The VCE score calculation system can feel confusing and daunting at times, and that’s understandable - there are a lot of details. For clarity, you really don’t need to know any of it at all in order to do well - you could get a 99.95 ATAR without having a single clue how scaling works, for instance. But if you do want to know more, this article is for you.
In this article here, we outlined in some detail how the VCE system works behind the scenes, covering things like scaling, rankings, moderation, and aggregates. Read the article:
VCE Behind the Scenes: VCE Scaling, Rankings, Moderation & Aggregates
This present article will take a more specific look at something called the VCE scaling report, explaining what it is and how it can be used. Let’s jump in!
What is VCE scaling?
Scaling is thoroughly explained in the “Subject scaling” section of this same article. As a general overview, however, scaling is a system designed to allow us to compare achievement in vastly different subjects. It uses mathematical formulae and systems to scale ‘raw’ study scores from different subjects onto a common scale that can be compared.
Subject scaling changes from year to year, because it’s based on student outcomes of that specific cohort. As such, we can use previous years’ scaling data to inform us generally how different subjects might scale, but it’s never a sure thing. For example, just because a 30 raw study score in VCE Maths Methods scaled to a ~35 in 2022, that doesn’t mean it will always be the case (it scaled to a ~34 the year prior, for instance). That’s why the ATAR Calc allows you to filter through different years.
What is included in the VCE scaling report?
You can find scaling reports on VTAC’s “Reports and statistics” page. The 2023 version is here, for example. It starts with an introductory couple of paragraphs, before listing different VCE subjects and a bunch of numbers. Accounting is the first, and it looks a bit like this:
You’ll probably be most interested in the columns titled “20”, “25”, “30”, “35”, “40”, “45”, and “50”. What do those columns mean, exactly?
Well, the example above suggests that if you received a 20 raw study score for Accounting specifically in 2023, the scaled study score also would have been 20. If you received a 30 raw, it would have scaled to 31. If you received a 45 raw, it would have scaled to 46, and so on. It gives a general indication of what certain raw study scores scaled to for each subject in that specific year.
Accounting is an interesting example, because a lot of the numbers seem to be the same or very similar - a change from 35 to 36 doesn’t seem all that big, for example. What about other subjects?
Health and Human Development (above) is an example of a subject that typically (not inherently) scales down in some circumstances. For example, we can see here that, in 2023, a raw study score of 30 scaled to a scaled study score of 26. It’s interesting to note that a 50 raw study score was unchanged.
On the other hand, a subject like Maths Methods typically (not inherently) scales up in some circumstances. For example, in 2023, a raw study score of 30 scaled to a scaled study score of 35.
What can we learn from the VCE scaling report?
Scaling reports provide factual, retrospective information. You can see how different subjects scaled in different years, in different study score ranges. You might use scaling reports to compare different subjects within the same year, or the same subject over different years (for example, how did Psychology scale in 2020, and 2021, and 2022, and 2023?).
What can’t we learn from the VCE scaling report?
But as interesting as VCE scaling reports are, it’s important not to let them sweep you away too much. It might seem tempting to use scaling reports to inform your VCE subject selection, for instance. Based on the examples above, why would you choose HHD (which typically scales down) over Maths Methods (which typically scales up)?
There are very valid potential reasons for this, of course. At its core, scaling aims to level the playing field, not divide it - Methods scaling up and HHD scaling down is actually just balancing other factors. (The author of this article studied HHD 3&4 but not Methods 3&4, and has no regrets about scaling!)
But that’s the thing with the scaling report: it doesn’t really provide context. Interesting as they are, scaling reports should be taken with a grain of salt, and considered as part of a much larger discourse, particularly when it comes to subject selection. The transparency is great, but only means so much.
If you’re keen for more on subject selection, check out these articles, and let us know in the comments how you use the VCE scaling reports!
