Student Services

Surviving Year 12

Some advice from someone who's been through the whole VCE Year 12 thing.

1. Balance is important

VCE Year 12 is a year of hard work and huge commitment, but it's also a very social year with many chances to step outside the education bubble and let your hair down, especially with the 18th birthdays that seem to be held almost every weekend.

With so much going on it can be hard to find a balance between study and life. 'Balance' is a word you’ve probably heard before, from every year level coordinator, education expert, mental health professional and everyone else with an opinion. Well, you’re going to hear it again from a former student who didn’t have a good balance and got very sick as a consequence. That would be me.

Keep up hobbies and leisure activities, and talk to someone if things are getting overwhelming. Remember: everyone at your school is on your side and looking out for your mental health.

2. Find your own best way to study

Throughout the year, you’ll have people telling you how to study, when to study and what to study. You should probably listen when you’re told what to study, but as for how and when, don’t take them too literally.

VCE Year 12 is all about independent learning and finding out how you learn best. This means discovering how you study. You might learn best by drawing pictures and diagrams, making up songs with matching dances, or you might learn by simply writing things down.

As well as experimenting with different methods of study, try studying at different times of the day. You might be sharpest of an evening, rather than the morning! If you know yourself and how you study, learn and remember, you will have a better chance of knowing your coursework.

For some ideas about ways to tackle study, check out our how to study better section.

3. Actually try in the GAT (no really – try)

You probably all know about the General Assessment Test (GAT) from older students and their advice and wisdom, or maybe even personal experience. It’s a strange test, stretching over three hours with two writing tasks and 70 multiple choice questions that quite often have you scratching your head.

The GAT is essential to formulating a Derived Examination Score (DES). Should you be unable to attend an end of year exam because of extenuating circumstances, the DES is the score that you get for the exam. It is a prediction of your outcome, based on GAT and SAC scores. So as tiresome as it can be (I know this from personal experience) stick it out and do your best because it could end up being really important in the future.

For information about the GAT: https://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/assessment/general-achievement-test/gat-overview

4. SACs are intended to prepare you for exams

School Assessed Coursework (SACs) is the closest you’re going to get to an exam situation throughout the year, especially with regard to time constraints. Use your SACs to practise completing assessment tasks in allocated times.

That practise is absolutely essential and will give you an advantage in the exam. It will also help you to feel at ease and less pressured when having to write a lot in such a short amount of time. Treat every SAC like you would an exam – lose the phone, arrive with the right supplies and forego chatting in class. That way, you’ll be much more prepared to tackle a real exam.