MedVision ad

6 units of science? (2 Viewers)

Xcelz

Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2008
Messages
96
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
Hey guys! :):):)


So, based on past experiences from people who has done all three;
chemistry
physics &
biology --

Is it or was it tedious/hard keeping up with ALL three sciences?

+ one extension course such as english or maths extension

... and when I ask this, I'm asking in place of a non-genius; so no replies going:
"piece of cake".
or
"so easy mangzzzz"

Not that anyone would say that anyway ROFL :p

(This is not necessarily referring to myself by the way, ahem.)



Thank you :):D
Well here is a summary of what I think. (note- my bias opinion . Excuse any typos).

Prelim Bio - Seemed really boring. Lots of info to remember. 4/10 difficulty.
Prelim Physics - Was standard difficulty. Some basic maths ability required, primarily rearranging equations and subbing in values for a given formula. Difficulty. 7/10
Prelim Chem - Is a lot of theoretical work and due to my bad junior years education, I found it a major step up from anything I had ever done in Junior Science. 9/10 Difficulty.

HSC Bio - Slightly more interesting than Prelims, still find it a bit boring. Maybe due to my teacher, everybody is different I suppose. So far, a lot of information that you have to remember while having barely any difficulty. Things may step up. Difficulty 4/10.

HSC Physics - A very interesting course so far. Learning about Einstein's thought experiments and relativity etc was really good fun and interesting. I have found this course much more enjoyable than Prelims, still no great mathematical ability required. Difficulty 8/10.

HSC Chem - In my opinion, basically a consolidation and application of all the concepts and chemical knowledge that you have acquired in year 11. You still learn a lot of new things. There is a lot more practicals that require you to use all the info you have learnt in year 11 & 12 to explain results, etc. In general I would say a more enjoyable course. Some people may argue with what I have said, but hey we all have opinions. Difficulty 9/10.

In regards to 6 units or science with an extension course being manageable, of course it is. The only thing you have to manage is your time and you should be fine.

Plus a little side note, I think developing good studying habits in year 11 is a great idea. Personally, year 11 was a bad year for me and I didn't perform to well. So try and get a solid foundation so that things are easier for your HSC.

Hope this was useful and not a waste of your time. Just remember what i said may not be correct, it is only my opinion.

Xcelz.
 

annaisbored

New Member
Joined
Feb 5, 2009
Messages
19
Location
sydney
Gender
Female
HSC
2010
Okay, I just walked into my own grave.
*HAS FINALLY PICKED UP PHYSICS TODAY AFTER FEELING OVERLY APPREHENSIVE ABOUT IT EARLIER*

Thanks for the replies everyone -- much appreciated. :)
Really encouraging :p!

And Xcels, that wasn't a waste of time at all :).
Sort of boosted my confidence about physics ><

Though I'm still feeling twitchy about my decision... People at my school told me of them dropping extension courses due to not being able to keep up...
Oh well D: guess I'll go ahead and try it for myself.

I'm planning to go tutor for physics and chemistry-- since the teachers for these subjects aren't really good at my school :(:(
I AM GOING TO HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO MORE SLACKING-OFF-DAYS.

WOW, LIFE' GREAT HEY.
-shoots self LOL-
 
Joined
Sep 26, 2008
Messages
1,948
Gender
Female
HSC
2009
Well here is a summary of what I think. (note- my bias opinion . Excuse any typos).

Prelim Bio - Seemed really boring. Lots of info to remember. 4/10 difficulty.
Prelim Physics - Was standard difficulty. Some basic maths ability required, primarily rearranging equations and subbing in values for a given formula. Difficulty. 7/10
Prelim Chem - Is a lot of theoretical work and due to my bad junior years education, I found it a major step up from anything I had ever done in Junior Science. 9/10 Difficulty.

HSC Bio - Slightly more interesting than Prelims, still find it a bit boring. Maybe due to my teacher, everybody is different I suppose. So far, a lot of information that you have to remember while having barely any difficulty. Things may step up. Difficulty 4/10.

HSC Physics - A very interesting course so far. Learning about Einstein's thought experiments and relativity etc was really good fun and interesting. I have found this course much more enjoyable than Prelims, still no great mathematical ability required. Difficulty 8/10.

HSC Chem - In my opinion, basically a consolidation and application of all the concepts and chemical knowledge that you have acquired in year 11. You still learn a lot of new things. There is a lot more practicals that require you to use all the info you have learnt in year 11 & 12 to explain results, etc. In general I would say a more enjoyable course. Some people may argue with what I have said, but hey we all have opinions. Difficulty 9/10.

In regards to 6 units or science with an extension course being manageable, of course it is. The only thing you have to manage is your time and you should be fine.

Plus a little side note, I think developing good studying habits in year 11 is a great idea. Personally, year 11 was a bad year for me and I didn't perform to well. So try and get a solid foundation so that things are easier for your HSC.

Hope this was useful and not a waste of your time. Just remember what i said may not be correct, it is only my opinion.

Xcelz.
omg are you serious? bio - 4/10 difficulty? you made me feel like a bloody retard!
 
Joined
Mar 10, 2009
Messages
142
Gender
Female
HSC
2009
I did Bio, Chem and Physics as well as Ext 1 Maths in Prelim, but I didn't really try that much in Ext. & Physics and I ended up dropping them :haha:
Now I do Senior (and the rest of my subjects are in my sig) and it's soooooooooo good :D
There are a lot of overlaps in Bio, Chem and SS and although it gets boring sometimes, I guess it is good in the long run because when they're repeated, the new concepts are usually easier to understand.
 

Aquawhite

Retiring
Joined
Jul 14, 2008
Messages
4,946
Location
Gold Coast
Gender
Male
HSC
2010
Uni Grad
2013
I did Bio, Chem and Physics as well as Ext 1 Maths in Prelim, but I didn't really try that much in Ext. & Physics and I ended up dropping them :haha:
Now I do Senior (and the rest of my subjects are in my sig) and it's soooooooooo good :D
There are a lot of overlaps in Bio, Chem and SS and although it gets boring sometimes, I guess it is good in the long run because when they're repeated, the new concepts are usually easier to understand.
You can do Senior Science while doing Chemistry and Biology... or for that matter. You can do any science while taking Senior Science? My school doesn't even allow that and does BOS even allow that?
 

Brontecat

Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2008
Messages
784
Location
where i live
Gender
Female
HSC
2010
omg are you serious? bio - 4/10 difficulty? you made me feel like a bloody retard!
same here! it is probably very memory based but surely its worth a 6 or 7 at least!

but i do agree with some of xcelz opinions especially the one about yr 11 chem being a major step up (one of the reasons i dropped)
 

pillar

Member
Joined
Jan 29, 2009
Messages
96
Gender
Male
HSC
2010
lol, so far Bio has been heaps easy. Compared to Physics and Chem at least.

Interesting I suppose (not ecosystems topic, that was gay shit), but yeah pretty easy overall.
 

h3ll h0und

Member
Joined
Sep 19, 2008
Messages
341
Gender
Male
HSC
2010
im doing phys chem bio ext english and ext maths... doing all three sciences isnt that hard...especially if u hav an interest in them ... my favourite science so far is physics....esp cuz my teacher makes it so interesting ^^ bio is prolly the most boring now...but lots of ppl say it gets alot more interesting in yr 12 :)
 

rm93

Member
Joined
Feb 28, 2009
Messages
32
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
N/A
i was thinking doing all 3
the careers advisor warned us to be careful because of the potential 'heavy workload'
but i know 2 years ago at my school, 1 student did all 3 and kept a rank of 1st for all

i do chemistry and biology and they're great :)
 

kwabon

Banned
Joined
May 26, 2008
Messages
646
Location
right behind you, mate
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
god i hated bio in year 11, so freakin boring and so much content. meh....personally i hated bio....loved fis and chem.

good luck to u
 

Deathwatch

Member
Joined
Mar 11, 2009
Messages
42
Gender
Male
HSC
2011
oh my god you guys. I reckon i'm alright. I'm in year ten however I am doing extension 1 HSC next year so i reckon i can manage all three sciences
 

tehrobzorz

Member
Joined
Feb 21, 2009
Messages
48
Gender
Male
HSC
2010
since we're talking about physics.....


whats the deal with option topics? Can we only choose one? I really like the idea of studying quarks but ive heard that the school chooses...( they were unsure )

is anyone here sure about that?
 

kwabon

Banned
Joined
May 26, 2008
Messages
646
Location
right behind you, mate
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
since we're talking about physics.....


whats the deal with option topics? Can we only choose one? I really like the idea of studying quarks but ive heard that the school chooses...( they were unsure )

is anyone here sure about that?
depends on how many options can ur skool teachers teach. if they can teach only one......u will have to study that topic......but when u are sitting ur HSC they cant force u to do a particular option, its up to u.
 
Joined
Mar 10, 2009
Messages
142
Gender
Female
HSC
2009
You can do Senior Science while doing Chemistry and Biology... or for that matter. You can do any science while taking Senior Science? My school doesn't even allow that and does BOS even allow that?
Yeah, in HSC you can pick up Senior Science as long as you have completed any 2 units or more of a science subject (i.e, Bio, Chem, Physics or Earth and Environmental) in Prelim.
 
Joined
Nov 1, 2008
Messages
134
Location
Heaven
Gender
Female
HSC
2010
for the options topic in physics, i think if you guys bug your teachers enough for a particular topic, they might teach it.

I think 3 sciences is in a way easier than doing 3 HSIE subjects, since you don't have to memorise essays and write them in class. Imagine having half yearlies or yearlies while doing subjects like legal, eco, anc hist. ALL essays. In science subjects, if you understand key concepts then you can use your knowledge to work out "scientific" problems in exams.
 

beve

Jesus
Joined
May 4, 2008
Messages
307
Location
Blayney
Gender
Male
HSC
2009
Hun, you are capable of doing 6 units of science. Personally, and from other’s opinions, 6 units of science are equivalent to 3 other 2 unit subjects. From my preference so far, Physics > Biology > Chemistry. HSC Physics is very enjoyable as well as interesting and did I mention that there’s “Medical Physics” and other great topics you will be studying? xD

Go see your subject coordinator ASAP!
You know you want to.. ;)
Chemistry > You.
 

minijumbuk

┗(^o^ )┓三
Joined
Apr 23, 2007
Messages
652
Gender
Male
HSC
2008
piece of cake, so easy mangzzzz

okay middle-ranked students would probably get low 80s to mid 80s in those subjects.

basically HSC sciences are easy as crap, if you know how to play the game well, then you'll do well. just do past papers for physics and chemistry, you'll get the hang of how you're meant to play the game. if you play it well enough, 90 should be no problem.

for bio, it's probably harder to do past papers and improve. i guess it's something you really have to study progressively for. if you put in the effort you'll do well. it's nothing too conceptual, just some memorising.
 
Last edited:

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 0, Guests: 2)

Top