Login

Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.

March 28, 2024, 11:42:59 pm

Author Topic: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey  (Read 3435 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« on: June 20, 2020, 06:30:45 pm »
+12
hey! I've been stalking this site for a while and finally decided to register to make my own as an attempt for motivating myself to study. to stop procrastinating Not sure if anyone will follow along, but I'll use it as a journey for myself anyway.
I'm not all too sure what I want to do in uni, but I figured its probably time to pull myself together for unit 4/exams since admittedly I've slacked off a lot more than I would've let myself in unit 3.
My subjects this year are: business management, biology, english, chinese SL and methods
I'm scared to give myself goals in case I disappoint myself- so I'm just hoping to do my best.

Business Management
I find this subject pretty fascinating overall, though I screwed up on the very last AOS SAC which brought my average down drastically unfortunately. I hope to use it as a learning experience? I'm not a very optimistic person but I'm trying my best lmao.

Biology
I love this subject- not only that, I also have a super good teacher that's encouraging. Unfortunately I let my mental health/motivation/whatever it is get the best of me so I definitely did not do the best I could have done for unit 3 :/ Hopefully will get a headstart on everything during the break though.

Methods
God... honestly I hate numbers- I'm only doing this because my parents wanted me to keep it. If I'm being honest, it was a horrible decision to keep it. I feel as though I don't know how to prepare for a SAC, and now that methods only has two SACs for the entire year, it's probably the most stress-inducing subject for me. I did realllllllllllly bad on the first SAC so that added on to my dislike for the subject.

English
It's alright, I love my teacher- literally the best one out there. Super helpful. U4 is just Ransom and The Queen so we'll see how that goes. I'm aiming to rewatch and reread over the holidays to maybe start essay preparation at the beginning of term 3.

Chinese SL
Not a fan of this subject- unsure of how to prepare for SACs? I enjoy learning a new language but I feel as though it was a bad idea to pick up on something I had no foundation for. But again my parents insisted for the scaling lol. Memorising general conversation and detail study is a painnnnn but I'm really hoping that I can finish by the end of the term break :)

If you follow along then hope you enjoy watching my mediocre journey compared to other studious people on here :)
I'm not aiming for a super super high ATAR or high study scores, I just want to be satisfied with my score knowing I wasn't necessarily going through my best time.
« Last Edit: June 20, 2020, 11:40:11 pm by Peppie »

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Re: Pep's journey to.. an okay ATAR
« Reply #1 on: June 20, 2020, 11:50:12 pm »
+8
I thought about doing a weekly update or whatnot, but I think I'd end up letting myself down ahah so I think I'll just end up writing whenever I feel like it- so the flow comes more naturally and it doesn't become a chore

General thoughts ★
I think I might be eligible for SEAS- but I'm not sure how the whole statement of support works? Does it mean they have to know you for the whole 12 months or just they knew of your problems 12 months ago and then you never spoke again, but it's been 12 months? Grammar isn't that great today because I'm super drained from the whole term- not even from corona but just from myself. I think I could apply for category 3 & potentially 4, but also I want to see how everything pans out starting from now so I'll hold that thought for now. I'm a bit stressed but it's nothing not manageable. Just hoping to get through a bit more revision tomorrow.

Also I find it funny how maths used to be my favourite subject, but then after two years of bad encounters with a bad teacher I started falling behind and hating it. It's weird how much a teacher can impact you- now that I think about it. Even speaking about it can make me recall the times he'd call me out and then me not being able to answer the question- a memory and feeling that's deeply embedded into my head that I doubt I'll be able to forget for a while.


English
Doing a ton of last minute revision for the upcoming SAC next week, I'm not sure how it'll be going since it's an odd text with a lot of hidden meanings and what not. Women of Troy is super interesting but I feel as though it's a bit ridiculous that the Greeks really just destroyed a whole city for a woman that didn't even want to return back to them. Technically in terms of logical winning- the Greeks definitely won but then they lost everything in terms of morality and logistical thinking while the Trojans died nobly on their land- so honestly? No one really won. Everyone just died and it's a weird little play with many links or whatnot and I love it for that- but it's also one of the lowest scoring texts on the final exam so we'll see how that goes when it turns up.

Chinese SL
Well after an entire term of online classes, suddenly we have to turn up to a random location to do two SACs back to back next week?? I honestly don't think I'm ready at all, and I'm not too sure how to prepare. This subject makes VCE seem a lot more draining but I do want to get better at it- I'm just not sure how. Writing is most definitely my weakest aspect, so I'll be living in my dictionary during the writing SAC I guess lol

________________________________________________________________________
Nothing else is really happening next week besides those two SACs, so at least I can finally relax after my Chinese one on the weekend. Looking forward! I feel like this journey will be fun for the holidays haha :D

ashmi

  • MOTM: June 20
  • Victorian Moderator
  • Forum Obsessive
  • *****
  • Posts: 429
  • Living an illusion
  • Respect: +660
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #2 on: June 21, 2020, 11:10:38 am »
+6
Hey Pep!

First of all, welcome to AN and I'm absolutely loving your journal already! ;D

Spoiler
Putting this in a spoiler because I have a lot to write about SEAS.

For SEAS, the support statement is meant to be someone that has known of the problems for about 12 months (So in this case, if you have talked about the problem a year ago and haven't brought it up again, it should be fine!). You will just have to be sure that the person who writes your support statement is over 21 and not family-related (and for category 3/4, is alright with writing a statement for you and can describe how it has affected your education). For Category 3 and/or 4, depending on the situation, you may need to get some medical/legal documents to support your claim, so if you are thinking about applying I would highly suggest starting to find the pieces you need for your application. (I'm applying for both of these too so I can relate to the struggles as well as the stress associated with trying to get paperwork and the appropriate responsible person to put this application together). I highly recommend that if you do plan to put an application in, you talk to someone that has known about your problem and possibly ask if they would like to be your support statement? That might be a good first step because it does get more stressful when applications open and you panicking last minute to get everything together? (If you want someone to talk to just give me a message💕)

Good luck for your English SAC next week! I did Women of Troy for my creative and I must say, that text for me was REALLY hard (I didn't understand anything). I'm absolutely positive that you will do amazing in your SAC and I 100% believe in you that you will be fine. Also, good luck for your Chinese SAC! Languages in VCE sounds super hard, let alone having SACs back to back for it must be a nightmare in a way.

Make sure you have a relaxing holiday and a long-deserved break after those SACs! ;D Hope you have a lovely week and be pumped for holidays just around the corner ;)

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #3 on: June 21, 2020, 02:50:48 pm »
+3
Hey Pep!

First of all, welcome to AN and I'm absolutely loving your journal already! ;D

Spoiler
Putting this in a spoiler because I have a lot to write about SEAS.

For SEAS, the support statement is meant to be someone that has known of the problems for about 12 months (So in this case, if you have talked about the problem a year ago and haven't brought it up again, it should be fine!). You will just have to be sure that the person who writes your support statement is over 21 and not family-related (and for category 3/4, is alright with writing a statement for you and can describe how it has affected your education). For Category 3 and/or 4, depending on the situation, you may need to get some medical/legal documents to support your claim, so if you are thinking about applying I would highly suggest starting to find the pieces you need for your application. (I'm applying for both of these too so I can relate to the struggles as well as the stress associated with trying to get paperwork and the appropriate responsible person to put this application together). I highly recommend that if you do plan to put an application in, you talk to someone that has known about your problem and possibly ask if they would like to be your support statement? That might be a good first step because it does get more stressful when applications open and you panicking last minute to get everything together? (If you want someone to talk to just give me a message💕)

Good luck for your English SAC next week! I did Women of Troy for my creative and I must say, that text for me was REALLY hard (I didn't understand anything). I'm absolutely positive that you will do amazing in your SAC and I 100% believe in you that you will be fine. Also, good luck for your Chinese SAC! Languages in VCE sounds super hard, let alone having SACs back to back for it must be a nightmare in a way.

Make sure you have a relaxing holiday and a long-deserved break after those SACs! ;D Hope you have a lovely week and be pumped for holidays just around the corner ;)

Thank you! I love reading your journal too- sounds like you got your life together so it's pretty inspirational

I can't imagine doing Women of Troy as a creative, it seems confusing as is to do as a text response. But then again at the same time, everything's a struggle for me to begin with lmAo

In terms of SEAS- thank you! Read this and then went ahead with an email to my psychologist from last year ;D I wonder how it'll go. Or I could just ask a teacher I suppose, but it's a bit weird knowing that someone who sees you everyday knows your situation? Maybe just me I guess. I wish you the best for your SEAS application!!

It's a shame that restrictions are tighter again, I was looking forward to going to parks with my friends on the holidays. Guess I'll just be at home playing random video games I find again- or maybe Valorant? I think it was produced by the same company that made LoL so I'd assume graphics and whatnot would be good~

Hope your holiday plans are going better than how mine are looking ;)

Bri MT

  • VIC MVP - 2018
  • Administrator
  • ATAR Notes Legend
  • *****
  • Posts: 4719
  • invest in wellbeing so it can invest in you
  • Respect: +3677
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #4 on: June 22, 2020, 11:00:32 am »
+5
Thank you! I love reading your journal too- sounds like you got your life together so it's pretty inspirational

I can't imagine doing Women of Troy as a creative, it seems confusing as is to do as a text response. But then again at the same time, everything's a struggle for me to begin with lmAo

In terms of SEAS- thank you! Read this and then went ahead with an email to my psychologist from last year ;D I wonder how it'll go. Or I could just ask a teacher I suppose, but it's a bit weird knowing that someone who sees you everyday knows your situation? Maybe just me I guess. I wish you the best for your SEAS application!!

It's a shame that restrictions are tighter again, I was looking forward to going to parks with my friends on the holidays. Guess I'll just be at home playing random video games I find again- or maybe Valorant? I think it was produced by the same company that made LoL so I'd assume graphics and whatnot would be good~

Hope your holiday plans are going better than how mine are looking ;)

Welcome to the forums!

SEAS
My difficult circumstances statement was written by someone in the school's wellbeing team. They knew me for over 12 months but only learnt about my circumstances while I was in year 12. I was referred to this person by my psych teacher which meant my psych teacher knew about what I was going through as well and imo it wasn't awkward for them to know just really nerve wracking to tell them.

I think a psychologist or teacher are both good options to have write a supporting statement.


I hope you get some good relaxation in and your holidays pan out better than you hope :)

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #5 on: June 23, 2020, 10:21:20 pm »
+7

General thoughts ★
I'm not one to necessarily speak out about mental health, but I feel as though the reason why mine is declining is because of the scores I've been getting, but the reason for the scores I've been getting is because of the lack of motivation which is pretty much linked to my mental health. It's like an endless loop of disappointment and sometimes it just seems more unfair on some days than others. The thing with my school is just that everyone seems like they have it together (or at least they're pretty good at hiding it) so it's like you're the only one out of the whole bunch that isn't capable of achieving high results. Probably not that great of a note to start off of, but that's just been what's on my mind recently. I'm not really looking for pity or anything, it's just more of something that I wanted a place to slap my thoughts out, and this site just happened to be unlucky AHAH

I think this term has just been especially draining because of the switch from online school to regular school- everything's a bit weird and time seems distorted. Wonder if other people feel the same? At least my friends and I feel it. Even though we've been back to regular schooling for only 5 weeks, it's felt like 5 decades with all the SACs squished into the 5 weeks lmao

But on a lighter note, I feel like pretty much all men are like babies. Well at least those that I have spoken to even my own teachers sometimes LMAO. I thought it would be good to build relationships with them because then it doesn't seem half as intimidating to email them for help- so naturally I cracked a joke (it was probably a bad joke, so points to him I suppose) but he spent the next few emails talking about how I shouldn't accuse him or such things and calling it "bullshit" so like. I guess dating doesn't get any better even when you become older lmaOO (thought I'd just say I'm not really pissed, just thought it was entertaining that you basically have to raise a whole person that's the same age as you)

English
Finished the SAC today! Honestly it was pretty hard- definitely not the themes I expected or prepared for. Actually I don't even think it was on themes, it was more just based on the characters within the book. Honestly makes me regret not going over the book more since I mainly focused on just memorising points for themes and how specific things might have related to those themes. Definitely a surprise and I don't think I did as well as I would have hoped for, especially for the preparation I put in.

Biology
Yikes.... I got my score back a couple days ago and honestly? Unit 3 is a whole flunk. I kept getting super unlucky with what I had studied- of course the things I looked at and went "surely she won't reuse it, because what teacher would reuse stuff from previous SACs? They're all mean" and it was everything on the SAC. I want to say I can do better for the next unit but getting that score back is just making my motivation plummet down further even more. Kinda a debby downer today but I guess we can't all be happy everyday.

Chinese SL
Doing a couple of practice listening SACs- doing well in some, not so well in others. I guess it just follows "you win some, you lose some"? If it's anything on futuristic technology I am BEYOND screwed lol. I can't even begin to think what the essays will be on. Seriously wishing it was a persuasive then at least I could have a formula to memorise for it but no- it's gotta be personal writing or informative- most people don't pick imaginative for a reason. If there was a way to somehow inhale a language dictionary overnight I soooo would. Sometimes VCE has me thinking if sleeping with a textbook under my pillow will really help to absorb the information HAHA
_______________________________________________________________________

Anyways I hope if you're still reading this, you're having a much easier time than I'm having  ;)
+Have a super lovely week ~ just incase I don't spew out my thoughts again later (which I probably will, but everything is a surprise I guess)
« Last Edit: June 23, 2020, 10:29:31 pm by Peppie »

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #6 on: June 24, 2020, 04:38:05 pm »
+1
Welcome to the forums!

SEAS
My difficult circumstances statement was written by someone in the school's wellbeing team. They knew me for over 12 months but only learnt about my circumstances while I was in year 12. I was referred to this person by my psych teacher which meant my psych teacher knew about what I was going through as well and imo it wasn't awkward for them to know just really nerve wracking to tell them.

I think a psychologist or teacher are both good options to have write a supporting statement.


I hope you get some good relaxation in and your holidays pan out better than you hope :)

EEee didn't realise I didn't reply D:
Thank you for the welcome <3
and for the SEAS advice too!! It had been a while since I saw my psychologist anyway, but it still feels weird to let someone on the wellbeing team know- especially since they were all my past teachers in one way or another. I feel like everyone jokingly talks about applying for it at least once in their VCE, so now that it could be a reality it's just overall a weird feeling to me.

Hope your holidays? Break? Not sure how uni timetable works so my apologies  :( but regardless I hope you have an easy/chill week !!  ;)

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #7 on: June 27, 2020, 10:29:50 am »
+7
General thoughts ★
I'm so excited for the term to be officially over (which will be in a few days for me because I have 2 more SACs to go) I was planning to dive right into studying to make up for my awful scores in unit 3 but honestly? Being realistic- that's not gonna happen lol. I think I'll do my best to just start as soon as possible, but probably take at least 3 days to do absolutely nothing. Especially to clean my room because that thing is an awful mess LOL. My parents have been nagging me about it but it really bothers me more than it bothers them- but I like to focus on one thing at a time so that's my excuse. Thinking about getting some shelves or something off of amazon to make it look nicer and because I reallllly want to put my little keychains  somewhere other than in a bag. They're so cute but goddamn I have no place for them. Also I think I'll probably go ahead and start driving again considering it's been a solid 5 months since my last hour- might need proper whole lessons again because I don't trust myself but we'll see how that goes!! I think I'll also probably start working out again- not liking the pudge I've gained on my stomach but we can work towards that slowly  ;D This whole post is just plans for the holidays to keep myself accountable considering all my pasty diaries/journals/notes/reminders have always failed me (mostly the other way around but I'll pretend I'm not the one to blame) I like to keep it simple and not make it look pretty, but I use my computer far more than anything else (including my phone! which is a surprise I reckon- well kinda because I use it to watch tiktoks but I digress)

Business Management
I think I really just want to get through the unit 4 content ASAP because my teacher wants to get through the SACs really early on? I understand he wants to give us more time to focus on the exam but yikes it's pretty rushed imo. But I get it- and he's the teacher so we can't exactly convince him otherwise.

Biology
Not sure what I could do for this subject other than to write some notes for unit 4 and hope for the best really- maybe I could get through the edrolo but I find that the dude doesn't really help me as much? I'll probably revise unit 3 AOS 1 considering there were some aspects I struggled a lot with.

Methods
I'm probably going to try and get through my checkpoints book considering the last SAC is only a month away- something I didn't do for the last one but still somehow barely passed :/ Luckily we have a strong cohort I suppose- but still. Do textbook questions even help in the end? This one's the non-calculator/technolog SAC so we'll see how it goes. I think even though it's not likely that I'll finish it all- it's still better to shoot for something high so you make yourself do as much as possible- if that makes sense.

English
Read ransom and watch the queen, and not sure how to prepare for the persuasive SAC? A lot of people are super happy since the oral was taken away but I feel like it's more of a bother than anything- like they really just took it and turned it into a written one instead. No one seems to be sure as to how to make it a written SAC either- it seems like this was a bad decision but I guess I'll just write some practice persuasive essays until further information is given on it?

Chinese SL
I'll probably write essays in preparation for the next AOS and memorise my GC + maybe detail study. Though I reckon memorising GC would be the most important since I've fallen behind and I've only really memorised like half of the first category.
__________________________________________________________________________

Overall I'm just really excited to take a break from school ;D Only a short update because it's only what I want to do- not what I have already done haha. I know the goals I've set are a bit unrealistic, but at least I can say I've been productive if I DO end up getting through even half of it. Though I already know I'm going to spend the entire Monday just playing games but that can always just be an outlier  ;) I know I probably don't sound like it in my post, but I'm optimistic for this holidays ~
Hope everyone reading has a super safe but nice break!!

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #8 on: July 04, 2020, 12:44:01 am »
+4

Just a mushed up update
Honestly haven't done anything this week that was worth an update on its own, but I've been researching/thinking about uni courses lately and I feel like nothing's really much of an interest. I started off wanting to do vet like a couple years ago, but then I seriously doubt- I literally know- I wouldn't be able to put down the animals. Then I gradually started to get on the med train, but realistically I know I would hate it LOL (I know some people love it, but it's just not my passion man). I've been looking at law, computer science, health science and engineering. But truth is nothing from that list interests me besides a few aspects from each- and I really don't think I'd be built for the long term to have a stable job in a couple of those fields anyway. I think with each passing day my expectations just get lower and lower? Besides courses, I don't even know what uni I want to go to. Everyone seems to want to go to Monash but I'm starting to head on towards Deakin?? I've heard too many opinions from both sides to be able to make a decision for myself anymore LOL. I know it ends up just depending on yourself but there's so many pros from both that I don't even know anymore.

Besides that I haven't been productive AT ALL this week- but I'll try harder the next (let's hope it actually happens and it's not just something else to put off later) BUT I have been playing wayyyyy too much minecraft or anything for my health really HAHA
There's a game called valorant that I think I want to get into- but I'm scared that once I do get into it I'll neglect everything else- as if minecraft modded wasn't bad enough

Also I feel as though we're going to go back into lockdown with how things are going, but I'm going to hope that it won't because after getting used to regular school, then online school, then regular school again? I refUSE to go through all that again especially compared to the way it affected my grades last time. I was hoping to make up for last holidays since no one really went out to have fun or anything, but with how things are looking I'd rather have coronavirus disappear like completely before anything else happens- that way it can "go back to normal" faster I suppose. Apparently travel bans are till mid 2021 now?? I just really heard that from whispers in the wind though, but I wouldn't be surprised. 

Hope everyone's staying safe and healthy!! ;D

AngelWings

  • Victorian Moderator
  • ATAR Notes Superstar
  • *****
  • Posts: 2456
  • "Angel wings, please guide me..."
  • Respect: +1425
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #9 on: July 05, 2020, 04:37:17 pm »
+8
I've been researching/thinking about uni courses lately and I feel like nothing's really much of an interest. I started off wanting to do vet like a couple years ago, but then I seriously doubt- I literally know- I wouldn't be able to put down the animals. Then I gradually started to get on the med train, but realistically I know I would hate it LOL (I know some people love it, but it's just not my passion man). I've been looking at law, computer science, health science and engineering. But truth is nothing from that list interests me besides a few aspects from each- and I really don't think I'd be built for the long term to have a stable job in a couple of those fields anyway. I think with each passing day my expectations just get lower and lower? Besides courses, I don't even know what uni I want to go to. Everyone seems to want to go to Monash but I'm starting to head on towards Deakin?? I've heard too many opinions from both sides to be able to make a decision for myself anymore LOL. I know it ends up just depending on yourself but there's so many pros from both that I don't even know anymore.
Mind letting us know what you like and dislike about the courses you mentioned above and what you’re looking for in a course? And, if you like, describe some of your hobbies/ interests? Perhaps one of us on the forum can help suggest something or, if one of us do the course (since there’s quite a few uni students/ grads here), maybe we can describe our own experiences. :)
VCE: Psych | Eng Lang | LOTE | Methods | Further | Chem                 
Uni: Bachelor of Science (Hons) - genetics
Current: working (sporadically on AN)
VTAC Info Thread

brothanathan

  • Guest
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #10 on: July 18, 2020, 01:08:39 pm »
+7
Chinese SL
I'll probably write essays in preparation for the next AOS and memorise my GC + maybe detail study. Though I reckon memorising GC would be the most important since I've fallen behind and I've only really memorised like half of the first category.

Hey Pep, really liking your journal   :D

For essays, if you have a SAC-filled week, you can even just do essay plans or spider diagrams of what you may discuss or write about for that essay question. Don't be too stressed in having set responses to some for your GC. You might want to have a few phrases up your sleeve that you can apply to a broad range of questions to kickstart the conversation (then add in the relevant info or what a teacher I once had called 'the meat' you need to provide for that specific question, e.g. leisurely activities in your spare time and most importantly your subjective viewpoints, which examiners want.

Some examiners might have a slight prejudice towards memorised parts or responses, so chucking in some relevant Chinese interjections (you can even use them when there's a tough question, to give yourself some time to give a 'sound' answer or keep the flow of the conversation going) will make your oral exam more of a conversation than a job interview and make the whole conversation less awkward for you and the examiners, and make you sound more genuine and even less scripted believe it or not.

Having a few phrases that are interchangeable, can allow you more time to prepare for your detailed study (where you want solid sentence structures, encompassing, a bit more presentation-like and get to your points fast (like when people are giving a pitch to sell something) so that you can give examiners a chance to ask questions and take a breather in processing what you've talked about. You can better show your attention to detail and efforts you've made in studying your topic/person.

Oh, in case if you haven't been told already. If you do make a mistake, correct yourself in Chinese, you won't get marks deducted and if you're not 'making a bit deal about it' you may even pick up some marks (obviously don't do this just for marks, but think of it as something to keep the conversation going).

When describing something using idioms or even adjectives, the examiners may ask you to explain them so make sure you have a clear example/s to use in your explanation, synonym/s or description in mind so that you can explain it in a way that is succinct and easy to understand. Other than preparing for the advised topics that may be asked on the oral examination, you should also be preparing the way you present yourself visually. Such as your facial expressions and body posture (i.e. to show confidence and sincerity). If you have a considerably large mirror at home or at school (that you can see the reflection of you sitting on a chair), you may want to practice e.g. facial expressions (yes very important), hand movements, head tilts, shoulder movements, and the slouched position when talking about something sad and etc. Yes, this is not a VCE Drama solo, but psychology is equally important to your fluency in the language. So don't neglect simple manners and kind gestures too.

Also, you might want to have a look at how natives (make sure they're from the main cities in Mainland China and conversing in Standard Mandarin, yeah there's an unofficial bias unfortunately) interact with each other in day-to-day conversations and pay attention to what sort of subtleties are commonly present in people's expression and overall demeanor.
« Last Edit: July 18, 2020, 02:13:06 pm by brothanathan »

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #11 on: July 25, 2020, 10:12:53 am »
+6
Spoiler
Mind letting us know what you like and dislike about the courses you mentioned above and what you’re looking for in a course? And, if you like, describe some of your hobbies/ interests? Perhaps one of us on the forum can help suggest something or, if one of us do the course (since there’s quite a few uni students/ grads here), maybe we can describe our own experiences. :)

eeeee late reply but here!!

Computer science
I'm interested in coding and building software!! But I feel as though I need to be super passionate in it to survive through otherwise I'd want to switch courses or drop out? Also I feel as though you need a certain degree of creativity (that I don't have lmAo) to create things that might be required in the course

Nursing
I don't mind the helping people part- but the thought of getting used to other people's bodily fluids puts me off a little? I can handle blood 100% but seeing other stuff,,, I'm not sure? The one I'm mostly interested in is becoming an anaesthetist but I'm sure that I still have to go through regular practicing first so... yeah I'm not sure AHAH

Health Sciences
I want to do something that doesn't limit me to an office? I'd hate to be stuck just sitting with a computer the whole day. Clinical research still sounds pretty good though! There are so many issues I'd like to fix if I happened to become one. Though I feel the course may or may not be similar to nursing (?)

Engineering
Now if I WAS cut out for this course, I 100% would! I love the idea of building things from the structure of it to the functionality- but I don't think I'm prepared to be set down to do 40 hours of study every week just to keep up- and the mathematical aspect or even the physics aspect worries me. If it wasn't such an intense course from what I read- this would have been what I aimed for lol.

Marketing/business in general
I like seeing how businesses work- but the idea of opening one up only for it to fail sounds daunting. I understand that the people who are the most successful take the most risks- but I'm not prepared for constant failure so...
Even if the course prepares you for the job, I don't think I'd be a reliable person to predict analytics or anything? Though I do think that this might be the most "chill" course I've looked at (at least from the descriptions and research I've done so far but I'm not a uni student so)

Overall
Mostly I'm interested in things that allow socialisation with people, building things from scratch (even like research), and solving problems that aren't math  ;D I'm not really picky because I'm willing to adapt to whatever haha

Spoiler
Hey Pep, really liking your journal   :D

For essays, if you have a SAC-filled week, you can even just do essay plans or spider diagrams of what you may discuss or write about for that essay question. Don't be too stressed in having set responses to some for your GC. You might want to have a few phrases up your sleeve that you can apply to a broad range of questions to kickstart the conversation (then add in the relevant info or what a teacher I once had called 'the meat' you need to provide for that specific question, e.g. leisurely activities in your spare time and most importantly your subjective viewpoints, which examiners want.

Some examiners might have a slight prejudice towards memorised parts or responses, so chucking in some relevant Chinese interjections (you can even use them when there's a tough question, to give yourself some time to give a 'sound' answer or keep the flow of the conversation going) will make your oral exam more of a conversation than a job interview and make the whole conversation less awkward for you and the examiners, and make you sound more genuine and even less scripted believe it or not.

Having a few phrases that are interchangeable, can allow you more time to prepare for your detailed study (where you want solid sentence structures, encompassing, a bit more presentation-like and get to your points fast (like when people are giving a pitch to sell something) so that you can give examiners a chance to ask questions and take a breather in processing what you've talked about. You can better show your attention to detail and efforts you've made in studying your topic/person.

Oh, in case if you haven't been told already. If you do make a mistake, correct yourself in Chinese, you won't get marks deducted and if you're not 'making a bit deal about it' you may even pick up some marks (obviously don't do this just for marks, but think of it as something to keep the conversation going).

When describing something using idioms or even adjectives, the examiners may ask you to explain them so make sure you have a clear example/s to use in your explanation, synonym/s or description in mind so that you can explain it in a way that is succinct and easy to understand. Other than preparing for the advised topics that may be asked on the oral examination, you should also be preparing the way you present yourself visually. Such as your facial expressions and body posture (i.e. to show confidence and sincerity). If you have a considerably large mirror at home or at school (that you can see the reflection of you sitting on a chair), you may want to practice e.g. facial expressions (yes very important), hand movements, head tilts, shoulder movements, and the slouched position when talking about something sad and etc. Yes, this is not a VCE Drama solo, but psychology is equally important to your fluency in the language. So don't neglect simple manners and kind gestures too.

Also, you might want to have a look at how natives (make sure they're from the main cities in Mainland China and conversing in Standard Mandarin, yeah there's an unofficial bias unfortunately) interact with each other in day-to-day conversations and pay attention to what sort of subtleties are commonly present in people's expression and overall demeanor.
Hey!! Thank you for so much advice!!
I've asked so many people and no one really knows what they did to pass 3/4 chinese nor how they did so that was helpful  ;D I didn't know that you were allowed to make mistakes and correct them? I thought once you made a mistake that was it so that was really nice to know that I'm allowed to screw up- comforting more than anything considering I have like 2 months left until GC/detail study
I'll start looking at how regular mainland chinese people converse starting today then I suppose

Thank you again  :D
« Last Edit: July 25, 2020, 10:20:23 am by Peppie »

brothanathan

  • Guest
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #12 on: July 26, 2020, 05:21:57 pm »
+5
Hey!! Thank you for so much advice!!
I've asked so many people and no one really knows what they did to pass 3/4 chinese nor how they did so that was helpful  ;D I didn't know that you were allowed to make mistakes and correct them? I thought once you made a mistake that was it so that was really nice to know that I'm allowed to screw up- comforting more than anything considering I have like 2 months left until GC/detail study
I'll start looking at how regular mainland chinese people converse starting today then I suppose

Thank you again  :D


No problem Peppie :D also you should be looking to have your GC and DS polished by September I could schedule in a mock oral with you at some point if you want, PM if you're taking up this offer and I'll even give some tailored feedback  :)
« Last Edit: July 26, 2020, 05:32:40 pm by brothanathan »

AngelWings

  • Victorian Moderator
  • ATAR Notes Superstar
  • *****
  • Posts: 2456
  • "Angel wings, please guide me..."
  • Respect: +1425
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #13 on: July 26, 2020, 09:00:49 pm »
+6
eeeee late reply but here!!

Computer science
I'm interested in coding and building software!! But I feel as though I need to be super passionate in it to survive through otherwise I'd want to switch courses or drop out? Also I feel as though you need a certain degree of creativity (that I don't have lmAo) to create things that might be required in the course

Nursing
I don't mind the helping people part- but the thought of getting used to other people's bodily fluids puts me off a little? I can handle blood 100% but seeing other stuff,,, I'm not sure? The one I'm mostly interested in is becoming an anaesthetist but I'm sure that I still have to go through regular practicing first so... yeah I'm not sure AHAH

Health Sciences
I want to do something that doesn't limit me to an office? I'd hate to be stuck just sitting with a computer the whole day. Clinical research still sounds pretty good though! There are so many issues I'd like to fix if I happened to become one. Though I feel the course may or may not be similar to nursing (?)

Engineering
Now if I WAS cut out for this course, I 100% would! I love the idea of building things from the structure of it to the functionality- but I don't think I'm prepared to be set down to do 40 hours of study every week just to keep up- and the mathematical aspect or even the physics aspect worries me. If it wasn't such an intense course from what I read- this would have been what I aimed for lol.

Marketing/business in general
I like seeing how businesses work- but the idea of opening one up only for it to fail sounds daunting. I understand that the people who are the most successful take the most risks- but I'm not prepared for constant failure so...
Even if the course prepares you for the job, I don't think I'd be a reliable person to predict analytics or anything? Though I do think that this might be the most "chill" course I've looked at (at least from the descriptions and research I've done so far but I'm not a uni student so)

Overall
Mostly I'm interested in things that allow socialisation with people, building things from scratch (even like research), and solving problems that aren't math  ;D I'm not really picky because I'm willing to adapt to whatever haha

Thanks for replying!

I’m not so good in the business/ computer science/ engineering areas, so hopefully someone in those areas can offer more suitable advice there. However, I can offer some insight into the Health Sciences and biological research, although in the latter I focused on ecological/ evolutionary biology and population genetics (where I focused on mathematical models in a biological context). I know quite a number of science/ health science jobs that aren’t limited to an office (the ones I’m thinking of are usually lab/ hospital/ part lab part office), so if that interests you, please PM me about that and I’ll be happy to answer there. :)

In terms of courses, I’d perhaps look into overlapping sections, perhaps a double degree or compromise between two major areas e.g. biotechnology or software engineering, might be more for you?
VCE: Psych | Eng Lang | LOTE | Methods | Further | Chem                 
Uni: Bachelor of Science (Hons) - genetics
Current: working (sporadically on AN)
VTAC Info Thread

Peppie

  • Adventurer
  • *
  • Posts: 15
  • Respect: +14
Re: Getting through VCE with Pep- a mediocre journey
« Reply #14 on: July 30, 2020, 10:15:44 pm »
0
Thanks for replying!

I’m not so good in the business/ computer science/ engineering areas, so hopefully someone in those areas can offer more suitable advice there. However, I can offer some insight into the Health Sciences and biological research, although in the latter I focused on ecological/ evolutionary biology and population genetics (where I focused on mathematical models in a biological context). I know quite a number of science/ health science jobs that aren’t limited to an office (the ones I’m thinking of are usually lab/ hospital/ part lab part office), so if that interests you, please PM me about that and I’ll be happy to answer there. :)

In terms of courses, I’d perhaps look into overlapping sections, perhaps a double degree or compromise between two major areas e.g. biotechnology or software engineering, might be more for you?

Thank you for the response!! I'm not good with replying :')
I'll research some more before I bother you! But thank you for the offer aHAH
I was thinking about a double degree!! But I also know I'm not a really diligent person and I'd probably end up slacking off with the workload  :(


No problem Peppie :D also you should be looking to have your GC and DS polished by September I could schedule in a mock oral with you at some point if you want, PM if you're taking up this offer and I'll even give some tailored feedback  :)

Ahhh that honestly eases my stress (only by September?? People were telling me that I should have had it all done by July) ,, I really just want to get a 35 but with my unit 3 scores (haven't gotten them yet but honestly I doubt it's over 70 :/) so I guess I'll have to really pray on my oral
I'll definitely PM you at some point when I'm ready if that's okay!! I'm looking to have memorised everything by next month  but I'm not sure how capable I am because my strategy of memorising is super slow
But thank you so much for the offer  ;D