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Advice for 2014 Year 11s + for my subject selection + a few questions? (1 Viewer)

lilcutetricker

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hey all ! so its August already?! so quick ! feeling old already :haha: . So i'm going to be in year 11 in a term WOOOOO STRESS ALL THE WAY . I'm not going to lie, i am pretty nervous, so i might have a few questions :biggrin:

1. Anyone who completed their hsc or a year 11/12 can give us 2014 year 11s some advice on taking on the preliminary year?
2. Is it manageable to take on having a social life, hobbies AND coming a really decent rank in the grade?
3. Does year 10 reflect how well you are going to do with your subjects in year 11?
4. Views on my subjects next year:
3 unit Maths
Advance English
Chemistry
Physics
Legal/Business/Ancient History/ Modern History (Help me decide pleaaase :haha: )
+ 1 more unit which i'm unsure (suggestions) :shy:
5. I'm not currently being tutored because i'd rather save money till i'm year 12 for that - views on that?
6. How would i go around topping these subjects because i want to get an atar of 97+
7. What courses are available with the atar above it (if i can really achieve it :rotfl: )

Thanks guys :) Share you wisdom with the BoS forum please :headbang:
 

bluecrisps

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aint no stress just chill brosef. if you dat forshizzle then you better drizzle. enjoy year 10 while you can.
1. stop playing LoL
2. no. bye social life or bye hobbies one or the other. you need to invest time to do well in something
3. no. your attitude changes a bit in year 11. subjects aren't really the same unless english / maths
4. looks good. i am doing business and legal i like business better
maybe you can take 3 unit english for your other unit depending on your goals
5. make a study timetable and stick to it starting today. you don't really need tutoring if you are dedicated. i am a different story though LOL.
6. REGULARLY: Study , practice, listen in class, do homework, research, download syllabus and make notes of it, get questions and do them all. practice. did i mention practice?
7. careers advisor
8. 4561/2010
 

HSC2014

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Take it from me who was in a similar position to you, researching to have their year 11/12 planned out for optimism (though this ideal is somewhat unfeasible):
Everyone is different; you'll have to experiment. Go with the flow - you will learn about yourself and how best you perform.
For example, I don't know about others, but for ME games, sports, and music are essential for my mental health will deteriorate. I can't study for lengthy amounts of time, nor do i practise much. However after experimentation and failure I have discovered a method tailored for me to address those problems.
 
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florag

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omgggggg.
DO NOT - i repeat - DO NOT - do LEGAL!
I dropped it in term 3 (year 11) last year!

I'm in yr 12 atm, doing:
1: Adv English
2. Gen Maths
3. Geography (looove it!!!)
4. Senior Science
5. Ancient History >>> i really like Ancient, but i sorta wish i chose Modern too/instead... Ancient is interesting, but dates and personalities can be difficult to master and recognize/determine differences... (like who was related to who, what and who came first etc) whereas Modern would be easier (remember yr 10) to remember dates/people/events, due to their close proximity to now :)

Overall, pick subjects you are genuinely interested in - that's when you gain high marks, because you are willing to listen and go to class and study.

goooodlucckkkkk x
 

nerdasdasd

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Business studies is nor difficult or boring. It's quite straight forward and simple (you can self learn it).
 

SuchSmallHands

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Hey! Sorry for the copy pasting of all the questions, I kept forgetting them and had to scroll up and down all the time

1. Anyone who completed their hsc or a year 11/12 can give us 2014 year 11s some advice on taking on the preliminary year?
Make sure you have copies of all of your syllabuses and answer every single dot point on them for study notes. It's the absolute best way to make sure your notes are concise and 100% relevant (and ensure you're not missing anything in class)
2. Is it manageable to take on having a social life, hobbies AND coming a really decent rank in the grade?
Uhh depends on how much of a social life and how many hobbies. I still have friends, go to parties every now and then (not getting completely out of my mind drunk kind of parties mind you), work around 5 hours a week and read a lot, all of which is manageable while maintaining first place rankings in all of my subjects (in a 200s school). The trick is to choose subjects that align with your hobbies, so that you are perusing your interests while studying and it doesn't feel like such a burden
3. Does year 10 reflect how well you are going to do with your subjects in year 11? Not really. Some people who were getting by just by studying loads fall off because suddenly everyone's studying. Some people come out of no where because they weren't trying before and now they are. However, things stayed relatively constant at my school.
4. Views on my subjects next year:
3 unit Maths
Personally detest maths, but whatever floats your boat.
Advance English
I find the course a little limiting and restrictive, I much prefer the flexibility of EEX1. However, it's still decent
Chemistry
Love it. Highly recommended.
Physics
Don't do it, but apparently it's a little easier than Chem and there's a bit more rote learning.
Legal/Business/Ancient History/ Modern History (Help me decide pleaaase )
I adore both Legal and Modern. I think legal is excellent for everyone to do, as even if you have no intention of going into law you are going to be controlled by it so it's best that you understand it and your rights under it. Ancient I personally find exceptionally dull. Much of it is based on conjecture and it seems highly irrelevant to me. I don't see how it is of any use to me personally to know that Ancient Egyptians worshipped cats. Whereas Modern history provides the origins of all modern international relations. (personal opinion obviously). Don't know much about Business other than the low scaling.
+ 1 more unit which i'm unsure (suggestions)
English Extension One!
5. I'm not currently being tutored because i'd rather save money till i'm year 12 for that - views on that?
I think lots and lots of text books are better investments than tutoring. I don't get tutoring and I don't think it's necessary, when I have problems I force my teachers to help me. But it's a personal thing, some people prefer it and I would certainly get it were I doing mathematics.
6. How would i go around topping these subjects because i want to get an atar of 97+
Love all of your subjects and try to do a little bit of study outside of the curriculum as it really helps with your wider understanding of topics. Do a lot of wide reading for Modern, Legal and English and learn the terminology for all of your subjects. You sound far more erudite when you use subject-specific terms.
7. What courses are available with the atar above it (if i can really achieve it )
Most things, it really depends on where you want to go to uni (for example, you could get into ANU law with that, but not USyd/UNSW law).

Good luck, and if you have anymore questions feel free to PM me :)
 

DancingAnz

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1. My biggest advice is to NOT GO FULL OUT IN YEAR 11. You will burn out like I did. Take year 11 seriously (especially maths) so you can get teachers on your side and have a good base understanding of your subjects, but DON'T stress over assessment tasks and stuff! Save that drive to keep you going in year 12.
2. I danced every day of the week, had a social life and came in the top 3 for every subject (except adv english, came 6th)
3. No. My friend put no effort in in year 10 and got band 3s for his SC, nek minnit, topping like every subject and will probs walk out with the best atar.
4. Views on my subjects next year:
Advance English - English is english
DO GEOGRAPHY
5. Yeah I only started getting english tutoring in year 12
Can't really help you with 6 and 7... but good luck with your atar aims in year 12! :)
 

kourto

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hi there! im in year 12 atm and honestly believe the year 11 workload is a little bit heavier then year 12 (before trials and HSC arise)
i am ranked top 10 in most of my subjects (all but religion) and i manage a part time job and sporting commitments twice a week... its just all about time management and without something social you will definitely go insane!

i dont think year 10 reflects how you will do... i think what reflects how well you do is your individual determination for success :)

views on your subjects next year:
3 unit Maths: i do genreal and even thats ALOT of work
Advance English: BIGGEST WORK LOAD SO PREPARE
Chemistry
Physics
Legal/Business/Ancient History/ Modern History: personally id go ancient
+ 1 more unit which i'm unsure (suggestions) i LOVE Food technology and Community and Family studies... :)
i have had an english tutor from half way through year 11 :)

to put into perspective your topics chosen scale really well... you will need 80-90 (band 5) or 90-100 (band 6) :)
depending on the mark you can achieve anything! even if you dont get wht you want there are ALWAYS back ways.. for example my friend didnt get the atar he wanted so did a year at tafe and now he is at uni doing his desired course.

hope i helped :) PM me if you want more advice :)
 

ClassOf2013

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Pick the subjects that YOU want to do, not subject that teachers/parents say you should do because of scaling or whatever. Don't pick Legal, biggest regret of my HSC (I should have done Geography). Then again though it depends on the teacher, mine is terrible, boring, unstructured, improvised lessons and can't keep to the syllabus. Business is a really good, easy subject though.
 

michelleeeee

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1. Use yr 11 as a practice but don't be too hard on yourself if your not ranking first in all your subjects. Try your best, experiment and see what works for you and what doesn't.
2. Yes although you have to learn to manage your time really well for this to happen. For me yr 10 was so chill and i managed everything with very little effort but yr 11 requires effort to be able to juggle everything well.
3. not at all, i know mamy people who mucked around in yr 10 and are now topping classes but similarly I know people who were coming first in everything and now are still doing well but not as amazingly as last year

3 unit Maths: make sure to do your homework!!
Advance English: I love it
Chemistry: BEST SUBJECT EVER, I nearly didnt take it up and im so glad I did because its hard work but so fun
Physics: you will either love it or hate it usually, i enjoy it although i tune out so badly in this class
Legal/Business/Ancient History/ Modern History: I do modern and enjoy it, its a lot of work I find but interesting and a welcomed break from a lot of my science and maths subjects
+ 1 more unit which i'm unsure (suggestions), ext english, its so chill and fun, but it depends on if you enjoy english and are decent in it.
5. If you put in the hard work a tutor isn't usually necessary, except for maybe maths
6. Study and stay on top of stuff but dont burn yourself out! working consistently is the key and much better then doing massive chunks. also revision here and there helps
7. look at uni websites for that stuff
 

rumbleroar

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1. Enjoy yourself!!! The year goes by so quickly it's insane. I know everyone says this, BUT START ALL YOUR WORK ASAP!! It's a really good habit :p
2. Yes!!! I still go out with my friends (if they're not studying lol) and I still manage my hobbies and decent school ranking :)
3. NO. I bombed year 10 science, and now I'm getting >90 in physics. So absolutely not. I also was bombing English and I get >90 for that too.
4. Honestly, pick up an extra unit of English!! Extension English is the best! But pick the one you really like. Workload is probably all the same as well.
5. I feel tutoring reaaaally helped me, but it depends on you. I'm getting tutored for two subjects and school work seems so much easier because tutoring flew through everything. Depends on how you feel!
6. 3U maths - study lol, Adv eng - I hate it with my core but I guess you can always write practise essays??, Physics - understand all your content, write syllabus dot point notes because they really help, do a wide range of questions to broaden your experience, take notes during pracs and make sure you understand whatever your teacher does!!!
7. Heaps, but it depends on the uni and other requirements.

Good luck for senior years!! ^_^
 

hit patel

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Chill and enjoy ur hols. THese years would be the hardest and the most important years of ur life.
 

ACI

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1. No need to stress. Actually, stressing less will mean youu can focus on getting better marks
2. Yes and no. Depends how many units you intend on studying and also what kind of hobbies and activities you engage in outside of school. Managing a social life and study helps with study. Otherwise you burn out. It is unrealistic to only study in the time you have outside of school
3. No. Your attitude will change and you will find that you will take on a different approach to school
4. Go with business studies. Least amount of effort required for good marks (super easy to get band 6 and will also open up doors for any commerce or business related uni degree) for an additional unit, pick a one unit subject you really enjoy eg photography, visual design or whatever your school offers. This is to offload the major study you will do for subjects like maths, physics and chem. Drop it at the end of year 11

5. Tutoring is not necessary. In my opinion, best plan of attack is to get an HSC coach (cost = as little as $5 per online session. PM me if you are interested and want more details) this is a better way to go because coaching covers more than just the content of your subjects. Things like how to organise, plan and manage your time, build good study habits and how to achieve best results with minimum stress and minimum effort. Basically it is study hacks on how to get best results in a super easy way

6. Build good study habits! I got a 96+ ATAR with just 10 units Adv english, Art, 4 unit maths and business. You can easily top that with subjects like chem and physics if you go well and know how to study best for them. I would also recommend starting out in 4u in year 12 if you are more of a maths person than english as this subject will scale super well and is not as difficult as it seems if you prepare in the right way (I can happily share some tips with you)

7. Refer to uni websites

All the best!
 

nerdasdasd

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hey all ! so its August already?! so quick ! feeling old already :haha: . So i'm going to be in year 11 in a term WOOOOO STRESS ALL THE WAY . I'm not going to lie, i am pretty nervous, so i might have a few questions :biggrin:

1. Anyone who completed their hsc or a year 11/12 can give us 2014 year 11s some advice on taking on the preliminary year?
2. Is it manageable to take on having a social life, hobbies AND coming a really decent rank in the grade?
3. Does year 10 reflect how well you are going to do with your subjects in year 11?
4. Views on my subjects next year:
3 unit Maths
Advance English
Chemistry
Physics
Legal/Business/Ancient History/ Modern History (Help me decide pleaaase :haha: )
+ 1 more unit which i'm unsure (suggestions) :shy:
5. I'm not currently being tutored because i'd rather save money till i'm year 12 for that - views on that?
6. How would i go around topping these subjects because i want to get an atar of 97+
7. What courses are available with the atar above it (if i can really achieve it :rotfl: )

Thanks guys :) Share you wisdom with the BoS forum please :headbang:
I could,fit hobbies and a social life into year 11, and still get ok marks . ^^.

There's no need to give up everything ...
 

alphabetafeta96

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If you are doing legal make sure you actually do the horrible booklets ):
 

Resonance

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1. Yes it is. :)
2. To an extent it does... The people who were topping year 10 are still topping year 11. (Well that's what I noticed with our school...) However, there are quite a few people whose ranks have slipped considerably since year 10.
3. 3 unit Maths - Huge workload, but very rewarding and enjoyable once you get the gist of it.
Advance English - I'm not a fan of this.
Chemistry - Content-heavy and can be conceptually challenging. It's alright for the most part... Well, except for practicals, where they can throw anything at you (legit)
Modern History - It's a very interesting subject, but very content heavy.
4. I'm not going to lie... Those who are topping the maths/science subjects all go tutoring. However, most people in our grade go tutoring anyway, except for a select few.
5. Don't leave things to the last minute. Do all your assignments when you get them.
 

gilly_bean

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Hey there :) I'm about to go into year 12, so heres some advice on my experiances so far:
1. I think the best advice I can give you about prelim is understanding that is DOES NOT MATTER what marks you get but to also realize that is in some ways a practise for year 12 and establishing a good work ethic now will help you later on.
2. Yes, totally but it does rely somewhat on your ability to manage your time. If you leave an assigment to the last minute you will inevitably have to spend all weekend locked up in your room doing it, so its all about balance.
3. Somewhat. There are lots of people I know who steped up their game massivly in yr 11 and did a lot better for it. One girl in particular was a pretty average student and is now at the top of 2 subjects and acheiveing 90+ all her others. However, if you didn't do too well in the years before it will require a lot more commitment to improve your marks over people who have been working consistantly all through high school.
4.
3 unit Maths - Don't do it
Advance English - Oh god. English was my faviorate and also my best subject and I now really dislike it. I still do ok at it isn't that much harder than normal English but its really sort of wishy-washy, bullshitty and I've really turned off it. I do however LOVE Extension 1.
Chemistry - don't do it
Physics - don't do it
Legal - people seem to hold a really low opinon of it but I adore it. A keen intrest in politics and current affairs will really benifit you here. It's very content heavy though.
Business - don't do it
Ancient History - Not as intresting as Modern in my opinion however can be super intresting. It is less difficult than modern in terms of concepts but there is a lot of content so keeping up with your notes is key
Modern History - By far one of my faviroute subjects. Super interesting and facinating, however also quite difficult and very content heavy. When it comes to histories, having a strong intrest in the topic already is a huge advantage to you
5. In my opinion, turtoring is only really worth it when it comes to maths/science subjects. If your struggling in these subjects I would recomend a tutor, however year 12 is when it REALLY counts so maybe wait to spend your money.
6. People have said this before but establishing strong study habits is totally key. Being able to sit down and complete a number of tasks you have set for yourself is super important. Also, practise papers and doing essays in exam conditions are by far the most productive way of studying, and is what pretty much all top students do. Start creating study notes and assesments early. I haven't yet done my HSC yet, but an huge amount of dedication and willpower is the biggest ingredient in all this.
7. Check some uni websites for this. I would urge you not to do a course with a high atar entrance like law just because you can.
Good Luck :)
 

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