DILEMMA! 10U vs 12U (1 Viewer)

[iiDerf]

I am currently in a dilemma whether or not to drop down to 10 units for the HSC.

My subjects are EngADV, Maths Ext2, Chem, Phys and Eco.

Ever since I have taken up extension 2 of maths I've been doing maths non-stop for a while. Since then I've been thinking of dropping Economics since I'm nearly absolutely certain I have more potential in my science subjects compared to Economics.

However if I drop it then I wont have a safety net anymore since I'll only have 10 units. On the other hand, dropping it would give me more studying time for my other subjects allowing me more focus and potentially raising my internal ranking.

The other problem is that I have quite a few expectations from my parents and teachers to continue with Economics. I do enjoy the subject, but I feel like I'm wasting my time since I'm nearly absolutely certain my two units in Economics would not count to my final score.

 

[Alkanes]

I was in the same position as you. But i decided to drop down to 10 units because i thought 4u will take up a lot of time, which it is atm and will ways be. It's a risk, but it may be a good risk.

 

[jnney]

Story of my life!

My plan for the moment is to see how well I do after first exams/half yearlies before I make any changes.

 

[king chopper]

do 10.

 

[petermeetswendy]

I do 10u, more to focus on the subjects that I actually do care about.
If you want to do 12u, then go right ahead, if hard, drop down to 10.

 

[iiDerf]

Story of my life!

My plan for the moment is to see how well I do after first exams/half yearlies before I make any changes.

That's exactly what I was planning to do!
But I'm scared if my focus diverges on all my subjects including Economics, it may affect my rank at school for other subjects!
Like potentially lowering my rank compared to if I drop right now

 

[Bored_of_HSC]

Mate how're you going for time management? If you're organised then i don't see the problem. Heaps of people do that combo.

 

[iiDerf]

Mate how're you going for time management? If you're organised then i don't see the problem. Heaps of people do that combo.

I keep hearing that but I'm the only one at my school doing it this combo :L.
Anyways I'm extremely terrible at time management. I often try to be organised but it's never consistent.
And to be frank, the graduates two years ago at my school didn't achieve outstanding results for Economics so I'm in doubt how a mediocre Economics student like me is able to excel in the final exam.

 

[jnney]

That's exactly what I was planning to do!
But I'm scared if my focus diverges on all my subjects including Economics, it may affect my rank at school for other subjects!
Like potentially lowering my rank compared to if I drop right now

I know what you mean. But I'm trying not to make any rash decisions that I may regret. Try to take it slow, and sleep on it for another couple days. If you still really want to drop then, go for it.

Here's the thing though: the only reason why I haven't dropped is because I like all my subjects.

 

[bigbirdbanana]

For me i found that the whole 'do 12 units as a back up' to have negative repercussions when i weighed it up for myself and looking at other friends who did 12.

Firstly, there's the obvious thing of more time to focus on your other 10 units, not only in the afternoons, but also if you dropped a subject you would have many extra free periods to focus on those 10 units. So it's basically less time for more units, or more time for less units.

Secondly, the whole idea of having an extra subject as a back up is a negative attitude in my opinion. It often leads to people not trying their best in assessments because they have the extra units, but they often end up doing this in more than one of their subjects, creating an overall detrimental effect. Doing 10 units FORCES you to do your best in every assessment and exam. Yeah, there's no room for error, but it also means that there are less errors made.

Finally, don't worry about pressure from teachers and other people, it's your HSC and you're the one who's going to have to live with the marks that you get, not them. I ended up dropping both Drama and Chemistry (i had 14 units because of Extension English), despite the fact that my teachers were trying to convince me not to drop it and were disappointed when i did. I knew that i had to do that in order to make the most of my time and achieve the best results and i'm so glad that i did.

The pressure of assessments can be overwhelming and challenging so i don't think that adding another subject to that helps. Also, under that much strain you can often lose your enjoyment of your subjects (as difficult as it may be trying to enjoy your subjects is the best way to survive year 12) and it can also be detrimental to your overall well being.

That said, if you feel confident that you can cope with 12 units and would enjoy pursuing them, then go for it. Just remember that there can be strongly negative repercussions if you aren't 100% committed to them. Hope that helped!

 

[thisiswar]

wow typical asian subjects haha...jks

yeah it all depends on your time management. There's this girl that did 13 units for the hsc and became dux of our school. Me personally, i dropped down to 10u after mid course assessments. If (for mid yaer reports) ur ranks are ok then i would keep all. If not then drop the worst ranked subjected. Naturally of course if you drop to 10 you don't spend all that free time doing nothing otherwise there's no point.

But 10 is definitely better than 12. There's no use having a backup if you know it wont help your atar

 

[bigbirdbanana]

I know what you mean. But I'm trying not to make any rash decisions that I may regret. Try to take it slow, and sleep on it for another couple days. If you still really want to drop then, go for it.

Here's the thing though: the only reason why I haven't dropped is because I like all my subjects.

Yeah definitely don't jump into the decision, be certain that it's what you want to do.

If you really enjoy them then it might benefit you to keep them. One of my teachers said that doing the extra subject gives you access to more knowledge than a person doing 10, which could benefit you later. If you feel confident that you can maintain a high standard of assessments then you could keep them all, but make sure that you're willing to commit 100% to each of them. DO NOT think that 'oh well that subject won't count anyway' because if you bomb out in another subject for your HSC exams, then it may actually be counted.

Again, my personal recommendation is to do 10, but just do whatever seems best to you, because you know yourself and your abilities best.

 

[Alkanes]

I don't like wasting time on a subject. So you either make it or break it. I don't know whats the point of doing a subject then completely dropping it after the half yearlies/trials. Waste of effort and time don't you think?

 

[Shadowdude]

Go on with 12 because 10 can be a risk. Seriously.

But if you feel you're wasting your time, you are - so drop to 10 then.

 

[RishBonjour]

Same problem here!
but im keeping them until our assessments.

so far 4u is pretty alrite so yeah
takes up a lot of time though

plus: i don't want to drop any of my subjects, i like them all

but might drop physics/bio
or drop to 3u if 4u gets too intense/ affects my other subs

 

[xAlan]

My friend does the exact same subjects as you BUT he has an extra subject: Business studies, therefore he had 14 units. He is a very organised person and despite many times of him wanting to give up, he tells me that he just wants to finish them all. If you enjoy the subjects you do I am sure you can do very well in them. But this situation can be different for other people.

 

[Bobbo1]

I'm going to disagree here and say to keep economics - to atleast year 12 half yearlies and see how you go. Stereotyping from my school (this may no be you) people who did this combination of subject were quite strong in maths but not as good in english and fell into the trap of thinking economics is another english based subject which they would struggle in - however its really logical, quite easy to excel in if you try and can really provide a safety net even if its not your top 10 subject..

think of it this way in the HSC all it takes is one sheet of paper to get lost and just like that you will lose about 10 marks and can really drag your ATAR down - so be on the safe side and dont risk it

 

[someth1ng]

It's all preference - generally, you should wait till the first assessment and compare results throughout the board and find out your poorest subject.

 

[iiDerf]

I'm going to disagree here and say to keep economics - to atleast year 12 half yearlies and see how you go. Stereotyping from my school (this may no be you) people who did this combination of subject were quite strong in maths but not as good in english and fell into the trap of thinking economics is another english based subject which they would struggle in - however its really logical, quite easy to excel in if you try and can really provide a safety net even if its not your top 10 subject..

think of it this way in the HSC all it takes is one sheet of paper to get lost and just like that you will lose about 10 marks and can really drag your ATAR down - so be on the safe side and dont risk it

That is very scary...
:L That certainy is not me, I actually find English quite enjoyable and in no way is it anywhere near Economics.

 

[iiDerf]

For me i found that the whole 'do 12 units as a back up' to have negative repercussions when i weighed it up for myself and looking at other friends who did 12.

Firstly, there's the obvious thing of more time to focus on your other 10 units, not only in the afternoons, but also if you dropped a subject you would have many extra free periods to focus on those 10 units. So it's basically less time for more units, or more time for less units.

Secondly, the whole idea of having an extra subject as a back up is a negative attitude in my opinion. It often leads to people not trying their best in assessments because they have the extra units, but they often end up doing this in more than one of their subjects, creating an overall detrimental effect. Doing 10 units FORCES you to do your best in every assessment and exam. Yeah, there's no room for error, but it also means that there are less errors made.

Finally, don't worry about pressure from teachers and other people, it's your HSC and you're the one who's going to have to live with the marks that you get, not them. I ended up dropping both Drama and Chemistry (i had 14 units because of Extension English), despite the fact that my teachers were trying to convince me not to drop it and were disappointed when i did. I knew that i had to do that in order to make the most of my time and achieve the best results and i'm so glad that i did.

The pressure of assessments can be overwhelming and challenging so i don't think that adding another subject to that helps. Also, under that much strain you can often lose your enjoyment of your subjects (as difficult as it may be trying to enjoy your subjects is the best way to survive year 12) and it can also be detrimental to your overall well being.

That said, if you feel confident that you can cope with 12 units and would enjoy pursuing them, then go for it. Just remember that there can be strongly negative repercussions if you aren't 100% committed to them. Hope that helped!

Thanks! So helpful!

But one of the main reasons I feel that I have to drop is because I'm almost absolutely certain I cant achieve a top band in Economics. It requires a constant update with the news and a synthesis of ideas; which, unlike English, I absolutely cannot do.

I'm most likely going to keep it for the first term and then decide, but even if I score a good ranking in the first assessment I'll probably still feel discouraged.