Kate Chesterton graduated in 2016, and now studies Physiotherapy at Monash University. Let us know about your own VCE experiences in this thread here!
VCE (Year 12 in particular) is hard enough without having things bombarding you outside your school life. Add these in, and everything can quickly get overwhelming! But it doesn’t have to be this way. This article will, hopefully, better equip you to deal with difficult circumstances during VCE. Or, alternatively, to help friends with difficult circumstances. Primarily, you should know that if things aren’t so great right now, that’s okay – and you’re not alone!
I graduated in 2016, having studied English, History Revolutions, French, Chemistry, Biology and Maths Methods. But away from the academic side: I had some pretty intense shoulder surgery in 2015, a very close family member was diagnosed with a terminal illness in 2015 and passed away in 2016, and I had a hip injury for most of 2016 (which I couldn’t get surgery on until I finished school). Whilst there were the academic challenges in VCE for me, my biggest problems were not from the schoolwork side of things.
Going through difficult circumstances in VCE can be very isolating. You can sometimes feel that you’re alone, that no-one understands or cares, and that you have to do it by yourself. I’ve got some tips to help you out with this.
1. SPEAK TO SOMEONE – SHARE THE LOAD!
It’s a bit of a clichéd saying, but please don’t suffer in silence. Speak to your friends, keep them up to date on things going on in your life, and let them comfort you and support you on the days that you need it. Your friends will be more than happy to help you out in a time of need and be a shoulder to lean on. Maybe they won’t fully understand what’s going on in your life, but even having someone know what’s going on can be comforting, and they will try their best to help you out.
You can also speak to teachers. They can provide another level of support for you, and can offer an “adult perspective”. They can also help you navigate the school side of things – for example, my Year 12 coordinator organised chairs in all my classrooms that I could sit on comfortably. Your teachers will have likely helped a lot of students through difficult circumstances before, and are definitely great people to go to if you don’t feel so comfortable talking to your friends for whatever reason.
There are also people such as counsellors, psychologists, GPs etc., who are readily accessible. But I don’t want to venture into the realm of actual medical advice, so I won’t talk too much about this. Suffice to say, your teachers (or even parents) can help you get in touch with these people, and getting the help of a professional can be invaluable.
2. ALWAYS PRIORITISE YOUR HEALTH
This is something that doesn’t apply exclusively to those experiencing difficult circumstances. Looking after yourself should be the top priority for anyone, so maybe some of this advice will be a bit more generic. I think that you should never, ever do something at the detriment of your health – and that includes schoolwork! Don’t run yourself into the ground trying to study in every waking moment, and don’t ignore things that your body is telling you.
I guess within this category also falls my advice of finding something to motivate yourself and get you through your day (aside from your support circles, which I touched on earlier). I say this falls within prioritising health because I believe that motivation is a key factor in helping you maintain good health.
Personally, I found a favourite quote, set it as my background on my laptop, and printed it out and stuck it on my bedroom wall. It’s something small, but who knows, maybe it will help you out in times of need – it certainly motivated me to do my rehab exercises for my injuries. I think another thing that falls within this category is trying to keep levels of physical activity up. This can be hard enough in Year 12, but when you’re experiencing difficult circumstances that might be related to your health, it can be even harder. This is where you liaise with health professionals to get appropriate advice on what you can do.
Finding something that works for you is really important, because exercise can be very beneficial for both physical and mental wellbeing.
3. DON’T BE AFRAID TO APPLY FOR SEAS, SPECIAL ARRANGEMENTS ETC.
This is something each student needs to discuss with their VCE/careers coordinator in more depth. But I will say this: whilst it can be quite difficult to bring yourself to write a SEAS application, it may ultimately be worth it. Don’t be afraid to get someone to sit with you and support you when you’re writing your statement! You can also take your time with your application, so it doesn’t need to be rushed.
Applying for special exam arrangements can also be very helpful. There’s a whole range of things you can apply for: rest breaks, sitting in a separate room etc. This is an application process that needs to be handled by your VCE coordinator (or equivalent), though it is relatively straightforward. If you think it might help you, have a chat with your coordinator about it! After all, if it allows you to perform better in your exams, it is worth a bit of effort to submit documentation and the like to get approved.
4. TAKE THINGS ONE DAY AT A TIME
Again, this obviously doesn’t just apply to people experiencing difficult circumstances. When you have a lot of stuff happening outside of school, it can be even easier to become overwhelmed. So, try to focus on the immediate future, and set goals accordingly. It all becomes easier to manage when you think of things within a smaller context, and it can boost your confidence in your ability to manage things as well.
Good luck!
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