consuming, but does feel very satisfactory when I finish and can tick it off my to-do-list.

First year in general is pretty fun so far (only week 5 though lol) !! Just the social side is super busy !!! I've met so many new people and there have already been so many social events, but it's a nice break from seeing the same people everyday in highschool. The workload isn't unbearable but it does keep you busy (especially the readings for law ahhh).
But overall, I'm managing ! Just need to get on top of the assignments

I can imagine! Mid-sem, yeah, that's a fantastic time to get back on track - definitely recommend it.

Glad things are going pretty well overall. Those social connections you make now have the potential to last a long time, so the time invested is certainly worthwhile.

Hey I was wondering if you ever did poorly in a school assessment in Year 12? Like is it possible to have stuffed up one school exam and still achieve a +99 ATAR? Thanks

Hey studyign123,

Welcome to ATAR Notes.

I guess this depends a bit on what constitutes doing "poorly" for you. But yeah, there were certainly assessments in Year 12 where I wasn't happy/was disappointed with my marks. I find this difficult to answer, though, because a poor mark for one person could be an amazing mark for another - it's very subjective. So I'll move on to this part of your question:

Like is it possible to have stuffed up one school exam and still achieve a +99 ATAR?

Absoluuuteeeeely! For context, I studied six subjects at Year 12 level. The difference between me scoring a perfect study score of 50 in that sixth subject (the equivalent of a very, very high Band 6 in NSW), and not studying that subject at all, was about 0.35 on my ATAR (according to ATAR Calc). Now, this is perhaps a little deceptive for a number of reasons and should certainly be taken with a grain of salt, but the point I'm making is that each subject in isolation probably won't have a mammoth impact on your results. And with that in mind, you can see how any given assessment within that subject is even less meaningful (again, in isolation).

There are countless examples of people bombing exams or whatever and then still doing amazingly well. One of the administrators of these very forums was pretty shattered after their Extension 1 half yearly exam, and their result placed them second last in their cohort. But there are a number of ways to deal with stuff like this, and he decided to let it motivate him to improve and never let it happen again. By the end of the year, he was back at the top of his cohort, ended up with a Band 6, and managed a 99.80 ATAR lol.

So, yeah, honestly: don't let a single mark drag you down, even if it seems like the worst thing in the world at the time. Don't get me wrong - you can be disappointed. Whatever you're feeling is valid. But like, there's no reason that single mark is going to preclude you from an incredibly high ATAR.

First of all, thanks for the awesome answers.

It was interesting to see your take on "failures"  and I agree with your last passage that I bolded and made it red from your answer to that question because more people should take this viewpoint on failures/mistakes.
I too also love George Orwell's novels, I'll be sure to give Keep the Aspidistra Flying a read soon. *Looks at the stacks books on my desk.... *

Thanks for the AMA, I wish more of these in the future. Is it time to bring back Mod AMAs for the newer mods?

No worries!

Yeah, we might get some more AMAs going if people are keen.

Hey Joseph,
Currently in year 12 atm and I seem like my marks are pretty decent, however I feel like I'm losing the motivation to study now
1) Would you have any tips as to how i'd be able to tackle demotivation?
2) Why is it that some people are unable to see their academic potential while others around them can?
3) Is it possible to achieve 95+ atar even if one scores pretty average in their Half yearlies?

Hey Mareena,

Welcome to ATAR Notes! I'll answer your questions one-by-one.

1) Would you have any tips as to how i'd be able to tackle demotivation?
Good question - relevant question at this time of year. I think it's important to take a bit of a step back and work out why you're starting to feel less motivated. Is it because you're burnt out? Are you not finding your subjects interesting? Are other parts of your life more important to you? Whatever your answer, that'll probably affect how you deal (I just tried to spell this as "deel" lol) with the lack of motivation. But some general tips:

* Simply take a break from it all. If your marks are pretty good, you at least have the comfort of knowing that you definitely have what it takes to do well for the rest of the year. The only thing that'll stop that occurring, really, is you - you are your own most important asset. As a result, it's really important to take care of yourself, and if that means taking a bit of break, then that's fine. Of course, this depends a bit on deadlines you have coming up, and whether you need to study for tests etc., but breaks don't have to be prolonged. It could just be one full day off, or even a few hours where you go for a walk and just chill. Some of my best ideas come when I'm walking, and what I find interesting is this: it gives me time to reflect on things, and I often realise how inefficient I've been. Which leads me to my next point:
* Try to make your revision as efficient as possible. If you're dealing with a lack of motivation, the last thing you want is prolonged study sessions of negligible worth. Instead, what you want is something short, sharp and productive. So, it might be worth thinking about how you're actually going about studying at the moment. Is that what's leading to the lack of motivation (quite possible)? It might come down to changing your study location, or getting rid of all distractions, or something like that - you've probably heard it all before. But honestly, I think really long study sessions where you're not being that productive can be pretty harmful in a number of ways.
* Otherwise, from what I can gather, you want to do well - otherwise you wouldn't be asking the question. Think about what goals you have for the rest of this year. Whether it's to get into a particular course, or hit a certain mark, or something entirely different, use that as motivation.

Overall, my experience with motivation and stuff is that often, the worst bit is that feeling where you're like, "I really should study, but eh." I always felt better when I was actually doing something - even if I just tricked myself into thinking that I was being productive.

2) Why is it that some people are unable to see their academic potential while others around them can?
Really huge question. By "see", do you mean "recognise", or "fulfil"?

Either way, I think there would be innumerable factors at play here: environment, genetics, life events. This links back a little to determinism, and I'm not sure my knowledge of philosophical theory is sound enough to posit a contention with confidence haha.

3) Is it possible to achieve 95+ atar even if one scores pretty average in their Half yearlies?

Yep, 100%. I addressed a very similar question above, so I'll just copy and paste my response so that you don't miss it:

"There are countless examples of people bombing exams or whatever and then still doing amazingly well. One of the administrators of these very forums was pretty shattered after their Extension 1 half yearly exam, and their result placed them second last in their cohort. But there are a number of ways to deal with stuff like this, and he decided to let it motivate him to improve and never let it happen again. By the end of the year, he was back at the top of his cohort, ended up with a Band 6, and managed a 99.80 ATAR lol."

In your opinion what are the top 10 Universities in Australia and why?
And, when you really have no idea what you want to study/be/do with your life, then how would you suggest going about looking at options for uni?

Hey anolan,

Welcome to ATAR Notes.

In your opinion what are the top 10 Universities in Australia and why?
My knowledge of universities outside Victoria and New South Wales is pretty limited, and I've only attended one as a student (Monash University in Melbourne), so I'm not really qualified to give a top ten. I think it would be a near-impossible exercise, anyway, because different unis have different strengths. For example, if I were ranking them by prestige, or their Health Sciences courses, or their Law courses, or their physical campuses, or their teaching efficacy, or whatever else, the rankings would probably be very different.

And, when you really have no idea what you want to study/be/do with your life, then how would you suggest going about looking at options for uni?
I feel well-versed in this haha.

Number one point: don't stress. There are a lot of pressures floating around that might make it feel like you need to know what you want to do with your life, but let's think about this pragmatically. Once you put in your preferences for uni (if you even want to go to uni), what happens? You (hopefully) get accepted into a course, and start studying at whatever institution. If you hate it, sweet - you can transfer. If you love it, awesome. If you transfer, is that a huge deal? Nah - it's actually very common at uni. One very prominent member of these forums transferred through four different uni degrees, and still graduated on time!

Once you get to the end of your degree, then what? Hopefully, you've found something you're passionate about over the course of your education, and can pursue a job in whatever field that is. What happens if you hate that job? You can change jobs. What are the stats, these days: an average of seven career changes over the course of your career or something? The workforce isn't how it used to be, where you'd get a job and then stay in that job for several decades. There are heaps of opportunities out there, and by the time you finish your education, there'll probably be lots of jobs available that don't even exist right now.

So yeah, point one is to try not to stress too much, because it's pretty fruitless.

But to answer your question about working out uni options, I think (broad) research is the key. I remember being in a similar situation. I'd get up a list of all degrees available at a bunch of unis, and delete those that didn't interest me at all. I'd be left with a bunch, then go through the list again and repeat the process. Then, at least you have a "shortlist" of degrees, so to speak. And researching those becomes a whole less intimidating and overwhelming than researching uni in general.

I think speaking to as many people as you can is important. Get their views, opinions etc. Asking questions on ATAR Notes is a great start. Some threads you might be interested in:

* How University Works
* Mega University Guide - Uni Resources

If I asked you write now the following question, what would you say?

"What are you interested in pursuing after Year 12?"

Your default answer is probably, "I don't know" (mine certainly was), but think beyond that. If pushed, what would you say? It doesn't matter if it's like three or four entirely unrelated fields - that's at least somewhere to start. If you have a careers counsellor or similar at school, speak with them to see what your options are. But yeah, the whole process can definitely be overwhelming and really frustrating, so we're here for you if you need it.

Is it still possible to get a 35 and above study score if you fail the first SAC that's worth 20% of the outcome mark?

Hey atong35,

Welcome to ATAR Notes!

What do you mean by failing? Like, getting a low mark, or literally getting an "N" grade? To my knowledge, you'll need an "S" (satisfactory) grade in order to pass, but I believe you can still internally "fail" whilst still receiving an "S". Disclaimer: not an expert on this particular area of the VCE system, but thought I should mention it. Happy to be corrected.

In regard to the study score of 35, yeah, definitely still possible on the assumption that you get that satisfactory grade. The reason it's still possible is that your raw scores in your SACs don't actually matter that much. What matters is your ranking in your cohort, plus your exam performance. It's not really worth investing too much time into understanding how the technical side of VCE works, but if you're interested, there's a great thread on it here.

I'd try to focus your efforts instead on improving for the next SAC, because that's ultimately what will help you achieve that 35+ study score.

[yanzzz18]

What is the best advice you could give a student doing the HSC and what do you think the best way to improve is ?

[Joseph41]

What is the best advice you could give a student doing the HSC and what do you think the best way to improve is ?

Hey yanzzz18,

Welcome to ATAR Notes.

What is the best advice you could give a student doing the HSC
Best advice for a student doing the HSC, hmm. I wrote a thread a little while back with my top 41 tips for the HSC, which you can find here - that might be of interest. But I'm just thinking about it now, and what comes to mind is this:

Focus on yourself - not on what other people are doing.

The reason I say that is that it's really easy to get sucked into drawing comparisons between yourself and other people. And doing that doesn't really benefit anybody. Why? Because:

* Everybody has different abilities, goals and aspirations, so it's basically comparing apples with oranges.
* In all likelihood, it will only lead to stress - "oh, so and so got such and such mark, and I only got this!"
* Is making these sorts of comparisons going to improve your exam performance? Unlikely.

I'm not sure if this is or has been an issue for you, but I'd just be wary of it.

Anyway, that's obviously not directly content-related, so I'll give you a bonus tip:

* Simply knowing content is only the first step. The difference between writing a pretty good exam and writing a great exam is nailing those inevitable curveball questions. To best manoeuvre the tricky questions, you need to be able to have adaptable responses. What I mean by this is that you're not just regurgitating content, but can answer each question on its merits. If you simply learn when to regurgitate certain information based on the question type, you're really vulnerable to falling whenever NESA chucks in a trick question (which, I'll point out, can be difficult to spot in the pressure of the exam).

* SO, to act on the above, I'd really work hard on conceptual understandings. For math subjects, for example, don't just learn formulae - learn why it is that those formulae work. Ask your teachers. If they don't give you a good response, ask here on ATAR Notes - there'll be heaps of people willing to help.

What do you think the best way to improve is?
Well, step one to me is working out what's going wrong in the first place. Sometimes, this can be more difficult than it initially appears. For example, if you get a question wrong on your half yearly Extension 1 exam, why was that the case? Did you mis-read the question? Did you feel rushed in the exam? Did you simply not know the content?

If you just didn't know the content, why didn't you? Did you study inefficiently? Did you just not put in the required work?

There's a nimiety of potential reasons for doing poorly or not as well as you'd hoped, and identifying these reasons is key. To do this, you sort of have to become a self-aware studier, which will be good for you anyway. Anyway, once you've worked out your weaknesses, you can work really hard on improving those specific things. It's hard to give more detailed advice without knowing what it is exactly that you're looking to improve on; feel free to respond to this message with the particulars, and I'll do my best to give some solid advice.

It's not all doom and gloom, by the way - you can also emphasise your strengths! For example, if you work really well in the morning, awesome! Get up early and study then. If you're a great visual learner, wicked! Draw heaps of diagrams. Not playing to your strengths literally makes no sense. It would be like John Howard trying to play cricket for a job instead of engaging in political debate - senseless.

[BrainyChick]

Hello!

Do you have any

study tips for each subject during your HSC years?
How did you study during uni?
How did you make use of practice/past papers?[/li][/list]

Thank you!

[brenden]

Will you marry me?

[Poet]

Will you marry me?

Are you single?
And if so, will you marry me?

Spoiler

And if not, would you consider leaving your partner..?

I am feeling a strange case of deja-vu...

[K888]

Will you marry me?

I ship it.

[Potatohater]

1. For uni assignments, how do you push yourself to aim for distinctions/ high distinctions, rather than just settling for a credit, particularly when the unit isn't all as interesting as you expected?
2. Can we expect any answers to be delivered in video format?
3. How are you such an inspirational human specimen?

[Joseph41]

Hello!

Do you have any

study tips for each subject during your HSC years?
How did you study during uni?
How did you make use of practice/past papers?[/li][/list]

Thank you!

Hey BrainyChick,

Welcome to ATAR Notes. My thoughts below.

Do you have any study tips for each subject during your HSC years?
My best study tips are probably cross-discipline (so, not subject specific). Things like to-do lists (which I spoke about in this post here) were really helpful for me in terms of keeping on top of the workload. Obviously the HSC years are a bit different to the rest of high school, because the stakes are higher - for me, this was actually a good thing, because it provided direction. From Year 7-10, I just sort of floated through, and didn't extend myself as much as I possibly could because I just didn't see the value in it (which I stand by today). Don't get me wrong: I still tried. I just didn't invest my absolute everything into school, because other parts of my life were more important.

Anyway, to get back to the study tips, I'll break them down broadly by subject type:

English subjects:

* Need quotes? Sweet - this isn't something you can really learn overnight. I'd recommend having a "quote bank" of sorts that you add to throughout the year - potentially even break this down into subject content. This is a good example of what I'm talking about; it's for VCE English Language, so won't be relevant for you specifically, but I hope it gives an indication of how you might like to set up some sort of quote database if relevant to your particular subjects.

* Work on your writing. This is, of course, relevant for all subjects, but particularly for Englishes (an interesting word, incidentally). I think there's a temptation in HSC/VCE English to try to wow the assessors with big words and fancy sentence structures, but it's simply unnecessary. All other things equal, a more concise sentence is better than a highfalutin one. I like Orwell's philosophy: if you can feasibly cut out a word, do it; if you can use a simpler word without losing anything, do it. Assessors won't be impressed by obscure words or, indeed, lots of words. Instead, they'll be impressed by clear expression and clarity of thought - and that's what you should work on.

* Timing is such a big thing. It's one thing to be able to write an amazing essay, but another entirely to be able to do it under time conditions. This might sound silly, but I think handwriting essays is really beneficial; it'll get you in the groove, and help you prepare for exams.

Math/science subjects:

* To rise above, try to understand why things are as they are. Don't just rote learn a formula; work on understanding why that formula is how it is. If you have a conceptual understanding of how the math functions, you're in a really good position. What it means is that if you get thrown a curveball question by NESA, you'll be able to tackle it in a way that others might not be able to.

* Practice questions - just smash 'em out. Don't do them for the sake of doing them, though - notice what you get wrong, and then work on those mistakes.

* Don't be afraid to re-do questions. It's not a waste of time. If you get a question wrong, that's fine - everybody gets questions wrong. What a lot of people don't do, though, is work on them until they can get them right. If you get a question wrong, work out why (as per point #2), leave it for a few days, and then give it another crack. It's all about the process here.

Humanities subjects:

* Lots of content? Sweet - what you need is to learn it in whatever way suits you best. I've spoken previously in this thread about different study techniques, but this is a good article that shows there are more ways to study effectively than you might consider initially. I used mnemonics heaps, and tried to link those mnemonics to things I knew and enjoyed, such as sport. Making it personal, and linking the content to your own life experiences, makes it a lot easier.

* If you need to remember definitions, I honestly don't see the issue with rote learning them - on the proviso that you also understand the definitions conceptually. I used rote learning all the time for definitions, and it practically always worked for me.

* Work on answer structure, particularly for longer questions (so like, those worth 4+ marks). These questions can make up a decent proportion of the end-of-year exam (depending on the subject a little), and can really make the difference between a good paper and a great one. Work with your teacher to see what NESA (or VCAA in Victoria) is really looking for. A lot of the times, answers are pretty formulaic; all you need to do is work out what that formula is.

How did you study during uni?
Very similarly to how I studied through high school! I answered a very similar question in this post here, but I'll copy and paste my answer so that you don't miss it.

"* Did my readings. I tried to do these really actively, by which I mean not just reading them for the sake of reading them. I'd highlight key parts, take notes etc. Doing this made me feel prepared for class, and more confident in voicing opinions etc. in tutes.

* I went to my lectures and took notes. For my first year or so, I listened to the majority of my lectures online - it seemed a pretty good life, and was easier for me logistically. But after a while, I made the decision to actually go to my lectures, because I wasn't feeling all that engaged with uni. My marks were fine when I was listening online, but they improved a fair bit when I started going to lectures. I think the reason for this is that I was less distracted and more connected with the content when I was physically present.

Honestly, that's practically all I did on the content side of things. I didn't feel I needed too much more than a really focused effort when doing my readings and when in class. If I wanted to test myself on the content, I tried to verbally explain how things worked to my mirror (or, y'know, another human haha).

As for assignments:

* I really tried hard to start early and to stay on top of things. I had an assessment timeline each semester, where I could tick things off as I went. Having this right from Week 1 meant I could prepare for busy periods, too. So like, if I knew I had four essays due in Week 8, I'd internally change those deadlines so that they were more spread.

* I studied pretty hard for exams, because I figured that might be the difference between me and other people studying that unit. I've spoken about summaries before in this thread in relation to high school, but I also used them a lot at uni. The process itself of summarising stuff really helped to solidify what information was most important, and how different parts of the content linked to each other.

Arts, I'm sure, is quite different to other degrees, but that's what worked for me (broadly).

Also (afterthought), I tried to study at uni as much as I could, because I find home really quite distracting, and I'm not as productive as a result. It's all about knowing how you study best, and then playing to those strengths."

How did you make use of practice/past papers?
I think practice exams really made a difference for me, and actually gave me a lot of confidence going into the exam itself. I started doing practice papers in, like, July? August? I can't really remember specifically, but probably some point around then. I hadn't learnt all the content at that point, so some of the exams were open-book and not time-bound. I didn't have an issue with doing this, because I could learn how to construct really good responses without the pressure of being under time conditions. Sometimes, I'd complete a practice exam over several days.

As time went on, I gained confidence in my knowledge of the content, and starting doing all of the practice exams in time conditions. I also tried to be a bit strategic and complete the exams at relevant times of day. For example, in VCE we have a subject called Health & Human Development (sort of similar to PDHPE). I knew my actual exam started at like 3pm. This isn't when I naturally study best, but I tried to do heaps of my HHD practice exams around that time to mimic the conditions I'd eventually have to face at the end of the year. I think this helped.

One other thing I'll say is that practice exams for the sake of it is pretty silly IMO. I spent a lot longer marking my exams, making notes on what I was doing well and poorly etc., than I spent doing the exams themselves. This is where the value really comes, because it allows you to work specifically on what's not going well for you - and there's no better preparation for the exam!

Will you marry me?

Hey friend!

I am very happily in a relationship, won't be leaving my partner and, therefore, will have to politely turn down your very kind offer haha.

<3

P.S. Totally not a generic answer.

1. For uni assignments, how do you push yourself to aim for distinctions/ high distinctions, rather than just settling for a credit, particularly when the unit isn't all as interesting as you expected?
2. Can we expect any answers to be delivered in video format?
3. How are you such an inspirational human specimen?

Hello, friend!

For uni assignments, how do you push yourself to aim for distinctions/ high distinctions, rather than just settling for a credit, particularly when the unit isn't all as interesting as you expected?
Hmm. Good question.

In my first semester, I really had no idea what to expect. I was on a scholarship that, from memory, required at least a Distinction average to maintain - so I had a bit of pressure in that regard. That probably acted as motivation in my very first semester because like, I didn't want to lose the scholarship haha. After that, though, there were probably a few things:

* Internal drive. I have this thing where if I'm investing energy into something, I don't see the point in doing it by halves. I figured that since I had the opportunity to study at university, I might as well give it a huge crack - and so, I tried hard.
* I'd developed some pretty good study habits in Year 12, so honestly, not that much changed. I did my work, I tried hard, I got good results. That's another benefit of developing good habits early - they sort of become ingrained, and are part of who you are.
* Honestly, I had this sense that I needed to prove myself. I got a pretty good ATAR and then enrolled in a straight Bachelor of Arts - some people would (erroneously) see this as "wasting" the ATAR or whatever. My girlfriend studies Med, my brother studies Law, my best friend studies Science; I felt as though, in some sense, I was inferior to them. I'm very glad to say that I'm now well and truly over this train of thought but like, it was an easy thought to have at the time.
* I didn't know what I wanted to do after uni, so keeping my options open with wide marks seemed a good idea.
* On a similar line of thought, I vaguely had in my mind that pursuing a PhD would be a good thing to do, and you obviously need good marks for that.
* I wanted a scholarship for Honours.
* And, lastly, I got trapped a little bit. As time went on and as the HD run continued, the more and more I didn't want to stuff it up. I would have been really angry with myself if I got, say, a 79 Distinction in one unit, and that dropped my GPA below the perfect 4.00. In reality it means very little, but this honestly was a factor for me - not a healthy one, or a productive one, but one nonetheless.

Can we expect any answers to be delivered in video format?

How are you such an inspirational human specimen?
Maybe I'm born with it. Maybe it's Maybelline.

[Potatohater]

Not gonna lie, I had this page open waiting for your reply and man, this was so relatable!

I got a pretty good ATAR and then enrolled in a straight Bachelor of Arts - some people would (erroneously) see this as "wasting" the ATAR or whatever. My girlfriend studies Med, my brother studies Law, my best friend studies Science; I felt as though, in some sense, I was inferior to them.

I may not have the external pressure to get distinctions + but hopefully some of your words will pull me out of my lazy "I'll just make this good enough for a credit" attitude

[Joseph41]

Not gonna lie, I had this page open waiting for your reply and man, this was so relatable!I may not have the external pressure to get distinctions + but hopefully some of your words will pull me out of my lazy "I'll just make this good enough for a credit" attitude

I think the thing to remember is that you never know where good marks will take you. They're not the be all and end all, but having good marks has certainly resulted in a bunch of opportunities for me I otherwise wouldn't have had.

P.S. Did you appreciate my video response?

[appleandbee]

What is writing a 10,000-20,000 word honours thesis like? I've been looking at a few honours and masters programs, and I'm finding the ANU honours program a bit off-putting because they require a 20,000 word thesis as opposed to an Oxford taught masters degree (10,000 word thesis). I'm reasonably confident of being able to write 10,000 words (I'm use to writing 2,000-5,000 word reports and university essays), but 20,000 seems a bit of a stretch.

Also since you are considering a PhD, does spending 4-5 years on one research question and doing a 80,000-100,000 word thesis scare/worry you? Even though I find research interesting (not as a career though), the PhD time commitments seems beyond me. I have a lot of respect for people that complete PhDs because of the perseverance involved.

[Joseph41]

What is writing a 10,000-20,000 word honours thesis like? I've been looking at a few honours and masters programs, and I'm finding the ANU honours program a bit off-putting because they require a 20,000 word thesis as opposed to an Oxford taught masters degree (10,000 word thesis). I'm reasonably confident of being able to write 10,000 words (I'm use to writing 2,000-5,000 word reports and university essays), but 20,000 seems a bit of a stretch.

Also since you are considering a PhD, does spending 4-5 years on one research question and doing a 80,000-100,000 word thesis scare/worry you? Even though I find research interesting (not as a career though), the PhD time commitments seems beyond me. I have a lot of respect for people that complete PhDs because of the perseverance involved.

Hey appleandbee. Thanks for your questions.

What is writing a 10,000-20,000 word honours thesis like?
You know what? I loved it. I wished it could have been longer, honestly. There were parts of my topic I couldn't explore in enough depth due to word constraints, and even then my first draft was still like 35,000 words. I had to cut it down pretty significantly (largely I just improved phrasing, but I still would have loved to have more words up my sleeve).

The process was pretty great, from topic conception to final submission. Don't get me wrong: stressful at times. I think every single person in my cohort - myself included - thought they wouldn't finish on time. But overall, I think it was a great experience, one that I learnt a lot from, and one I'd be happy to do again. Perhaps the best thing for me was that I had a project of my own, and felt I was genuinely filling a gap in literature. Was pretty cool.

I've been looking at a few honours and masters programs, and I'm finding the ANU honours program a bit off-putting because they require a 20,000 word thesis as opposed to an Oxford taught masters degree (10,000 word thesis). I'm reasonably confident of being able to write 10,000 words (I'm use to writing 2,000-5,000 word reports and university essays), but 20,000 seems a bit of a stretch.
Honestly, I think you'd be okay either way. If you find a topic you're passionate about, you'd probably surprise yourself with how much you can write. A pretty big portion of my thesis was a review of literature - this can take up a fair chunk of your word count without it really seeming like it at the time. And like, I'm guessing those Honours programs are a year long? You'll certainly have the time you need.

Also since you are considering a PhD, does spending 4-5 years on one research question and doing a 80,000-100,000 word thesis scare/worry you? Even though I find research interesting (not as a career though), the PhD time commitments seems beyond me. I have a lot of respect for people that complete PhDs because of the perseverance involved.
Good question.

Does it scare me? Hmm. I think it scares me insofar as I'm not sure where it'd get me. So like, what happens after those 4-5 years? Obviously there would be financial concerns, too - and I'm not sure how I'd deal with those at this time of my life. The actual process doesn't really worry me. I think I have the dedication, consistency and drive to get through it and come out the other end with something nice and meaningful. It's probably more what happens afterward that makes me hesitant, y'feel?

[hums_student]

Hey man! So glad this thread exists, anyway for VCE, would you recommend primarily focusing on subjects you think would probably be your primary 4 and less on the other 2 subjects or is it better to spend my time equally across all my subjects, even if 2 of them will only contribute 10%? Thanks in advance 

[Joseph41]

Hey man! So glad this thread exists, anyway for VCE, would you recommend primarily focusing on subjects you think would probably be your primary 4 and less on the other 2 subjects or is it better to spend my time equally across all my subjects, even if 2 of them will only contribute 10%? Thanks in advance 

Hey, no worries at all.

Another good question - this one comes up a fair bit. My personal recommendation? Don't neglect what you think will be your bottom two. Why? Because it's really hard to predict which subjects will be in your bottom two.

The reason for this is that the races you're running with each of your subjects isn't an even race. Your study scores depend on how everybody else in the state performs in that subject; in essence, you're competing against slightly different cohorts each time. So even if you feel like you're doing way better in, say, Chemistry than Revs, it's not necessarily the case that your scores will reflect that.

Personal story time.

I had the same question as you at pretty much the same point of my VCE experience. I was starting to think about doing well, and what would give me the best possible chance to do well. Throughout Year 12, I thought more and more about my top four. I got a 48 in Business Management in Year 11, so this was my situation:

- Business Management: 48
- English Language: ? (guaranteed top four - only English subject)
- Visual Communication & Design: ?
- Health & Human Development: ?
- Psychology: ?
- Further Maths: ?

I was very confident that Further would be my sixth subject. It wasn't that I was terrible at it or hated it - I just spent a lot more time on my other subjects. VCD I was nearly 100% sure would be in my top four. The way I saw it, it was my best subject - and I didn't drop a single mark throughout the entire year. HHD and Psych I figured would be pretty similar in the end, but one would get in the top four and the other would just miss out.

Because I was so confident about Further & VCD, I tried to be strategic, and ended up using my Further classes to work on my VCD folio. Basically, I was gunning for a 50 in VisCom, and figured I'd sacrifice my Further score a bit to get there. It worked insofar as I got 100% for all of my internal VCD assessments. But what I didn't really take into account was the exam. My plan didn't really work out in the end:

- English Language: forced top four (was my fourth best after scaling, anyway)
- Health & Human Development: top four
- Pyschology: top four
- Business Management: top four
- Further Maths: bottom two
- Visual Communication & Design: bottom two

Despite spending ages on it (read: aaaaaages) throughout the year, VCD ended up being my worst subject. How I managed a higher score in Further than VCD, I'll never know. But I think it demonstrates the point that even if you're really confident, trying to predict your top four/bottom two subjects is a pretty risky business. For that reason, I definitely wouldn't sacrifice subjects for the sake of others. My story here isn't isolated - very many people would have similar stories to tell.

That's my personal take on it.