Prag's Journey to Com/Law!!

[Chocolatemilkshake]

Nice to meet you! I’m a Christian too 

8 subjects, wow that’s a lot! What did you enjoy about working at the business consultant firm? Also, they definitely wouldn’t ask you to come back and work if you hadn’t left a good impression 

[Jimmmy]

Hi Prag, can't believe I didn't see this journal sooner!

It sucks that you couldn't sit you Psych exam  but think about it this way, virtually no one I know has attempted a 3/4 in Year 10, and since you're going to end up with 7 subjects, that Psych score could literally mean zero to you. So treat it as a great year of experience! Doing the amount of 3/4's you're doing in Year 11 will no doubt be a challenge, but it's honestly an approach I endorse after experiencing VCE myself. Our school didn't let us do more than one 3/4, and I wish I'd pushed harder with my VCE coordinator to do Psych or another science also.

Love your choice of subjects too! Legal, BusMan, Politics and Methods all aligning with me. My big piece of advice is to really focus on your 3/4's this year. Whilst your 1/2's are important to get a good foundation, especially Methods, they ultimately don't count, and therefore you're much better served to invest high quantities of time into the subjects that do. Don't let your ego get in the way like I did! It doesn't matter if you're getting A's and A+'s in your 1/2's, but the difference between a few marks in a SAC could, albeit very slight.

[Snow Leopard]

but the sheer amount of work that's needed kind of scares me!

Same!!!

I'm a Christian.

Me too

Two, I come from a single-parent family that’s not exactly what you’d call financially well off, and I’m the oldest, so I must do all I can to help out even if it’s not much.

You could also try applying for SEAS for bonus points.

I do both sprinting and cross country — my worst event at athletics carnivals is the 800m, because it’s such an *awkward* distance - too short to jog but too long to sprint.

I used to do cross country in Yr 6, 7 and 8 but then I got too unfit for it

[pahm]

Nice to meet you! I’m a Christian too 

8 subjects, wow that’s a lot! What did you enjoy about working at the business consultant firm? Also, they definitely wouldn’t ask you to come back and work if you hadn’t left a good impression 

Glad to meet a fellow Christian on the forum! and wowww a 50 in year 11! Congratulations, that's amazing!
Yeah I know 8 subjects is a lot. I was able to do that because of my two external subjects, but I still wanted to fill up all my timetable slots at school. The business consultant firm was actually really fun! I know it sounds like the dullest thing ever but I met some amazing people during those two weeks who have given me invaluable advice and tips regarding school and just life in general, and seeing their work definitely motivates me to work harder so that I can join their ranks one day. I know there's the stereotype of *elite posh snobs* in those types of jobs but I didn't get that feeling at all. I also really enjoy the work environment, how it's so professional and yet so laid back at the same time.

Hi Prag, can't believe I didn't see this journal sooner!

It sucks that you couldn't sit you Psych exam  but think about it this way, virtually no one I know has attempted a 3/4 in Year 10, and since you're going to end up with 7 subjects, that Psych score could literally mean zero to you. So treat it as a great year of experience! Doing the amount of 3/4's you're doing in Year 11 will no doubt be a challenge, but it's honestly an approach I endorse after experiencing VCE myself. Our school didn't let us do more than one 3/4, and I wish I'd pushed harder with my VCE coordinator to do Psych or another science also.

Thank you Jimmy! Yes I'm aiming to have that approach with my psych study score - just use it as a learning experience. It sucks that your school wouldn't let you do more than one, but you still did amazing in VCE!

Love your choice of subjects too! Legal, BusMan, Politics and Methods all aligning with me. My big piece of advice is to really focus on your 3/4's this year. Whilst your 1/2's are important to get a good foundation, especially Methods, they ultimately don't count, and therefore you're much better served to invest high quantities of time into the subjects that do. Don't let your ego get in the way like I did! It doesn't matter if you're getting A's and A+'s in your 1/2's, but the difference between a few marks in a SAC could, albeit very slight.

Thanks for your advice! My 1/2 teachers keep telling me to focus on them equally but I thought I shouldn't since 1/2 doesn't go towards your final results at all. Of course I won't completely disregard them but my 3/4s are definitely my top priority.

Don't let your ego get in the way

THIS. That got in the way of psych this year, I'm not letting it drag me down again!

You could also try applying for SEAS for bonus points.

I could (I get SEAS in categories 1, 2, and 4). I can get into Com/Law at Monash with a 94 instead of 98 if I applied for SEAS, but I'm not a fan of affirmative action.
This post basically sums up my reasoning.

I used to do cross country in Yr 6, 7 and 8 but then I got too unfit for it

You should definitely get back into it! Cross country is so rewarding!

[Ionic Doc]

Hey Prag,
Just found your journal and can't wait for future updates.
8 subjects is insane, I could never imagine myself being able to juggle all of them. Would you consider yourself are fairly organised person? What subject do you think will be the most challenging for you this year?

Anyways I wish you all the best for 2020, and years to come in your journey to Com/Law 

[Jimmmy]

I could (I get SEAS in categories 1, 2, and 4). I can get into Com/Law at Monash with a 94 instead of 98 if I applied for SEAS, but I'm not a fan of affirmative action.
This post basically sums up my reasoning.

I did read Remy's posts and whilst I respect their decision, I think it's a no-brainer as to whether you apply or not...apply!

As harsh as it may sound to say, just because one person succeeded at doing something a particular way, doesn't mean we are guaranteed to do the same. The way VCE works places an extremely high value on an extremely short time span. Whilst you may run through everything perfectly and excel as Remy did, no matter how much hard work you put in or belief you have in yourself, the probabilities decline with regards to success if you don't take full advantage of the benefits you are given. Whether you believe you're 'entitled' to them or not isn't really relevant, because the university obviously does. I think the VCE system is severely flawed, but I know universities take great credence from it, so it doesn't mean I'm just going to disregard the system! Similarly, 'some rich kid from St Kevins' (Remy's quote) will take full advantage of the resources they have at their disposal, so why shouldn't you? Ultimately for me, it was about entrance into the course, so I didn't mind applying for SEAS, and I didn't really care about proving any points, because I was disenchanted with even being literally scored on a rank in the first place.

It's like saying every child who spends as much time on a tennis court as Roger Federer, or works as hard as they do, will achieve the heights that they did. Whilst it's possible, it makes more sense to maximise your chances where the VCE system has enough issues (and complaints about it) as it is. It's up to you, but my strong suggestion would be to apply for SEAS and go through the process.

[pahm]

Hey Prag,
Just found your journal and can't wait for future updates.
8 subjects is insane, I could never imagine myself being able to juggle all of them. Would you consider yourself are fairly organised person? What subject do you think will be the most challenging for you this year?

Anyways I wish you all the best for 2020, and years to come in your journey to Com/Law 

Nah, definitely not the most organised person, though I try to be haha. I'm more just curious about all the subject choices that VCAA offers and I want to know a little bit about as much as possible, so I guess I'm actually more of a scattered person.
I think the most challenging subject will be methods - and out of my 3/4s, probably accounting. I'm not a strong maths person (you know that stereotype where people want to study law because they're bad at maths? That's me).

I did read Remy's posts and whilst I respect their decision, I think it's a no-brainer as to whether you apply or not...apply!

As harsh as it may sound to say, just because one person succeeded at doing something a particular way, doesn't mean we are guaranteed to do the same. The way VCE works places an extremely high value on an extremely short time span. Whilst you may run through everything perfectly and excel as Remy did, no matter how much hard work you put in or belief you have in yourself, the probabilities decline with regards to success if you don't take full advantage of the benefits you are given. Whether you believe you're 'entitled' to them or not isn't really relevant, because the university obviously does. I think the VCE system is severely flawed, but I know universities take great credence from it, so it doesn't mean I'm just going to disregard the system! Similarly, 'some rich kid from St Kevins' (Remy's quote) will take full advantage of the resources they have at their disposal, so why shouldn't you? Ultimately for me, it was about entrance into the course, so I didn't mind applying for SEAS, and I didn't really care about proving any points, because I was disenchanted with even being literally scored on a rank in the first place.

It's like saying every child who spends as much time on a tennis court as Roger Federer, or works as hard as they do, will achieve the heights that they did. Whilst it's possible, it makes more sense to maximise your chances where the VCE system has enough issues (and complaints about it) as it is. It's up to you, but my strong suggestion would be to apply for SEAS and go through the process.

Hey Jimmy, thanks so much for your advice. Truth is, I haven't completely decided whether I would apply for SEAS yet. And since you don't apply for SEAS until year 12 I haven't given it much thought as it's still a while away. Of course, I would love to have some stress taken off my shoulders and take VCE a little bit easier. But I'm just one of those people who only performs well when there's actually an incentive to do so - so I know that if the minimum ATAR required is a 94 and not a 98 I'd probably end up doing worse because there's less pressure. For me it's the opposition between do I want to do the absolute best I can, or do I want to get into Law (and I want both lmao).

So I'm still figuring that out but thankfully it's also still a while away haha!

[Jimmmy]

Hey Jimmy, thanks so much for your advice. Truth is, I haven't completely decided whether I would apply for SEAS yet. And since you don't apply for SEAS until year 12 I haven't given it much thought as it's still a while away. Of course, I would love to have some stress taken off my shoulders and take VCE a little bit easier. But I'm just one of those people who only performs well when there's actually an incentive to do so - so I know that if the minimum ATAR required is a 94 and not a 98 I'd probably end up doing worse because there's less pressure. For me it's the opposition between do I want to do the absolute best I can, or do I want to get into Law (and I want both lmao).

So I'm still figuring that out but thankfully it's also still a while away haha!

I guess that's another factor you have to toss up. I wasn't the brighest fellow in front of a test/exam so I had to work reallu hard to even get the score I did, and I knew it was simply about entrance into the course. If you think applying will 'limit' you mentally, you do have to seriously consider whether you do it.

[Sine]

I could (I get SEAS in categories 1, 2, and 4). I can get into Com/Law at Monash with a 94 instead of 98 if I applied for SEAS, but I'm not a fan of affirmative action.

100% agree with Jimmmy on this.

imo if anyone properly falls into any SEAS category they should apply for it - if you are not sure just apply for it and forget about it. Once ATARs/offers come out and if you feel the only reason you got a course is because of SEAS you can easily reject the offer and go to a lower cutoff course. At least this way if you are unsure you can take both options.

I get that there is probably stigma associated with SEAS - even though there shouldn't be as a heap of students get it - even some of those who go to private schools/get private tuition apply and receive it.

[Evolio]

Hey Prag!
I'm a bit late but it's really nice to meet you!

Hi there! Name's Prag. I'm 16 and going into year 11 this year at a public school in Melton, Melbourne's west.

A fellow Westie! Yay! 

While I had first assumed it wasn’t fair that I had to derive my score, I now realise I had been overconfident and the amount of effort I put in last year is nowhere near enough.

I can relate to this so much! Last year, I was extremely self-confident in Methods and Biology and that led to my downfall. It's okay, you still have this year to make up for it and it's great that you've realised what you did wrong because now that you're aware, you won't make the same mistake again!

Last year, I did 2 weeks of work experience at a business consultant firm, and at the end, the manager told me to come back after I’m done with VCE to work part time. I’m not sure whether I truly left a good impression, or if it’s just courtesy, but I’m treating it as the former. Even if I don’t eventually work there, I’m sure I can find work elsewhere — I just hope it’s relevant as I don’t want to slave away in retail or hospitality.

Wow! That's great that you have an opportunity open for you after VCE!

Well, it's been nice reading your journal so far and I am looking forward to seeing more journal entries! Have a nice holiday!
 

[pahm]

Hey Prag!
I'm a bit late but it's really nice to meet you!
A fellow Westie! Yay! 
I can relate to this so much! Last year, I was extremely self-confident in Methods and Biology and that led to my downfall. It's okay, you still have this year to make up for it and it's great that you've realised what you did wrong because now that you're aware, you won't make the same mistake again!
Wow! That's great that you have an opportunity open for you after VCE!

Well, it's been nice reading your journal so far and I am looking forward to seeing more journal entries! Have a nice holiday!
 

Hi Evolio! So sorry about this horrendously late reply hahah, thank you so much for reading!

---

Hey all!

There's been some pretty big changes in the past few weeks, the biggest being me dropping out of accounting 3/4, which I had been doing through Virtual School Victoria.

I dropped it because:

• Juggling 8 VCE subjects was simply way too ambitious. Even though I focused mainly on my Unit 3/4's, it was still too much work. Also, methods 1/2 is a killer - it could easily take up 2 subjects on my study timetable.
• The content just bores me. I'm sure accounting is a very important skill in the business world, but it doesn't interest me at all.
• Sociology turned out to be an amazing subject, way more so than accounting.

So now I am only doing 7 subjects, which is much more manageable. Just to clarify, they are:
3/4 Economics, Legal Studies, Sociology
1/2 English, Methods, Business Management, Aus & Global Politics (bludge).

I'm doing one of my subjects through VSV but for anonymity I won't say which.

So far, my best subject has (surprisingly) been Economics! I am currently rank 1, having only dropped one mark on the first SAC, unbelievable! Our second SAC is looming closer, I sure hope to maintain my rank!

Legal has been disappointing. I really want a 45+, but on the first SAC I barely got over the class average. I was shocked - after 5 practice SAC's and seeking feedback from my teacher for each one, THIS was my reward?? I've been trying to seek clarification, but so far nothing's come out of it.

Sociology has been messy so far, since I swapped into it at the last possible moment. There's so much for me to catch up on, and this subject is so rare I don't even know where to go to find resources.

It's so scary thinking that we're already approaching (nearly) the end of term 1, and that by this time in 8 months, I'd be sitting my exams!