I finished year 12 and I'm bored out of my mind :P

[Dumplingfever]

Hello AN,
I'm a newbie here I hope this is the right place for my post

I finished all of my year 12 exams about a month ago, and yeah, the first two weeks felt super great because I did nothing except just chillin'  but now I want to learn something again 

I've gone to the state library a few times before just to read about random stuff (yes, i'm a bit weird lol) but then it dawned on me that I'll be better off learning something that could help with my studies next year.

Currently, I'm planning to do bachelor of biomedicine or bachelor of science at melbourne uni (I'll be happy regardless of which one I get accepted into). Can anyone recommend me any books that help with preparing for either of these two courses? Preferably books relating to first year but I'm quite open minded. You know what? Heck, it doesn't have to be books relating to first year or these two courses. Anything in relation to maths or science (esp. chemistry), Ill gladly read  Yes, Im quite desperate lol

Please help! I've gone to few libraries and searched for some books to study but they are either VCE-related stuff or something super hard 

Any replies are welcome

[jamonwindeyer]

Hello AN,
I'm a newbie here I hope this is the right place for my post

I finished all of my year 12 exams about a month ago, and yeah, the first two weeks felt super great because I did nothing except just chillin'  but now I want to learn something again 

I've gone to the state library a few times before just to read about random stuff (yes, i'm a bit weird lol) but then it dawned on me that I'll be better off learning something that could help with my studies next year.

Currently, I'm planning to do bachelor of biomedicine or bachelor of science at melbourne uni (I'll be happy regardless of which one I get accepted into). Can anyone recommend me any books that help with preparing for either of these two courses? Preferably books relating to first year but I'm quite open minded. You know what? Heck, it doesn't have to be books relating to first year or these two courses. Anything in relation to maths or science (esp. chemistry), Ill gladly read  Yes, Im quite desperate lol

Please help! I've gone to few libraries and searched for some books to study but they are either VCE-related stuff or something super hard 

Any replies are welcome

Hey hey! Welcome! Definitely a good spot for this post

Not super familiar with those fields (particular Chemistry), and I know there are people way better suited to answer. That said, as something that could serve you well to have some experience of one day, you could try a little bit of programming! Doing some simple stuff in a language like Python is fun, and some basic programming experience might just come in handy depending on where your degree takes you definitely not the most relevant, but hey!

Besides that, as general advice, maybe search for the courses you'll be studying next year (potentially) and try and look through course outlines to find the prescribed textbook? Often purchasing these is optional, but if you are looking for some holiday reading, then maybe you could pick it up early?

Oh and don't worry, I feel weird when I'm not doing something academic-y too ahaha

[wyzard]

Hello AN,
I'm a newbie here I hope this is the right place for my post

I finished all of my year 12 exams about a month ago, and yeah, the first two weeks felt super great because I did nothing except just chillin'  but now I want to learn something again 

I've gone to the state library a few times before just to read about random stuff (yes, i'm a bit weird lol) but then it dawned on me that I'll be better off learning something that could help with my studies next year.

Currently, I'm planning to do bachelor of biomedicine or bachelor of science at melbourne uni (I'll be happy regardless of which one I get accepted into). Can anyone recommend me any books that help with preparing for either of these two courses? Preferably books relating to first year but I'm quite open minded. You know what? Heck, it doesn't have to be books relating to first year or these two courses. Anything in relation to maths or science (esp. chemistry), Ill gladly read  Yes, Im quite desperate lol

Please help! I've gone to few libraries and searched for some books to study but they are either VCE-related stuff or something super hard 

Any replies are welcome

I've got a few recommendations for you It's great you're keen to start reading and learning now and getting ahead of the game.

For math, depends on what you'd like to do I have two recommendations that suits you perfectly:
- How to Ace the Rest of Calculus: A Streetwise Guide. A really entertaining read on calculus, I think it's level suits you as you'll be introduced to more advanced concepts in calculus, like multivariable and vector calculus.
- Linear Algebra and Its Applications by David C Lay. For a more serious math book at the university level, I'd highly recommend this book, as it covers the fundamentals of Linear Algebra really well, and full of application in many different areas, such as engineering, economics, and computing.

As for chemistry I'm not too sure what to recommend as I never took any chemistry subjects in uni

Also why restrict yourself to academic books? There are plenty of great books you can read to help you study better. Once again I have two recommendations to help improve on your study skills:
- Make it Stick: The Science of Successful Learning. A great book detailing highly effective and often counter-intuitive study strategies based on psychology.
- The Willpower Instinct. A book on how to improve willpower and become more disciplined, I think this book will be really helpful as when going to uni, having discipline and willpower will become more important as you're now more independent compared to high school.

I have plenty of other great books to recommend, but I think these suits your situation the best

[Auralee]

What you're feeling right now is perfectly normal - I think everyone has probably experienced this post-VCE slump. What I will say though. is that sometimes it's really easy to say, 'I'm bored, it's been two weeks since my last exam, I'm ready to go again'. VCE is a really tough year and it can be incredibly confusing for your body/mind/heart to fall from such an intense level of studying to... not knowing what to do with yourself.    You do need a bit of time off to recharge... trust me. That's not to say the entire holidays needs to be spent bludging around. What about volunteer work? A part-time job? Catching up with family/friends? Learn a new instrument?...

The best piece of advice I can provide is not to rush into uni straight away... even though you sound like a keen bean! I have just completed my first year of university and upon reflection of my post-VCE holidays, dealing with your ATAR or making sure university/GAP year/other plans are sorted out can be quite a task in itself. I know that from personal experience, I had to do a lot of course rethinking, planning and emotional recovery after I'd received my ATAR.

On that note, from receiving your ATAR, change of preference periods, university course expos, course invitations, enrolling, O-week.... All of these things take up (surprisingly?) a lot of energy - physically and emotionally. This is particularly prominent for students who obtain ATARs that dash their expectations, or just miss out cut-offs . It can be an agonising period that might involve a complete change of heart or plan. If you fall in this boat, please don't feel like you have to deal with it yourself. Contact your school careers advisors, talk to parents/older siblings/cousins, talk to universities who offer plenty of support to students during change-of-preference season (just you wait for the advertisements/random letters in the mail). Last year, Monash sent me a beachball.

You sound like a student who is rather capable, so this might not apply to you. I just thought I'd throw this in here because I think this information could benefit other users here.

--
Going back to your actual question, many subjects for Melbourne University  have the textbook/ recommended reading lists available on the internet via the handbook. These are listed under specific subjects that can be accessed after clicking on a few links. That might be a good start for some wider reading. :-) Plus you can see what subjects are available to study. I should mention, this in itself can take a lot of time to figure out, purely because of the number of fantastic subjects on offer!!!

Handbook links for Biomedicine and Science   
I hope these work! If they don't, let me know.

Biomed:
https://handbook.unimelb.edu.au/view/2016/B-BMED#structureId

Science:
https://handbook.unimelb.edu.au/view/2017/B-SCI

Good luck! 

[Dumplingfever]

Thank you so much guys for helping me out!!!! I didn't expect such detail and care into the answers as you guys have managed to do. Thank you

Actually, jamonwindeyer, I've been doing a bit of programming this holiday! I've been taught at school a few years back but I forgot everything and so Im trying to pick it up again

Thank you so much wyzard!! I'll definitely try and borrow these books at the library. I don't think the library in my neighbourhood has books like these but I might just be able to find them at State Library (but it sucks how I can't borrow books there  )

Thank you Auralee for your advice.   As you've mentioned, I also feel like I should do other things aside from studying. Lately, I've been thinking of volunteering. Do you by any chance know any volunteering organisations I can contact during this holiday? Having come from a disadvantaged background myself, I'm hoping to teach children who have experienced or currently experiencing disadvantage due to circumstances they can't control. Please let me know! (or anyone else who may know

[h545]

If you like learning through watching videos you could check out some of the open online courses on websites like Coursera and EdX . You can usually do the course without paying for the certificate or there's often a financial aid option. But as Auralee said, remember to take a break from the studying too

[BarryManners]

I agree, taking online courses help is also a better option.