how to study to get into Melbourne High and Macrob?

[i-am-bored-69]

What do you mean by 'just pass'? I know there's a 3% rule which stop more then this amount from a certain school from getting in, to stop the private schools from dominating. But apart from that, it's equally as tough for anyone to get in, as they rank u, and weed out those 3%ers....dont they??

PS- from what i'ev heard there's only 1 maths section, and it's fairly easy and the tip is to not make any mistakes.

[minilunchbox]

I'm pretty sure there's a cut-off mark that you need to pass instead of a ranking. If you miss that mark by 5 or less, or you're part of the 3% rule then you get to appeal by writing a letter. And then they pick a few from there to sit an interview before they can get in.

[wildareal]

Hey
I went to HES in Hawthorn, they're really good because they get past examiners to teach you all the material and they have heaps of past papers and an essay correction service, whereby they give you 5 essays and you do them at home and you mail them and they mail them back to you with some very valuable feedback. It's not cheap I think I paid around $1500, but well worth it. Got a place, but declined, because I had a scholarship already at Haileybury.

[brightsky]

There's sample papers for MacRob and Melb High available for download somewhere....

The test questions are VERY VERY similiar to the practice questions, if not the same. They just jumble some of the numbers around and insert some new numbers in.

Provided that you know your stuff, maths would probably be the easiest out of all the tests. There are some stuff related to simple trigonometry, but thats as hard as it gets.

English is a real killer if you are not a speed reader. The excerpts that give you for reading comprehension are literally a page to a page and a half in length, whilst having 3-4 question accompanying each. Tip: do not spend too much time reading. Skim past it and attempt the questions, or look at the questions first and then find it in the passage.

Numerical reasoning is plain weird. Has to do with patterns and stuff. Verbal reasoning is alright though, provided that you know a whole heap of useless vocab.

For the essay section, topics can be very very random. No real point trying to revise or study for it. Just make sure you have a good writing foundation. Don't spend too much time planning or pondering. Get straight to the writing and the ideas would flow out. You only have 15 mins to do it, and most people struggle to even finish. Do not do anything too complex, but all in the while somehow make your pieces stand out from the sea of mediocrity.

Hope this helps in some way.

[brightsky]

But I think the most effective method is to go to a non academically inclined government school. Worked for me =] When noone at your school sits the test it makes it somewhat easier.

HAHA so true. That's exactly what I did, and there were about 4 people who did it from my school, so all I had to do was pass the test. But make sure you pass it though, cause if you take the risk of going to a mediocre school, you're going to be stuck with it for the rest of VCE if you can't pass, unless you change again of course

I do not understand the reason behind going to a school that would not necessarily help you academically for two years of your academic career merely to lower the benchmark for the 3% rule. I know there is a lot of hype about MacRob and Melb High, but my opinion (having 3 family members go there) is that the biggest reason why they thrive in terms of VCE results is because they are a union of selected top students. Teachers there (although there are some pretty good ones) are, in general, the same as most other schools in Victoria. The only advantage you will get in terms of doing well academically if you go to one of these schools is the fact that you get to compare yourself among the top-tiers, and discern your abilities more clearly.

Only my opinion though, no offence meant to anyone.

[appianway]

The results are a bit better than what you'd expect though. In 2008, we had 4 99.95s - scores which are given to the top 0.05% of the state, or rather, 1/2000 students. Using the logic presented above, you'd expect that we'd had 8,000 students sit the entrance exam. In reality, it was more like 1,500, or even less.

Of course the students that sit the examination are more intelligent than the average, but you can't attribute statistics like that solely to the calibre of the cohort (especially seeing as we usually only have around 10 or so students per year level in the top 1% in various competitions). I'd agree that lots of the teachers are what you'd find anywhere (however, in saying that, some are absolutely astounding!), but I think the students do well because the academic environment is much more enriching. It's not seeing where your abilities are, per se, but admiring those of others and collectively benefiting from one another. That's what I've found.

[brightsky]

...but I think the students do well because the academic environment is much more enriching. It's not seeing where your abilities are, per se, but admiring those of others and collectively benefiting from one another. That's what I've found.

Agreed!

[brightsky]

For those wanting the practice papers, here they are.

[brightsky]

And more...

[Ilovemathsmeth]

Gah I swear VCAA is taking over the world. Seriously.

[appianway]

VCAA writes them?

Poor, poor year 8s.

[brightsky]

VCAA writes them?

Poor, poor year 8s.

+1
I thought the department of early childhood teaching or something wrote the exam? VCAA taking over next year??

[Ilovemathsmeth]

VCAA writes them?

Poor, poor year 8s.

+1

[physics]

what year is the best year to go into these schools? year 7 ? =P

[brightsky]

They start at year 9 and go through to year 12.