#macrobsubjectselection

[qwedfas]

what courses is chem a pre req for?

Hi there,

A quick google search could help you identify this quickly, but from our knowledge, I think medicine is one. Also, Science courses generally need you to be taking 2 sciences, so Chem could count as one of them. You could also ask the Careers office for help :)

Hope this helps!

Love, FAM xx

[qwedfas]

Hiiii fam! I'm struggling to decide whether I should do bio and chem next year (yr11) or choose one! And I'm also interested in psych too so that's 3 sciencey subjects! And I'm in no way interested in chem but it seems like all your options are incredibly narrowed down if you don't do it soo :////

Hey,

Not doing chem will only narrow your options if you are set on the medicine subjects (I think civil engineering and architecture might need it too). Otherwise a science like bio is plenty to get you into a general science course. So if you don’t think you will enjoy chem then don’t feel the need to force yourself to do it. The worst thing is getting stuck in a subject you don’t like and then not even needing it for the future.

In the end, choose what you enjoy as this is also the best way to maximise your vce scores (as in, if you like it you will more likely put in the work, thus you will more likely do well).

Love, FAM xx

[qwedfas]

Hey fam! I'm in year 11, and I'm wondering if it would be ok to take Eco 3/4 without having done 1/2. The class sounds really interesting, but the only kind of business class that I've done was back in Year 9. Do you think it's worth it to pick up the subject even if I'm not 100% I will be able to do well

Hi there,

There are people who don’t take ½ and do really well in ¾, so it’s definitely not impossible for you to do so. Just had a chat to Mr Crowe about this today, and he said that it’s really subjective and would vary from person to person. He said one of the most important things that should help you make that decision is whether you are willing to start from scratch and work really hard in ¾ to catch up on some concepts (not many though) that were taught in ½ and are now revisited. I don’t think there’s a huge correlation between prior experience in commerce and VCE Economics, so it’s alright if you’ve only done Year 9 Business - I had never ever touched a single bit of commerce/business before doing Economics ½ last year.

It’s good that you’re interested, and I think that will bring you far in doing Economics like any other VCE subject because you will be more motivated. I think everything has a chance in it, and even when some people think they can ace something, they don’t so it’s alright that you aren’t completely certain you will do really well. Although we definitely encourage you to think about any other subjects you think you might have a better chance in - because VCE is all about maximising your performance (this can be done by playing to your strengths and interests, not necessarily by scaling - scaling doesn’t apply that much to eco though so that’s irrelevant to you). Eco is definitely really interesting and it’s my favourite VCE subject - check this out for more about my experience: http://friendsatmacrob.tumblr.com/post/163485898392/hey-fam-for-those-of-you-who-do-eco-how-is-it

Another FAM Leader:

I was in the exact same position as you! I did business studies in year 9 then jumped straight to eco ¾ in year 11. It is possible and I 100% recommend it. The subject is so much fun and really eye-opening as it teaches you a new way of looking at the world. In terms of coping I found that some light reading about the basics such as laws of supply and demand during the summer holidays was really help. I suggest talking to Mr Crowe prior to the summer holidays about what you can do to become familiar with the basics (you can also check out his YouTube channel).

Hope this helps!!

Love, FAM xx.

[qwedfas]

Hey fam, for those of you who do eco, how is it like and can you do 3/4 without having done 1/2? Is the content hard/workload/teachers? Thank you

Hey there,

Economics is my favourite subject this year! :) to quickly answer your question, the content is really interesting, the workload is quite a bit (like every other subject), and Mr Crowe is a really amazing teacher. It’s not necessary for you to do ½ before ¾ but it does give you quite good foundation.

The content isn’t hard per se, but there is quite some content to get through. In ¾ we learn about microeconomics (how demand and supply works…) and a huge component is macroeconomics - the economy and its goals, the Dollar, budgetary and monetary policy, etc. I would say the workload is more than average, partly because Mr Crowe pushes you to do the best you can which can be a bit stressful but this is really good for you. He makes sure you understand everything well and goes really in-depth. Also he makes you watch videos of him covering content and there are quite a few of those but as long as you keep up you’ll be really good at the content. Mr Crowe, is not only good at teaching content but he’s also really engaging. No class goes without a laugh which is why I look forward to Eco so much everyday :) back to workload, we get lots of practice questions to do which is optional but of course the more you do the more likely you are to do well. Something I really like is how interactive the class is so everyone is in it together and we’re always answering questions which relieves the workload especially when you have so much else going on - because our class is taught in a way that makes info stick really easily and even if you don’t revise super intensely for Year 11 tests you’ll still do decently.

Hope this helps! Definitely encourage you to do eco :)

Love, FAM xx

[qwedfas]

What was: 'The Making of the Modern World' like in Year 10? Who/what was the teacher like, what did you study + learn, what was the workload + assignments like, overall opinions of the subject?

Hi sweetie,

We’re sorry for the late reply but it seems no one who did this subject is currently available. The teacher is Ms McAlpine who is extremely nice and very qualified for this subject! (She also teaches Revs ¾ for VCE) And from what i hear pretty much everyone loved the subject and found it interesting as well as beneficial. If you are interested in history definitely consider it. For the actual details you should consult the subject sheet you were given as the course could’ve changed slightly from when our year level did it.

Love,

FAM xx

[qwedfas]

what did you do in faster higher stronger yr 10?

Hey anon,

There is a lot of running involved as well as bike rides and circuit work. If you have Mr Mannix as a teacher it is basically anything active. It will be very similar to the syllabus and choose this subject if you enjoy moving and being challenged from time to time! Another bonus is faster higher stronger classes often get extra prac periods over theory work if that interests you.

Love,

FAM xx

[qwedfas]

what did you do in body balance yr 10?

Hey there!

It will depend on the teacher! Some classes focused on yoga while others played a few games and did gymnastics. And this will also change depending on the course that year! It should be similar to what is on your study design, but mostly you just need to know that it is a very fun and relaxing class!

Love,

FAM xx

[qwedfas]

I've heard really contradicting info about doing only 5 3/4 subjects to count towards your atar - some say it's really bad and hard to get a decent atar, some say you have just as much chance at getting a good score at the end of yr 12 i my doing 5. So idk what to think, I really only want to do 5 (like 1 3/4 in yr 11 and 4 3/4s in yr 12. Also is this really uncommon for macrob students? Is it allowed? Thanks

Hey there,

Doing only 5 ¾ subjects is definitely allowed. We recommend you to have a chat to your coordinators about this though :) Doing 5 subjects compared to 6 isn’t much of a difference, except that perhaps doing a 6th subject does boost your scores a little more, as it gives you more chances of scoring more with a sixth subject. The minimum amount of subjects you must do is 4, and 4 out of all your subjects (Maximum of 6, a 7 will not contribute) will be the subjects that count the most towards your atar. You may have heard “Top 4”, and “Bottom 2”, which may help a lot more with understanding how your atar is calculated. So your top four subjects that you get the highest scores in (Your English subject will always be in your top 4, even if you have  a higher scoring subject) will have your full scores (after scaling) taken into consideration, while your other subjects will have 10% of it’s score (after it’s scaled) added to your aggregate (which is the total of all your study scores)

Eg. After Scaling: English: 35, Subject 2: 40, Subject 3: 41, Subject 4: 30, Subject 5: 45, Subject 6: 36

So along with your best 3 subjects and your english subject: 35 + 45 + 41 + 40= 161

Your two/ one other subject: 3.0 (Subject 4) + 3.6 (Subject 6) = 6.6

Total Aggregate: 167.6

All students with an aggregate are then ranked, and then a percentage rank is assigned to distribute everyone as evenly as possible over a 100 point scale. The percentage rank is then converted into an ATAR, which is basically the estimate of the percentage of the population that you have outperformed.

While it may be uncommon among the grade, we do have people doing only 5 subjects who had done very well, and a sixth only really helps with that extra push. Ultimately it’s up to balance in time and work you place into each subject, and a fifth can help you to prioritise and spend more time on your subjects compared to having sixth.Hope this helps!

FAM xxx

[qwedfas]

what are all your favorite subjects for year 10??

Hey there!

We’ve answered a similar question here - http://friendsatmacrob.tumblr.com/post/161949848992/what-were-your-fav-subjects-in-yr-10

Love,

FAM xx

[qwedfas]

what vce subjects are you guys doing?? i have 5 subjects planned out but I'm not sure what to do for my 6th.

Hellooo,

Check out our “Meet the FAM” page for info about us! http://friendsatmacrob.tumblr.com/meetthefam

If you’re still in year 10, year 11 is the perfect time to try out subjects you have interest in since you can change subjects multiple times before starting ¾. FAM is also holding subject info sessions this week, so come down to those and sus it out!

Hopefully you’ll find your sixth subject soon.

FAM xx

[qwedfas]

Hi FAM, is it possible to drop a unit 1/2 subject in year 11 at the end of term 1 if you're finding it difficult and do not want to pursue it as a 3/4? Thank you heaps

Hey there,

Year 11s have plenty of opportunity to change subjects during the year. Because so many people changed their subjects in our year, I found Year 11 to be a time of figuring out which subjects I wanted to do/ needed to do and also experimenting different ways on how to study best for a ¾ subject. In fact, one of our very own changed subjects quite a lot as well (like, seven different unit ½ subjects? She ended up taking none of them!). So yes, in terms of subject changes, we say go for it! Experiment with different subjects and find what you like because you’ll be studying it the whole year next year and the most enjoyable subjects are often the ones that become easier to study (because you’ll be more motivated!)! Just make sure to talk to your coordinators or Gillian to make it happen!

Love,FAM xxx

[qwedfas]

I really hate the idea of writing essays, they're just so tedious and I learn nothing useful from them. Something I do love though, is reading. Most teachers have recommended that I choose lit for VCE but I'm scared I will have to write essays in lit as well :/ Can you please suggest the right English for me?

Hey there,

Writing essays can be definitely be a bit difficult and often we find that we hate the things we don’t feel confident in doing. All three English subjects require you to write essays, but they focus on different aspects of the text so it would probably be best if you recognise the areas you’re good at and go from there. For example:

English: English is most similar to what you’ve been doing in high school so far. It is primarily focused on knowing your text and being able to write using an understanding of the themes that are explored. English essays include analytical text response, language analysis and a comparative essay.

Lit: Literature focuses more about how certain language conveys what the author is trying to say, and these interpretations from the concepts it displays (depth and interpretations). You should know how to look at things from different analytical perspectives.

Eng Lang: Eng Lang essays are to do with language in utilised in society, as opposed to that in a book. For example, we look at how different contextual factors play a role in how someone uses language, how you can use language to construct an identity for yourself etc There are no books we study in Eng Lang, so if that’s what ur looking for, perhaps go for mainstream or lit.

Hope this helps!

Love,

FAM xx

[qwedfas]

Hey fam! How would you be able to get a high GPA? Is it hard to get it?

Hi there,

A high GPA is basically if you get high grades on your Year 10 assessments. It’s not necessarily extremely hard to get, but you will definitely have to put work in to achieve a high GPA that will allow you to do 2 3/4s in Year 11. Usually if you average above 80% you should be fine. I guess getting a high GPA would entail revision for your tests, learning the content well, putting in effort, and just performing on the day.

Hope this helps!

Love, FAM xx

[qwedfas]

Hey fam, is it hard doing 3/4 physics without having done 1/2? and no prior knowledge at all? Thank you!

Hi there,

So just letting you know, you can’t do ¾ physics at mac.rob without doing unit 2 or unit ½ . But if somehow you find a loophole, it can be a bit difficult to go straight into ¾ because it’s like a drop in the deep end. Doing ½ gives you the basics required for ¾ and although we nothing is skipped in ¾ there may be parts where they assume you have done in ½ nd might gloss over it slightly.

Hope this helps!

Love, FAM xx

[qwedfas]

hey. just wondering on your opinion on this: subject selections are due on friday and I was just tossing up between specialist maths and psychology. I read the course outline for psych and it seems interesting to me but then specialist is something that I'm capable of doing. so my question is would you do something that your good at or something that looks interesting to you? thankyouuu

Hey there,

I’m doing both subjects this year so I guess I’m in a pretty good position to answer your question. My opinion is, if it possible, why not go for a subject that you’re capable of being good at AND is interesting to you?

Both the subjects you mentioned (psych and spesh) have the potential to be interesting and challenging at the same time. While psych has a reputation for being “easy”, it’s not always the case and it can actually be difficult to perform exceptionally well in a competitive school like macrob. Similarly, spesh also has the ability to be interesting if you give it a chance, it shouldn’t simply be done to raise your ATAR or because you feel like you’re capable enough to do it. You  need to decide which subject strikes the balance for you more between being interesting and your capabilities- and if that’s not possible, then think about what is more important to you personally. Do you value doing something difficult and challenging over something you enjoy, or vice versa?

It might sound cliche but you will generally perform better in a subject you enjoy as you’re likely to work harder in it, so that’s just something to think about too. Personally for me, at the end of they day, VCE has a lot of subjects and everyone’s going to be capable of doing way more than the maximum of 6 - but we only have the opportunity to complete a limited number. That, and the fact that VCE only happens once, meant that I chose subjects I found interesting.

Good luck!

FAM xx

[qwedfas]

Is it possible to do 3/4 revs without doing any 1/2 history units?

Hi there,

Yes it’s totally possible to do ¾ revs without doing ½ history.

Love, FAM xx