High atar

[Eventful]

Hello forum users,

Hopefully this is the right place to be posting this. I just have one main question. If the ATAR cutoff for a course is relatively low (e.g. 95) then is there any point to aim for a 99+, aside from vanity?

Taking all factors into consideration, if the low cutoff* is the best course in Australia for the particular area of study and I don't feel I need to prove anything with a high ATAR, is there any other reason to achieve a high 99+.

Just polling thoughts.

Thanks everyone.

*regular cutoff appears to be higher but for some reason the cutoff I need is substantially lower.

[Sine]

Hello forum users,

Hopefully this is the right place to be posting this. I just have one main question. If the ATAR cutoff for a course is relatively low (e.g. 95) then is there any point to aim for a 99+, aside from vanity?

Taking all factors into consideration, if the low cutoff* is the best course in Australia for the particular area of study and I don't feel I need to prove anything with a high ATAR, is there any other reason to achieve a high 99+.

Just polling thoughts.

Thanks everyone.

*regular cutoff appears to be higher but for some reason the cutoff I need is substantially lower.

what course is it? If it is comm @ UoM aim for chancellors then

Also people can change a lot in 10 months, you could very well change your mind. I know this has happened to a lot of people.

but Ehh I don't really know how people aim "low" because of the course that you want. VCE is a lot more than just your ATAR/study scores and what course you get. (although they may be the most important part you take away if you look closer there is a lot more)

[Quantum44]

Hello forum users,

Hopefully this is the right place to be posting this. I just have one main question. If the ATAR cutoff for a course is relatively low (e.g. 95) then is there any point to aim for a 99+, aside from vanity?

Taking all factors into consideration, if the low cutoff* is the best course in Australia for the particular area of study and I don't feel I need to prove anything with a high ATAR, is there any other reason to achieve a high 99+.

Just polling thoughts.

Thanks everyone.

*regular cutoff appears to be higher but for some reason the cutoff I need is substantially lower.

The problem with not putting your best effort into VCE is that you run the risk of regret. You are tempted to not bother with certain aspects of work and may not even achieve a 95 ATAR despite having the potential to achieve 99+. You may achieve 99 despite having the potential to get 99.90. I think one year of working your hardest is worth it for the end result, even if the extra marks are superfluous. Because you can't touch the past. Once it's done, it's done and you may very well be thinking to yourself at the end of the year that you should have worked harder. Even if you do easily get above 95, you may be wishing you took more pride in your results when you see the marks of your peers. I'd recommend not half-arsing year 12, even if it seems like a vain exercise.

[spectroscopy]

its worth trying your hardest for a few reasons

a) as a safety net. you might only aim for 95 but end up getting a 94 or 93 or even 92   (ive seen this happen from kids capable of 99+ and they couldnt get into their desired course)

b) scholarship money is easier to get if you have a higher atar

c) in some fields (commerce etc.) graduate employers might still ask you for your atar. i would say 1 in every 6 applications i have done for graduate jobs have asked me for it explicitly.

[Orb]

It's not for vanity because what the best students get out of VCE isn't the ATAR, but the process required to get that ATAR.

You learn how to cope with pressure, how to overcome stressful situations, how to study independently, all of these skills which are invaluable come Uni/workplace.

[strawberries]

its worth trying your hardest for a few reasons

a) as a safety net. you might only aim for 95 but end up getting a 94 or 93 or even 92   (ive seen this happen from kids capable of 99+ and they couldnt get into their desired course)

b) scholarship money is easier to get if you have a higher atar

c) in some fields (commerce etc.) graduate employers might still ask you for your atar. i would say 1 in every 6 applications i have done for graduate jobs have asked me for it explicitly.

Omg really wow

[Elucidator]

It's not for vanity because what the best students get out of VCE isn't the ATAR, but the process required to get that ATAR.

You learn how to cope with pressure, how to overcome stressful situations, how to study independently, all of these skills which are invaluable come Uni/workplace.

To reiterate what Orb is saying, it's the skill of effectively using your time and the ability to independently study through one's own motivation which are skills which will benefit you not only in terms of ATAR, but more importantly in terms of university + further learning. Everyone who wants to achieve academically at some point in their life has to learn this mentality.

[Joseph41]

I admittedly haven't read any responses to this thread, so I may be repeating some points.

Hello forum users,

Hopefully this is the right place to be posting this. I just have one main question. If the ATAR cutoff for a course is relatively low (e.g. 95) then is there any point to aim for a 99+, aside from vanity?

Taking all factors into consideration, if the low cutoff* is the best course in Australia for the particular area of study and I don't feel I need to prove anything with a high ATAR, is there any other reason to achieve a high 99+.

Just polling thoughts.

Thanks everyone.

*regular cutoff appears to be higher but for some reason the cutoff I need is substantially lower.

Hey Eventful.

I know you said relatively low, but just to make this clear to anybody reading this thread: an ATAR of 95.00 is outstanding and by no means low.

Anyway, for context:

For the vast majority of Year 12 (until the night before preferences were due ), the course I was aiming for had an ATAR requirement of 60.00 or something. I was pretty set on that course - at least, I thought I was, until right near the end.

Eventually, I changed my mind. The course I entered at the end of Year 12 technically had an ATAR cut-off of 99.25, so... you could say it was worthwhile trying my hardest, even though I didn't think I'd really need whatever ATAR I achieved.

Further to that, though, it's not all quantitative. A lot of Year 12 is about the qualitative stuff - learning how to best study, overcome adversity, stick at a task and so on.

[Coolgalbornin03Lo]

I admittedly haven't read any responses to this thread, so I may be repeating some points.

Hey Eventful.

Is only doing 5 subjects going to prevent me from getting a high ATAR? In year 11 they didn’t allow me to do a 3/4

I know you said relatively low, but just to make this clear to anybody reading this thread: an ATAR of 95.00 is outstanding and by no means low.

Anyway, for context:

For the vast majority of Year 12 (until the night before preferences were due ), the course I was aiming for had an ATAR requirement of 60.00 or something. I was pretty set on that course - at least, I thought I was, until right near the end.

Eventually, I changed my mind. The course I entered at the end of Year 12 technically had an ATAR cut-off of 99.25, so... you could say it was worthwhile trying my hardest, even though I didn't think I'd really need whatever ATAR I achieved.

Further to that, though, it's not all quantitative. A lot of Year 12 is about the qualitative stuff - learning how to best study, overcome adversity, stick at a task and so on.