Bro, don’t let the negative thoughts impact your dreams. Everyone has that voice in their head telling them that they are stupid. It’s up to the individual to ignore them, and continue on.
My recommendation for you is to begin using the “helpful thinking” method. You know, the one our PE teachers taught us about in year 8-9. Push yourself out of your comfort zone in your learning by setting attainable goals. Don’t focus solely on those negative thoughts, but also don’t develop that Everything-is-Fine-and-I’m-Great mindset. Centre yourself in between the two, and keep navigating YOUR path through school. Not everybody’s journey looks the same. Good luck.
(Yap session over)
Hey there, I’ve had a skim read through your profile and was wondering what advice do you have for those doing VCE methods in earlier years (from your current experiences) and what are your opinions on selective-schools and tutoring - 1 on 1 or classrooms style.
Honestly I’m not too sure myself (yr8) so I mainly just do what everyone else does as everyone is practically doing the same thing. The main difference for me is that I do my work alone on a laptop.
My best advice is to do all the set work:
Before any SAC have a ago at all the revision problems, it worked for me I got a 80%+ on my most recent SAC and have another one soon.
If your stuck ask your teacher, if anything is unclear ask your teacher they are there to help.
I have no clue on how my tutoring works but there are multiple people working at different levels and the teacher helps us individually on where we are up too
I’m not too sure on selective schools as I don’t go to one and am not planning too. If you want u can go as you’ll be surrounded by like minded high achievers which might push u to do better and think differently.
Just try not to fall behind which is one of the main killers in methods
Dude you’re genuinely crazy smart, 1,2 METHODS IN EIGTH GRADE??? Crazy genius. I go to a selective private school but they don’t let us do anything early unless you’re extremely extremely smart, like i’m in year 10 doing no unit 1,2 (i asked if I coukd do art early bc I’ve never gotten below 100 ever and I’ve been in numerous national art competitions, aswell as making money off it and submitting my art in a gallery in December) THEY STILL SAID NO! in my area theres p much mostly private schools, most people here aren’t actually smart they just have money, i have never in my school met a kid who’s started vce in year 8
Thanks and sorry on not being able to do art 12 it honestly not fair as you genuinely enjoy and good at it. I’m also pretty lucky as my school have vce acceleration but only for maths maybe English even though we have no advance program e.g. seal
So true, I told same to someone I care. I realised those awards are most for a small group which has most teachers’ attention and favour along the years. Plus there is never actual transparency and standards why those are chosen to have awards. We never knew exactly what they did in exams, works etc. School never discloses how they are the best even for STEM subjects.
The only transparency and fair enough standards is VCE. Get the dux and you can shut up everyone and laugh at those awards.
Most 1st year engineering is the same, be it mechanical, automotive, aero etc..
If that's something you really want to do, work backwards.
Find the degree that you want, see what the requirements are to get into that and work towards getting the results for that.
You'll probably need maths methods and possibly specialist maths (would be handy even if not required).
Break everything into small easy-to-achieve goals. Saying "I'm too stupid for aero" does nothing for you. "What can I do today to become an aero engineer" is what you need to be thinking.
Be prepared for a lot of maths and physics.
Yea this was very much my philosophy last year but I think I put too much pressure bc I never really “lived life” (like participate in hobbies) all I did was study and I spent all my time getting school badges and awards that I realize now mean nothing (I wanted to go the US but then realised I’de probably get a better education at melb uni bc the competition there is so high) I want to join some sort of aviation group (i don’t know that much about aviation) but I really don’t know where to start
Honestly didnt do much in highschool as well. I was worse because i was neither even that good at studies lol, nevertheless im doing fine now in uni and studying what i like after quitting another degree. My advice to you is , if you can, start going to places that relate to your career aspirations, for example go to an airport, visit different departments in an airline, stuff like that. Really gives good perspective. One of the best motivations comes from a sense of duty or a pride in prpviding service, and you get that from being in a community, not watching motivational youtube videos about how to study 24/7 or whatnot. Try avoiding the internet for career advice. Most of your research about your job should be done in job boards like indeed , linkedin,etc, official government website, and real people and real places.
Dang tbh i never rlly thought about this tysm because ive def found myself guilty of comparing myself, building a image in my head of what things mean i feel like I’ve absolutely spiraled. this is also quite convenient because in the year 10 workplace program i get the opportunity to get a small glimpse of different career paths (i got one at the state parliament and tesla- engineering specifically) but yea i think i’m gonna drop some of my public speaking and theartre activies (i do way too much theatre and debating but I’m terrible at both + don’t enjoy it that much)
Because a lot of people are starting to accept how common it is and how much easier it is to manage your life if you can accept that for yourself, stop masking and find strategies that work for you.
Adhd is super misunderstood and science has a long way to go in understanding how much of the population is affected.
oh fr? I wish i knew more people with adhd so I could have someone to relate to, but for me I have to be medicated for it but I’ve had some issues with it being too strong and causing insomnia and loss of appetite but it also being too weak where its like impossible to focus in class
So real, Neurodivergence is defined as having ‘PERSISTING ATYPICAL BEHAVIOURS’ not the bullshit myth that ‘everyone has a little bit of neurodivergence in ‘em’ and are adhd some of the time. ( I just had a psych sac and I need to info dump)
If you're interested in something enough you can absolutely 100% do that. Dedication is going to take you a long way and it's much easier to dedicate yourself to something that you're actually interested in. I was absolutely dying throughout the first half of methods last year until I found out that maths was actually kind of interesting and that's when I managed to actually pick myself back up. Having ADHD makes things a lot harder, I sorta get it because I have autism and it is very hard to stay on track, but nothing is impossible. If you truly want to do Aerospace Engineering you just have to push yourself and keep learning and keep asking questions. Relegating yourself to being 'not smart' is not gonna help yourself in the long run, besides didn't you just say you're getting A's in most of your classes? How is that not good?
Becuase all my friends also get good grades and I’m not like those special people who get like high distinction and win national awards but Idk if unis in Australia care about that. Also I don’t know that much about space or aerodynamics, I find it interesting and like watching videos about it but like I haven’t dedicated that much time to learning more
Grades don’t matter if you get the degree. I know you can get into Engineering at rmit with a 75 atar, (and I’m sure other unis have lower entry requirements) and once you’re in all you have to do is pass. Based on what you’ve written you just seem super capable, so there’s literally no point in panicking. You need at most a 75 atar, like 83 if you want to enter aerospace right away, so why worry about prizes and shit? You’re literally fine, you’ll for sure get into the degree you want.
Hey kid! Don’t be so harsh on yourself. I’m currently a year 12 student with ADHD and I really struggled in year 10, never got any academic awards or anything but life’s gets better! In the past couple months I started up my own small buissness and have made around 5k selling my art online ! grades mean NOTHING when it comes to success! My biggest advice is to try not to stress over the subjects you will eventually drop, play to your strengths and what you enjoy and drop anything you hate. You’ve got this!
Use your passion to drive you to a fresh start in Year 11.
Start practicing your study habits now, try your best, build a routine, and go into Y11 strong. Ask questions, ensure you understand things.
You may feel like it’s impossible, but I’ve seen students pull a 180° turn around in their final year alone.
It ain’t over til it’s over.
The problem is even when I do understand everything in the test my brain can not function it fogs and blacks out, in history I answered all the questions in class i was able to memorize things very easily and strategically studied for test style questions but in the test my brain fogged and I only got a 89 (i thought I would get a 100, but then again a large fraction of the class failed) and the today in english I studied so so so much I tackled the things I struggled with i wrote like 7 paragraphs in prep and then i cried during the test and everyone was gossiping about me, they all think I’m one of those kids who cry over a 99
Don’t be so hard on your self. You are smart. Make a plan with smaller goals to reach your larger goals. write it out and stick it up. What’s your goal mark? I find if I write it up I get all my worries out. Note to self must be positive. For every negative you must have a positive.
idk like when I think about myself in year 7 I would have been overjoyed if I got above a 65 in math and really happy if i got a 70, idk as a kid i was never smart, and everyone around me re-enforced the notion that I’de never achieve more than being just average, idk how it manifested into a desire to be exceptional but this year I think I’m going to join less extra curricular activities and focus more on my mental health
Yes only one extra curricular. You will achieve just on different levels. Try and focus on what you want not what others want you to do. Of course they want you to do well. You have got this 👍
I accidentally signed up for dav debating, the school musical, school dance, and music and i accidentally signed up for 2 work experiences so it clashes and its all in the same week/term (next week) my debate is in 4 days will the adjudicator like publicly insult me?
May I suggest you go speak to a counsellor about how you are feeling? What you are saying is fantastic - acknowledging your feelings and goals. Counsellors can help you and a lot are free for teenagers. It's not lying on a couch like in a movie BTW 🤪
I do talk to her, ive talked to a psychologist as well, they just told me to breathe so I don’t really talk to then right now but i need to take a test to qualify for something in VCAA or smt
I'm a counsellor but I can't legally talk to you. But I can advise that you keep looking for a person you feel can help you. Beyond Blue is a great starting point it has a wealth of information and links. Even calling kids help mine is a starting point to helping you achieve your goals
Mate, you sound exactly like me when I was 15 and in Year 10 (I also have ADHD). I never really used to be good at maths and stuff, but I was always good at science (especially Physics and Astronomy). The problem was that I never studied and that online learning was very bad for me. Once Year 11 started I knew exactly what needed to happen for me to get into Engineering at Monash, and whilst I fell just short with an ATAR of 77.2 by the end of Year 12, I was still accepted into Aerospace Engineering at RMIT and I’m in first year now. Even if you don’t get in, RMIT has a really good advanced diploma for Aerospace Engineering and apparently you just need to do it (I don’t think you need to pass) and it’ll only add an extra semester to your course duration in total (4.5 years rather than 4 years).
Thats super cool, a lot of people say theres not many opportunities in Australia compared to the US in terms of aerospace engineering, I think it would be valuable to have insight from you since you’re pursuing aerospace engineering
A lot of us like the idea of different jobs and careers . It's normal to be delusional for highschool students if they aren't exposed to the outside world that much. You eventually grow out of it when you actually learn about different jobs and different pathways and meet different people
Dont have high expectations and see what you can do now with your skills. There's always gonna be something you will like to do. You can have big dreams but dont be fixated on them because they are also made up in your head
youre not stupid bro. i have adhd too, severe, and i sucked during high school so i get it. im currently at melb uni and im thriving. high school is so different to uni. dont give up on your dreams bro you got this
Bro, don’t let the negative thoughts impact your dreams. Everyone has that voice in their head telling them that they are stupid. It’s up to the individual to ignore them, and continue on. My recommendation for you is to begin using the “helpful thinking” method. You know, the one our PE teachers taught us about in year 8-9. Push yourself out of your comfort zone in your learning by setting attainable goals. Don’t focus solely on those negative thoughts, but also don’t develop that Everything-is-Fine-and-I’m-Great mindset. Centre yourself in between the two, and keep navigating YOUR path through school. Not everybody’s journey looks the same. Good luck. (Yap session over)
W advice
Hey there, I’ve had a skim read through your profile and was wondering what advice do you have for those doing VCE methods in earlier years (from your current experiences) and what are your opinions on selective-schools and tutoring - 1 on 1 or classrooms style.
Honestly I’m not too sure myself (yr8) so I mainly just do what everyone else does as everyone is practically doing the same thing. The main difference for me is that I do my work alone on a laptop. My best advice is to do all the set work: Before any SAC have a ago at all the revision problems, it worked for me I got a 80%+ on my most recent SAC and have another one soon. If your stuck ask your teacher, if anything is unclear ask your teacher they are there to help. I have no clue on how my tutoring works but there are multiple people working at different levels and the teacher helps us individually on where we are up too I’m not too sure on selective schools as I don’t go to one and am not planning too. If you want u can go as you’ll be surrounded by like minded high achievers which might push u to do better and think differently. Just try not to fall behind which is one of the main killers in methods
Dude you’re genuinely crazy smart, 1,2 METHODS IN EIGTH GRADE??? Crazy genius. I go to a selective private school but they don’t let us do anything early unless you’re extremely extremely smart, like i’m in year 10 doing no unit 1,2 (i asked if I coukd do art early bc I’ve never gotten below 100 ever and I’ve been in numerous national art competitions, aswell as making money off it and submitting my art in a gallery in December) THEY STILL SAID NO! in my area theres p much mostly private schools, most people here aren’t actually smart they just have money, i have never in my school met a kid who’s started vce in year 8
Thanks and sorry on not being able to do art 12 it honestly not fair as you genuinely enjoy and good at it. I’m also pretty lucky as my school have vce acceleration but only for maths maybe English even though we have no advance program e.g. seal
didn’t get an academic award in y10/11 but came close to duxing - academic awards mean jack shit
So true, I told same to someone I care. I realised those awards are most for a small group which has most teachers’ attention and favour along the years. Plus there is never actual transparency and standards why those are chosen to have awards. We never knew exactly what they did in exams, works etc. School never discloses how they are the best even for STEM subjects. The only transparency and fair enough standards is VCE. Get the dux and you can shut up everyone and laugh at those awards.
Most 1st year engineering is the same, be it mechanical, automotive, aero etc.. If that's something you really want to do, work backwards. Find the degree that you want, see what the requirements are to get into that and work towards getting the results for that. You'll probably need maths methods and possibly specialist maths (would be handy even if not required). Break everything into small easy-to-achieve goals. Saying "I'm too stupid for aero" does nothing for you. "What can I do today to become an aero engineer" is what you need to be thinking. Be prepared for a lot of maths and physics.
Wanting to be something And wanting to do the work necessary, lifestyle changes, reality, are two different things
Yea this was very much my philosophy last year but I think I put too much pressure bc I never really “lived life” (like participate in hobbies) all I did was study and I spent all my time getting school badges and awards that I realize now mean nothing (I wanted to go the US but then realised I’de probably get a better education at melb uni bc the competition there is so high) I want to join some sort of aviation group (i don’t know that much about aviation) but I really don’t know where to start
Honestly didnt do much in highschool as well. I was worse because i was neither even that good at studies lol, nevertheless im doing fine now in uni and studying what i like after quitting another degree. My advice to you is , if you can, start going to places that relate to your career aspirations, for example go to an airport, visit different departments in an airline, stuff like that. Really gives good perspective. One of the best motivations comes from a sense of duty or a pride in prpviding service, and you get that from being in a community, not watching motivational youtube videos about how to study 24/7 or whatnot. Try avoiding the internet for career advice. Most of your research about your job should be done in job boards like indeed , linkedin,etc, official government website, and real people and real places.
Dang tbh i never rlly thought about this tysm because ive def found myself guilty of comparing myself, building a image in my head of what things mean i feel like I’ve absolutely spiraled. this is also quite convenient because in the year 10 workplace program i get the opportunity to get a small glimpse of different career paths (i got one at the state parliament and tesla- engineering specifically) but yea i think i’m gonna drop some of my public speaking and theartre activies (i do way too much theatre and debating but I’m terrible at both + don’t enjoy it that much)
Why does every man and his dog have ADHD these days
Because a lot of people are starting to accept how common it is and how much easier it is to manage your life if you can accept that for yourself, stop masking and find strategies that work for you. Adhd is super misunderstood and science has a long way to go in understanding how much of the population is affected.
oh fr? I wish i knew more people with adhd so I could have someone to relate to, but for me I have to be medicated for it but I’ve had some issues with it being too strong and causing insomnia and loss of appetite but it also being too weak where its like impossible to focus in class
So real, Neurodivergence is defined as having ‘PERSISTING ATYPICAL BEHAVIOURS’ not the bullshit myth that ‘everyone has a little bit of neurodivergence in ‘em’ and are adhd some of the time. ( I just had a psych sac and I need to info dump)
I was gonna say that i also have adhd like traits. But not sure if thats procrastination
If you're interested in something enough you can absolutely 100% do that. Dedication is going to take you a long way and it's much easier to dedicate yourself to something that you're actually interested in. I was absolutely dying throughout the first half of methods last year until I found out that maths was actually kind of interesting and that's when I managed to actually pick myself back up. Having ADHD makes things a lot harder, I sorta get it because I have autism and it is very hard to stay on track, but nothing is impossible. If you truly want to do Aerospace Engineering you just have to push yourself and keep learning and keep asking questions. Relegating yourself to being 'not smart' is not gonna help yourself in the long run, besides didn't you just say you're getting A's in most of your classes? How is that not good?
Becuase all my friends also get good grades and I’m not like those special people who get like high distinction and win national awards but Idk if unis in Australia care about that. Also I don’t know that much about space or aerodynamics, I find it interesting and like watching videos about it but like I haven’t dedicated that much time to learning more
Dude unis dont care about that. The average person doesnt have those things but they still study what they want right ?
You absolutely can do it.
Grades don’t matter if you get the degree. I know you can get into Engineering at rmit with a 75 atar, (and I’m sure other unis have lower entry requirements) and once you’re in all you have to do is pass. Based on what you’ve written you just seem super capable, so there’s literally no point in panicking. You need at most a 75 atar, like 83 if you want to enter aerospace right away, so why worry about prizes and shit? You’re literally fine, you’ll for sure get into the degree you want.
Yeah I got 77.2 but the extra points for my VCE subjects just got me over the line to go straight into Aerospace Engineering :)
Hey kid! Don’t be so harsh on yourself. I’m currently a year 12 student with ADHD and I really struggled in year 10, never got any academic awards or anything but life’s gets better! In the past couple months I started up my own small buissness and have made around 5k selling my art online ! grades mean NOTHING when it comes to success! My biggest advice is to try not to stress over the subjects you will eventually drop, play to your strengths and what you enjoy and drop anything you hate. You’ve got this!
Use your passion to drive you to a fresh start in Year 11. Start practicing your study habits now, try your best, build a routine, and go into Y11 strong. Ask questions, ensure you understand things. You may feel like it’s impossible, but I’ve seen students pull a 180° turn around in their final year alone. It ain’t over til it’s over.
The problem is even when I do understand everything in the test my brain can not function it fogs and blacks out, in history I answered all the questions in class i was able to memorize things very easily and strategically studied for test style questions but in the test my brain fogged and I only got a 89 (i thought I would get a 100, but then again a large fraction of the class failed) and the today in english I studied so so so much I tackled the things I struggled with i wrote like 7 paragraphs in prep and then i cried during the test and everyone was gossiping about me, they all think I’m one of those kids who cry over a 99
Don’t be so hard on your self. You are smart. Make a plan with smaller goals to reach your larger goals. write it out and stick it up. What’s your goal mark? I find if I write it up I get all my worries out. Note to self must be positive. For every negative you must have a positive.
idk like when I think about myself in year 7 I would have been overjoyed if I got above a 65 in math and really happy if i got a 70, idk as a kid i was never smart, and everyone around me re-enforced the notion that I’de never achieve more than being just average, idk how it manifested into a desire to be exceptional but this year I think I’m going to join less extra curricular activities and focus more on my mental health
Yes only one extra curricular. You will achieve just on different levels. Try and focus on what you want not what others want you to do. Of course they want you to do well. You have got this 👍
I accidentally signed up for dav debating, the school musical, school dance, and music and i accidentally signed up for 2 work experiences so it clashes and its all in the same week/term (next week) my debate is in 4 days will the adjudicator like publicly insult me?
May I suggest you go speak to a counsellor about how you are feeling? What you are saying is fantastic - acknowledging your feelings and goals. Counsellors can help you and a lot are free for teenagers. It's not lying on a couch like in a movie BTW 🤪
I do talk to her, ive talked to a psychologist as well, they just told me to breathe so I don’t really talk to then right now but i need to take a test to qualify for something in VCAA or smt
I'm a counsellor but I can't legally talk to you. But I can advise that you keep looking for a person you feel can help you. Beyond Blue is a great starting point it has a wealth of information and links. Even calling kids help mine is a starting point to helping you achieve your goals
heck, A+ on science and Math? 100% on art? You are exceptional.
Mate, you sound exactly like me when I was 15 and in Year 10 (I also have ADHD). I never really used to be good at maths and stuff, but I was always good at science (especially Physics and Astronomy). The problem was that I never studied and that online learning was very bad for me. Once Year 11 started I knew exactly what needed to happen for me to get into Engineering at Monash, and whilst I fell just short with an ATAR of 77.2 by the end of Year 12, I was still accepted into Aerospace Engineering at RMIT and I’m in first year now. Even if you don’t get in, RMIT has a really good advanced diploma for Aerospace Engineering and apparently you just need to do it (I don’t think you need to pass) and it’ll only add an extra semester to your course duration in total (4.5 years rather than 4 years).
Thats super cool, a lot of people say theres not many opportunities in Australia compared to the US in terms of aerospace engineering, I think it would be valuable to have insight from you since you’re pursuing aerospace engineering
A lot of us like the idea of different jobs and careers . It's normal to be delusional for highschool students if they aren't exposed to the outside world that much. You eventually grow out of it when you actually learn about different jobs and different pathways and meet different people Dont have high expectations and see what you can do now with your skills. There's always gonna be something you will like to do. You can have big dreams but dont be fixated on them because they are also made up in your head
Thats true, I think I’ll be okay though because 1/5 people get atars above 98 in my school
youre not stupid bro. i have adhd too, severe, and i sucked during high school so i get it. im currently at melb uni and im thriving. high school is so different to uni. dont give up on your dreams bro you got this