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Hey!! CONGRATULATIONS for those amazing scores in Bio and EI! So proud and happy for you <3
Have a brilliant holiday!
Thanks Potato! Your scores are incredible too! Cant wait to see how our paths unfold
Penelope!!!!
A massive congratulations on your scores!!! I'm so happy for you - you worked hard this year and you've got some pretty sexy scores to prove it. The 'I could have worked harder' is super relatable, and I feel like no matter how much you study, you'll always come out of the year thinking you should've and could've done more (at least, this is how I always feel ). Sometimes we don't get what we expect at all, and it's okay. Your mindset is brilliant though - and that EI score is super inspirational!
How did you manage to have a timer and not die of impatience and nerves? I'm truly astounded. All I did was pretend the 30th of December didn't exist . Don't worry too much about the GAT - those scores barely matter despite the hullabaloo about the fact that they're supposed to matter more this year, but I really don't think the GAT 'moderated' my study scores anyway.
All the very best for year 12 and beyond. Have a wonderful 2021!
Thanks whys! I don't like waiting for things, I really wanted to face my scores regardless of how I did - I'm really impatient lol. "Hullabaloo" is the perfect way to describe how everyone was going nuts practising for the GAT (especially for EI) because it apparently counted so much. VCAA never fails to surprise.
Hey Penelope!!
Congratulations on your bio and EI scores, they are incredible 🤩
I think you have worked super hard to get those results even if you don’t think so ❤️
Also, dw about the GAT, I did absolutely awful in one of the sections but it really doesn’t effect your SS if you do the exam so it’s fine! My study scores were both better than all 3 of my GAT sections
Thanks eloisegrace! There's always "I could have done more" but it's important to own my scores, even if they're lower than how I wanted them to be.
Penelope,
Massive congrats on your achievements. To do them in year 11 and during COVID is incredible
There will always be regret, even if you achieved perfection so let that feeling slide away. But it is perfectly normal.
Good luck for next year and for your holiday studies
Thanks! I find that the regret will fuel my motivation to do better, so while it's sometimes sad to look at, there's so much I learnt this year that I can implement to make my learning in Year 12 more effective.
I decided to spice up the formatting for my Year 12 journal. Just trying to make it look fancee (read: procrastinate more on ATARnotes).
Year 12, Episode 1: Fresh Start.
she's reflecting on 2020 VCE outcomesI'd been waiting for my study scores for days. I legit could not stop talking or thinking about them. I knew they'd come out early, so I kept refreshing my inbox. My friend, who I'd been studying with the whole year, texted me. When they said they were out, my stomach rumbled. I felt sick and my arms got shaky. My heart was racing like crazy and I clicked on the email.
Two numbers.
They're not that bad. Not disappointed, but at least I didn't get below 40 (which was my biggest nightmare because I wanted these two to be my best subjects - below 40 aren't bad scores, they're just a lot lower than what I would have liked. Everyone has different goals).
Then I went back to discord and saw what my friend said about their grades. I was devastated. This friend studied for the exams with me. They were acing the trials. They were (pretty surely) close to Rank 1. Everyone expected a 50, never would I have thought we'd get the same score or myself get higher than them.
But it happened.
That gave me a bit of imposter syndrome. I felt like I didn't even deserve a 42 (even if it was lower than what I expected). My school's Biology cohort stuffed up big time. The highest was in the mid 40s (compared to multiple 50s in previous years). Very few people got 40+. My friends were disappointed big time. We don't know what happened.
In the year there were a couple of times when my teacher accidentally rewarded me marks for questions I got wrong. When I kept telling him to change them at the SAC review at the end of the year, the teacher got annoyed and told me they knew what my performance was like. Now I can't help feeling like my grade is unfairly high, even though I was idealising 45+. Even if it didn't change things that much, I keep wondering if I deserve my Biology grade.
On the other hand, EI was a surprise. I told myself I wasn't anticipating anything but seeing how I felt on seeing the 43, I guess I was expecting a lot. I'm not disappointed by my score but, like Biol, I wanted it to be in my top four.
But it iz what it iz.
she's looking forward to crapping her pantsGuys. What. The. HEck. It's 2021. How. How can this happen? I still remember 2011 (read in old lady sounds). I still remember 2001. Maybe not 2001.
But like, woah. I'm turning 18 this year. I'm actually in Year 12. It's gonna be a long year. A deciding year for my first career pathway. It's not the be all end all, but it is
something. There's excitement. There's purpose. There's nerves and crapping bricks. There's going to be emotional rollercoasters, probably some unexpected grades. Perhaps my preferences for Uni will change. Who knows?
I'll be learning to drive. I still haven't got my Ls yet (haha, what a sad story but COVID didn't let me book at 17 and I was a dumbass in Year 10 so I didn't apply for the test). I'm sitting the test (finally!) in late March (which was the only available time for the next four months in my area.
This is a new year though. I want it to be kinder than 2020. I want to be a better person. I liked how whys put it on their journal so I'm stealing the quote.
Congratulations to the classes of 2020 and 2021, we did our exams and got through this year. It’s a new day, and a new year. A blank slate to rewrite another chapter of our lives.... there is a whole new world awaiting us - a new beginning
she's setting goals for 2021I don't want to stress this year. I want to keep learning and be a good VCE student. Maintain social relationships and leadership.
Honestly, all I want out of this year is to be more hardworking, resilient and a medical student. For the former, that's self development that will be thrust upon me if I survive 2021. For the latter, I don't care what uni takes me. I just want medicine. Never have I ever wanted to do something more passionately. I just want to be a surgeon. For now, it's the only way I see myself being useful to society and satisfied with myself. I don't have a specific ATAR in mind. I want to try my best. I don't think I can hit 99.95 but that doesn't mean I cant dream about it.
As for my subjects, I obviously need to work hard to push Biology and EI into my bottom two (or get kicked out if I do UMEP).
I am expecting to do best in Chemistry (I love science) but who knows (see attachment),
then English Language, then Spesh,
then .... (x100),
then Methods.
methods note
[(Because I repeated Methods, this time around I put minimal effort in it and studied for other subjects during class. First time around I was an A+ student. This time I'm surprised I even passed my U2 exam. I think it's also because it was the day before the Biology exam but still, my confidence has gone down a lot. I hope my outlook for Methods changes. I like Spesh a lot more, and I don't know why).
For UMEP expectations, I don't know what to think, so I'm excluding it from VCE goals. I'm doing UMEP more for University experience. I've always been interested in Philosophy but I can't say I'm good or bad at it until I experience it. The assessments are all like mini EI reports, which I'm looking forward to a lot. I loved EI. If I could do it again (like, have it count twice to my ATAR) I would probably pick it up.
Overall, I can't wait for 2021 and to get right into the real world. VCE is going to be annoying but I'm gonna look back at it in 20 years and laugh about myself being a dumbass. It's okay. I'm ready to face it.