Should I drop Chemistry or Business Studies? (1 Viewer)

[SweatyAsian#1]

Hey there,

I am currently in Year 11 doing 3U Maths, English Advanced, Physics, Economics, Chemistry and Business Studies. I am fixed on dropping either Chemistry or Business Studies but would REALLYYY like some advice (any advice tbh), on which one I should drop based on personal experience etc.
My marks for Business Studies placed me top 15% but for Chemistry, I was in the middle of the grade (average mark).

I know you would instantly tell me to keep Business Studies but what if I told you I didn't really like Business Studies as much as Chemistry? I'm planning on entering an Engineering-type degree, but that might change depending on anything really. I have good teachers for both but I am not thinking of taking tutoring for Chemistry so It's pretty even ground. If you see this, AWESOME! If you reply with advice, you're a legend

Anyways, any type of advice would be appreciated! Have a good day.

 

[Wizjaro]

I did the exact same subjects as you and though I opted for dropping eco, I'd reckon you should keep whichever subject you are performing better in. By this I mean which cohort is stronger because if your chem cohort is really stong then being average in chem might actually be better than being top 15% for business. If you figure that out I would say pick the one which you are statistically performing the best in assuming you don't hate it. This is key because my worst subject was actually chem yet I dropped Eco because I hated the subject a lot more.

 

[jimmysmith560]

Let's analyse and compare the information you provided about your perception of each subject:

Chemistry:

• You are in the middle of the grade in terms of your mark.
• You like Chemistry more than Business Studies
• You're planning on studying an engineering-related degree (but that might change)
• You have a good Chemistry teacher

Business Studies:

• Your marks for Business Studies placed you in the top 15%
• You don't like Business Studies as much as Chemistry
• You have a good Business Studies teacher

The fact that you prefer Chemistry is great, and it's usually good if a student does the subjects they enjoy/find interesting, but I feel that in this particular case, Business Studies might be the better option for you, despite the fact that you prefer Chemistry. Academic achievement is an important thing to consider going forward (year 12) as you need to ensure you're performing to the best of your abilities across all your subjects in order to achieve good final marks and ultimately a good ATAR. Based on this, the fact that your performance is superior in Business Studies gives this subject the advantage as your current performance can be an indication of how well you can perform in year 12, provided you are regularly studying and are up-to-date with content.

I hope this helps!

 

[DarkOperator618]

I did the exact same subjects as you and though I opted for dropping eco, I'd reckon you should keep whichever subject you are performing better in. By this I mean which cohort is stronger because if your chem cohort is really stong then being average in chem might actually be better than being top 15% for business. If you figure that out I would say pick the one which you are statistically performing the best in assuming you don't hate it. This is key because my worst subject was actually chem yet I dropped Eco because I hated the subject a lot more.

i was in the same boat as you tbh
honestly, year 12 business is really dry as hell (just my opinion)

 

[SweatyAsian#1]

I did the exact same subjects as you and though I opted for dropping eco, I'd reckon you should keep whichever subject you are performing better in. By this I mean which cohort is stronger because if your chem cohort is really stong then being average in chem might actually be better than being top 15% for business. If you figure that out I would say pick the one which you are statistically performing the best in assuming you don't hate it. This is key because my worst subject was actually chem yet I dropped Eco because I hated the subject a lot more.

Damn, I can't believe I found someone doing the same subjects as me O.O I mean, I 100% understand what you mean and yeah, my Chemistry cohort is definitely better than Business Studies. Tbh, I'll see how I go with Chemistry on the upcoming finals and if I need tutoring, then we'll see, we'll see.
I was thinking that a strong Chemistry cohort will boost your marks up, not too sure how so I'll have to research about it.
Thank you for this relatable advice, definitely think Eco can be boring but I already research some stuff and Eco rewards much better than Business studies and tbh, it feels like Business Studies is just a subject trying to keep up with the macroeconomic/microeconomic terms which Eco goes through xD. My opinion lol.
Anyways, have a good day!

 

[SweatyAsian#1]

i was in the same boat as you tbh
honestly, year 12 business is really dry as hell (just my opinion)

Hey there,
do you mean Business Studies is not that enjoyable in Year 12? I really don't want to be 'dragged' to each class lol so I understand that pain. The only reason I like Business studies is that my teacher and class just make it enjoyable. Everyone is pretty much dropping it and the cohort isn't as strong as my Chemistry co-hort. Any advice on which one to drop/keep? Thank you!

 

[SweatyAsian#1]

Let's analyse and compare the information you provided about your perception of each subject:

Chemistry:

• You are in the middle of the grade in terms of your mark.
• You like Chemistry more than Business Studies
• You're planning on studying an engineering-related degree (but that might change)
• You have a good Chemistry teacher

Business Studies:

• Your marks for Business Studies placed you in the top 15%
• You don't like Business Studies as much as Chemistry
• You have a good Business Studies teacher

The fact that you prefer Chemistry is great, and it's usually good if a student does the subjects they enjoy/find interesting, but I feel that in this particular case, Business Studies might be the better option for you, despite the fact that you prefer Chemistry. Academic achievement is an important thing to consider going forward (year 12) as you need to ensure you're performing to the best of your abilities across all your subjects in order to achieve good final marks and ultimately a good ATAR. Based on this, the fact that your performance is superior in Business Studies gives this subject the advantage as your current performance can be an indication of how well you can perform in year 12, provided you are regularly studying and are up-to-date with content.

I hope this helps!

I really really want to agree with this but in all honesty, I don't see myself being motivated to study for a subject that doesn't really go into any pre-requisites for Uni, not a strong co-hort (still need to know how co-horts boost atar marks xD) and everyone in my class is probably dropping it. If you got some more INSPIRATIONAL and ANALYTICAL advice, I would appreciate it very much! Thanks for breaking my answer down and giving another fresh perspective. Also, did you do Chemistry in Year 12? If so, did you get any tutoring for it or tutoring not really needed if you're on top/getting ahead of the work every day?
Anyways, thanks for replying, you a legend

 

[jimmysmith560]

I really really want to agree with this but in all honesty, I don't see myself being motivated to study for a subject that doesn't really go into any pre-requisites for Uni, not a strong co-hort (still need to know how co-horts boost atar marks xD) and everyone in my class is probably dropping it. If you got some more INSPIRATIONAL and ANALYTICAL advice, I would appreciate it very much! Thanks for breaking my answer down and giving another fresh perspective. Also, did you do Chemistry in Year 12? If so, did you get any tutoring for it or tutoring not really needed if you're on top/getting ahead of the work every day?
Anyways, thanks for replying, you a legend

No worries. The more academically capable a cohort is in a particular subject, the better your assessment mark can be for that subject. Your assessment mark contributes 50% towards your final mark for a subject and is determined using your final rank within a process called moderation. The better your final rank, the better your assessment mark can be. Here's a video from NESA explaining how this process works more specifically:

While I didn't do Chemistry, I believe HSC Chemistry would not be an easy subject. As such, good performance will require a well-organised study plan, meaning you should be regularly studying and staying up-to-date with content in order to hopefully excel at the subject. It seems like your appreciation for Chemistry has motivated you to keep the subject despite the current difference in academic performance. It's great that you chose the subject you are truly interested in/may potentially need beyond year 12, but as I mentioned, you must ensure you perform to the best of your abilities which will hopefully make your HSC journey a rewarding one. If you feel that Chemistry becomes too difficult/overwhelming at some point (hopefully it won't), perhaps tutoring would be something to consider.

it feels like Business Studies is just a subject trying to keep up with the macroeconomic/microeconomic terms which Eco goes through xD

On a side note, I need to point out that content taught in HSC Business Studies is quite different to that taught in HSC Economics. While the subjects do share similar concepts (such as exchange rate and the economy being covered in Business Studies, particularly within the Finance topic), Business Studies explores more areas of business as opposed to Economics, which explores concepts while relating them to economic concepts. The 4 HSC Business Studies topics are Finance, Marketing, Operations and Human Resources. Just thought I'd elaborate a bit on the differences.


Good luck with Chemistry and with your HSC!

 

[DarkOperator618]

Hey there,
do you mean Business Studies is not that enjoyable in Year 12? I really don't want to be 'dragged' to each class lol so I understand that pain. The only reason I like Business studies is that my teacher and class just make it enjoyable. Everyone is pretty much dropping it and the cohort isn't as strong as my Chemistry co-hort. Any advice on which one to drop/keep? Thank you!

yea business is a drag for me

but if you like it, then you do you

 

[SweatyAsian#1]

yea business is a drag for me

but if you like it, then you do you

Haha, alright then. Same boat, same boat
Thanks for that.

 

[SweatyAsian#1]

No worries. The more academically capable a cohort is in a particular subject, the better your assessment mark can be for that subject. Your assessment mark contributes 50% towards your final mark for a subject and is determined using your final rank within a process called moderation. The better your final rank, the better your assessment mark can be. Here's a video from NESA explaining how this process works more specifically:

While I didn't do Chemistry, I believe HSC Chemistry would not be an easy subject. As such, good performance will require a well-organised study plan, meaning you should be regularly studying and staying up-to-date with content in order to hopefully excel at the subject. It seems like your appreciation for Chemistry has motivated you to keep the subject despite the current difference in academic performance. It's great that you chose the subject you are truly interested in/may potentially need beyond year 12, but as I mentioned, you must ensure you perform to the best of your abilities which will hopefully make your HSC journey a rewarding one. If you feel that Chemistry becomes too difficult/overwhelming at some point (hopefully it won't), perhaps tutoring would be something to consider.



On a side note, I need to point out that content taught in HSC Business Studies is quite different to that taught in HSC Economics. While the subjects do share similar concepts (such as exchange rate and the economy being covered in Business Studies, particularly within the Finance topic), Business Studies explores more areas of business as opposed to Economics, which explores concepts while relating them to economic concepts. The 4 HSC Business Studies topics are Finance, Marketing, Operations and Human Resources. Just thought I'd elaborate a bit on the differences.


Good luck with Chemistry and with your HSC!

Thank you ! So helpful and kind, I appreciate your insight and especially that video :O. Definitely gonna take your advice on board.

 

[jimmysmith560]

Thank you ! So helpful and kind, I appreciate your insight and especially that video :O. Definitely gonna take your advice on board.

No worries! I'm happy to help!

 

[Jessqjones]

Hi there,

I have just finished year 11 and I am choosing my year 12 subjects. I am looking for some advice

I am considering dropping Chemistry. However, I really like it but it's my weakest subject and I studied really hard for it and still only got 58% for my preliminary exam

I am also considering taking science extension if I drop Chemistry.

I am aiming for a 95+ atar but will most likely get 90+. I am willing to put in the hard work!

My current subjects are:
- English Advanced
- Maths Standard 2
- Biology
- Legal Studies
- PDHPE
- Chemistry

Thanks So Much!!!

 

[SweatyAsian#1]

Interest>Grades. Although I do better at Business Studies than Chemistry, I can't see myself being motivated enough to study Business Studies over Chemistry.
From experience, If you feel like the subject is easier and you will have a better time doing well in it, that's laziness talking. If you're willing to work hard, keep chemistry because 1. Your interested in it 2. Scales pretty well if you do well.

I would drop PDHPE or legal studies if you're hesitant on chemistry. Depends on your future interests but Chemistry pays off.

 

[Jessqjones]

Interest>Grades. Although I do better at Business Studies than Chemistry, I can't see myself being motivated enough to study Business Studies over Chemistry.
From experience, If you feel like the subject is easier and you will have a better time doing well in it, that's laziness talking. If you're willing to work hard, keep chemistry because 1. Your interested in it 2. Scales pretty well if you do well.

I would drop PDHPE or legal studies if you're hesitant on chemistry. Depends on your future interests but Chemistry pays off.

Thanks so much