Aligned Marks? (1 Viewer)

[Babbabooey]

So, I have just got all my marks back for all my subjects and my averages across the two terms are ( I have included how much of the marks weigh in terms of total internal)

Biology-82% rank 3/40 (40% weighting of internals)
English Advanced -78% rank 4/30 (45% of internals)
Maths Advanced- 77%- Irrelevant rank tbh (45% of internals)
PDHPE-86% rank 1-30 (45% of internals)
Chemistry- 70%- rank 8/30 (50% of internals)
Physics- 62% rank approx 12/40 (50% of internals)
Maths Extension 1 -56% irrelevant rank (45% of internals)

After looking thru Atar calculators it says around an 80 atar, but someone told the marks need to be aligned and told me about a website called HSC Raw Marks Database, from there I estimated my aligned mark and got around a 93.
Could someone tell me what is an Aligned mark, and which of atar predictions is more accurate
also should i drop phys, and can I still get 90 ATAR

 

[ariandjabari]

1- Aligned mark is the HSC raw exam mark that has been shifted upwards or downwards (usually upwards but depends on the subject) to replicate the difficulty of the exam and level of performance of a particular raw exam mark. For example, getting a 90 raw mark in might have been much harder in 2021 HSC than a 90 raw mark in 2022 HSC. Hence, the 2021 HSC raw mark of 90 would be shifted to 95 whilst the 2021 HSC raw mark of 90 would be shifted to a 91. Now the level of performance for a 90 raw exam mark between 2021 and 2022 HSC is comparable. Similarly, a 95 aligned mark in two different HSC exams would represent the same level of academic performance but may correlate to dissimilar HSC raw exam marks.

2- There are many ranges of ATAR calculators out there that you can use. In terms of accuracy and reliability, the UAC ATAR calculator is from the UAC website itself hence we expect it to be a more accurate option (although it still predicted 0.35 points above my actual ATAR, so it is only a rough approximation!). Other common calculators are matrix, talent 100, and HSC ninja ATAR calculators.

3- Depending on how your cohort performs (no. of band 6 students in previous years may give a general idea), how you think you can perform in the subject and whether improvement is possible without costing you much of your time from other subjects, you may choose whether to drop the subject. While considering performance, ranks and gaps between ranks are more important than the assessment raw marks. 12th/40 rank may still be solid depending on your cohort performance. Keep in mind that assessments may be quite different from exams so sometimes people struggle at assessments like depth studies or pracs but perform well in the tests.

4- The subjects you are currently doing are generally considered high scaling particularly Physics, Chemistry and Ext1 math. If you are able to secure a high band 5 or a low band 6 in your subjects, 90 ATAR is easily achievable. Keep in mind that the numerical value of your raw assessment marks is only designed to determine ranks and gaps between ranks and have nothing to do with your HSC assessment marks DIRECTLY. This is because HSC assessment marks are calculated based on your cohort's performance in the HSC exam and the assessment ranks would help distribute that cohort performance fairly between students. However, you should prioritise consistency across ALL of your subjects to avoid disappointment at the end. Poor performance in a single subject may undermine your overall performance even if you perform well in your other subjects.

Cheers!

 

[Babbabooey]

1- Aligned mark is the HSC raw exam mark that has been shifted upwards or downwards (usually upwards but depends on the subject) to replicate the difficulty of the exam and level of performance of a particular raw exam mark. For example, getting a 90 raw mark in might have been much harder in 2021 HSC than a 90 raw mark in 2022 HSC. Hence, the 2021 HSC raw mark of 90 would be shifted to 95 whilst the 2021 HSC raw mark of 90 would be shifted to a 91. Now the level of performance for a 90 raw exam mark between 2021 and 2022 HSC is comparable. Similarly, a 95 aligned mark in two different HSC exams would represent the same level of academic performance but may correlate to dissimilar HSC raw exam marks.

2- There are many ranges of ATAR calculators out there that you can use. In terms of accuracy and reliability, the UAC ATAR calculator is from the UAC website itself hence we expect it to be a more accurate option (although it still predicted 0.35 points above my actual ATAR, so it is only a rough approximation!). Other common calculators are matrix, talent 100, and HSC ninja ATAR calculators.

3- Depending on how your cohort performs (no. of band 6 students in previous years may give a general idea), how you think you can perform in the subject and whether improvement is possible without costing you much of your time from other subjects, you may choose whether to drop the subject. While considering performance, ranks and gaps between ranks are more important than the assessment raw marks. 12th/40 rank may still be solid depending on your cohort performance. Keep in mind that assessments may be quite different from exams so sometimes people struggle at assessments like depth studies or pracs but perform well in the tests.

4- The subjects you are currently doing are generally considered high scaling particularly Physics, Chemistry and Ext1 math. If you are able to secure a high band 5 or a low band 6 in your subjects, 90 ATAR is easily achievable. Keep in mind that the numerical value of your raw assessment marks is only designed to determine ranks and gaps between ranks and have nothing to do with your HSC assessment marks DIRECTLY. This is because HSC assessment marks are calculated based on your cohort's performance in the HSC exam and the assessment ranks would help distribute that cohort performance fairly between students. However, you should prioritise consistency across ALL of your subjects to avoid disappointment at the end. Poor performance in a single subject may undermine your overall performance even if you perform well in your other subjects.

Cheers!

Cheers for that, When using the atar calculators what mark should one enter, aligned or raw?

 

[ariandjabari]

The marks that are put in the ATAR calculator are aligned marks.

 

[Babbabooey]

The marks that are put in the ATAR calculator are aligned marks.

thank youuuuuuuuuuuuuuu