How is the Preliminary Year for you guys, how did you find it?
The preliminary year was alright (though I found the HSC year better; more fun/enjoyable/memorable/interesting). The jump from Year 10 to Year 11 can be disorientating for some, due to the increase in competition, workload, pace and whatnot.
Do teachers often rush through the syllabus because of the 3 terms?
Yes. The pace for the Preliminary courses is faster than the HSC courses. For our school, we didn't finish the content in the Preliminary MX1 course on time, and had to test some Preliminary content in the first HSC assessment.
Is there more competition, do people just suddenly drop ranks or gain ranks?
YES. The competition during your Preliminary year significantly exceeds that during Year 10. Furthermore, the competition during your HSC year is also greater than that during your Preliminary year. You'll find that people who have previously performed averagely will compete quite fiercely and successfully in the next two years, and people who have consistently ranked top to fluctuate significantly. In our grade, there was a person who came first in four different subjects during their Preliminary year, and ended up staying in the top three for only one of their subjects in the HSC.
Is it harder than Year 10 (answer is a bit intuitive, but content-wise, are the topics harder to understand)?
Yes. The difficulty of the Preliminary subjects are notably greater than those of Year 10. The content will be harder to comprehend, there will be more content, the pace will be faster, and the questions will be more difficult. However difficulty is something that can't be quantified, so when I say that something is "harder", it might really just be
marginally more difficult.
The easiest subject for me to articulate difficulty through is mathematics. In junior years, a lot of what you do is actually just computation and arithmetic: adding, multiplying, using given formulae to calculate areas, volumes and whatnot. As a result, students can perform well without really understanding the topics. In senior mathematics, you'll find that a greater emphasis on proving, and the application of the ideas and logic found in proofs. You'll be eased into this kind of thinking, so don't worry. Preliminary and HSC content is far more interesting for every subject, and you may even perform better in senior years than junior years as a result. As long as you put in the effort, no matter how much more difficult senior content is over junior content, you'll get it.
Should I be participating in Extra-Curricular(s) as often as I did in year 10 albeit the fact that I'm in Senior School?
It's up to you. I don't really think dedicating time to extra-curricular activities will hinder your academic performance (unless if you feel really insecure regarding time management). The only benefit of extra-curricular activities is that they look great on scholarship applications, though I'd only recommend doing them if you're actually interested and are willing to invest your time in them.
What should I have/do in year 11, that would help me in Year 12 and/or increase my chances of getting a 99+ atar?
I got 99+ ATAR. It wasn't that bad.
- Aim for about 85%, but allow for a range. Which leads to my next point...
- Don't let any disappointment dampen your determination. I got 50% in a Preliminary assessment once, and 70% in an exam during my HSC year, and evidently neither occasions detrimentally impacted my final result.
- Don't be afraid to do more than 10 units in your HSC year.
- If you consistently achieve 80%+ (or at least 75%) in MX1 during your Preliminary year, I strongly recommend doing Mathematics Extension 2.
Very interesting, and healthy for your ATAR.
- Know your assessment timetable so you can plan ahead. E.g. if you have an English assessment in a few weeks, do your homework ahead of time.
- Don't stress too much about ranks. Seriously, it's nice to have good, stable ranks, but the reality is that there are too many factors between you and the ranks you want which you can't control and rely on their falling conveniently into place. If you can't control it, move on; you have better things to do. You can get your Band 6 result without being in a certain arbitrary range of ranks people postulate about. (People at my school stressed about being in the top 10 for Advanced English to secure Band 6's. It turned out, we had 17 Band 6's this year.)
- Try to regulate your study time. E.g. I never studied beyond 8pm. After 8pm, I chilled the fuck out.
- Always find time for yourself. Relax. Go for a Macca's run every Friday after school. Play games (our dux played Runescape the night before a major HSC economics exam and still got 95%). Go out with friends. I took 2-hour walks every single day while studying for trials and HSC exams. It was great.
Don't feel too nervous. You may even find the Preliminary/HSC environment more suited to you than the junior years. The content is more interesting, even mind-blowing at times (e.g. relativity in HSC Physics). You'll find that your peers are more sociable in the next two years, as you can relate to each other's concerns and aspirations. Just relax for another week, and come into your senior year with a refreshed and open mindset.
Good luck, and more importantly, have fun!
