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The thing with VCE is that when you’re in it, it can be hard to see outside of it. You’re in this weird bubble where, at times, it seems like nothing much else matters. You have your SACs, your content to learn, whatever else. Maybe you have a job. You almost definitely have other commitments. But at the end of the day, you’re in VCE.
That’s just how it is. VCE is probably one of the most dominant parts of your life – and possibly the most dominant.
As such, it can be hard to detach yourself from the system, and see the broader picture. I certainly couldn’t, for I was engulfed in VCE. I breathed VCE air, I ate VCE food, I slept VCE sleep – even when I didn’t want to. It wasn’t overly pleasant.
There are some things I wish I knew at the time. These are things I’ve only realised since finishing up at school. And though some may seem straightforward or self-apparent, it’s absolutely beyond doubt in my mind that people think the same way I did. I’m sure that people are trapped in a perception of the world where VCE is the most important thing in the world.
Experience is invaluable
What sort of experience do I mean, exactly?
Just… all experience. All of it. I suppose there are two main elements to what I’m talking about: employment and opportunities. I’ll speak of each in turn.
Employment
I worked a little bit in Year 12 – a little bit, but not much. Mostly tutoring. I made the decision to focus mostly on school, which was fine – I also dropped back other commitments a little bit. In hindsight, I definitely would have got a job earlier – as soon as possible, really.
Not for the money, but for the experience. The experience of dealing with people, of being resilient, of learning new things. The experience of the real world, I guess. Would have my results taken a hit if I worked more during VCE? Maybe, but I’m not convinced that the change would have been anything more than negligible – and it would have made my life a lot more balanced.
Put it this way. Say I had the choice of hiring two candidates:
Person A achieved an ATAR of 85.00, and has four years of experience working at Macca’s.
Person B achieved a higher ATAR – 95.00 – but has never worked a day in their life.
I know who I’d be hiring. (And it wouldn’t be Person B, despite the better academic results.)
Opportunities
The other thing with experience is that it can come in all shapes and sizes. One thing I regret about my VCE experience is not taking every single opportunity I had. Not in terms of academic stuff, but other things: debating, leadership, competitions – that sort of thing.
Did sitting back slightly in VCE drastically changed my life for the worse? Probably not. But I feel I’d be in a better position if I had taken all of those opportunities at the time.
It’s interesting, because you never really know where things will take you. By trying new things – taking new leaps of faith – you’re very likely to meet new people. And learn new skills. And develop more as a person. And network in regard to job opportunities. In hindsight, those are the things that will set you up really well for life after VCE – not so much rote learning definitions.
Results are relative
Which is why comparing your results to other people is, well, pretty pointless.
I could compare my 100 metre sprint time to Usain Bolt’s if I really wanted to. But I don’t want to. Because that would be silly. We have different skills, different experiences and so on – it would simply be a fruitless exercise.
On a more realistic scale, I could compare my uni results to my peers’ if I really wanted to. But I don’t want to. Because, equally, that would be silly – we have different skills, different experiences and so on.
I don’t need to know other people’s marks in order to justify my happiness or sadness about how I performed. After all, it’s not about them in the slightest. And whilst I recognise that VCE is a game (is it?) and so on, in the long term, it’s very likely to be more beneficial to just… focus on you.
That’s what I mean when I say that results are relative. A lot of people intuitively compare their results to others’. It’s understandable, but that’s not we want, really. It makes more sense to simply compare your results to your previous results. It’s all about improvement – not competition. That’s an important point.
VCE is only the beginning
So, by extension, VCE is not the end.
It’s the last part of one phase of your life, absolutely. And that’s not be understated – it’s definitely a considerable thing. But at the same time, it’s the start of the next phase (#exciting).
So even if things go absolutely terribly, it’s not the end of the world. A lot has changed for me since VCE – as it would have for almost literally every single VCE student before me. And after me. A lot has changed because the world keeps on spinnin’. If you end up being drastically unhappy with your ATAR, that really sucks. But it doesn’t mean you’ll be drastically unhappy for the rest of your life – not even close.
Consider it this way. VCE isn’t an end in itself – it’s simply a means to an end. And there are lots of other means to that same end.
Basically what I’m doing is re-hashing the “there are heaps of other pathways to get to your desired destination” metaphor, but with different words. But it’s true – VCE is just one way of getting to where you want to be, and keeping that perspective is important.
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You can probably sum up most of this article by saying that most learning happens outside the classroom. You have your five or however many subjects, sure – but VCE is more than that. Year 12 is more than the sum of its parts – it’s a year where taken opportunities, perspective and solid attitude can take you places you never thought you’d reach.
