Subject selection is incredibly important and can be a tough decision for students. While there is an element of flexibility in the HSC when swapping subjects, we do not recommend relying on this. Instead, it’s better to make an informed and realistic choice of subjects prior to year 11. Year 10 students should already have an inclination of their strengths and weaknesses. You may already know that you excel in English and dislike science, or vice versa. Further, you may wish to choose a subject that you have some general interest in but have never learnt at school, such as legal studies.

Subject selection is a balance of how the subject scales with your own interest in it. We do not encourage students to select their subjects purely based on scaling. This often results in students choosing subjects such as 4 unit maths, chemistry and physics, relying on scaling to pull their marks up and then becoming overwhelmed by the content and complexity of these subjects. We also do not encourage students to ignore scaling completely. Unfortunately, subjects such as general maths, visual arts and drama do not scale very well and achieving a band 6 can be difficult.

Instead, we recommend students choose the subjects they’re most interested in, while also keeping scaling in mind. We find that the students who do the best in the HSC are the ones who have a general love of learning and are passionate about their subjects. It is always best to be interested in what you are learning, rather than to commit to a subject purely because of scaling.

Need some advice? Book a consultation with Sophie Sparks today through our website tutortimetutors.com or download the TutorTime tutors app. Any questions? We would be happy to answer any questions you may have. Please get in touch by calling our friendly education experts on 1300 788 867. We look forward to hearing from you.