ACER HAST test - Selective schools in 2014 (1 Viewer)

[vanessa77]

Hey guys! I'm pretty new to this site and forum, but I've got a couple of questions.

I'm currently in year 10 and I'm sitting the selective test for Hornsby girls and North Sydney girls for placement in year 11 in 2015, and I'm not too sure what the test will be like, or how hard it will be. I attend Hurlstone Agricultural High School at the moment, and I'm quite involved with extracurriculars, and in my past 2 reports, I've gotten straight A's and 7 A's and one B.

Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated!!

 

[Futuremedstudent]

Hey guys! I'm pretty new to this site and forum, but I've got a couple of questions.

I'm currently in year 10 and I'm sitting the selective test for Hornsby girls and North Sydney girls for placement in year 11 in 2015, and I'm not too sure what the test will be like, or how hard it will be. I attend Hurlstone Agricultural High School at the moment, and I'm quite involved with extracurriculars, and in my past 2 reports, I've gotten straight A's and 7 A's and one B.

Any advice or help would be greatly appreciated!!

I think you have a high chance of getting into either school. Last year the people who go into nsghs were all from manly selective.
When is it? if it's not tmr then purchase some past HAST papers and make sure you practice persuasive or creating writing cos last year my friends did it and they said it was a persuasive piece on' Is tv a distraction. Justify your answer'

 

[vanessa77]

I think you have a high chance of getting into either school. Last year the people who go into nsghs were all from manly selective.
When is it? if it's not tmr then purchase some past HAST papers and make sure you practice persuasive or creating writing cos last year my friends did it and they said it was a persuasive piece on' Is tv a distraction. Justify your answer'

Yeah, the test is tomorrow, and I wanted to study for it, but I wasn't too sure what to study! Also, the school sent out an email saying that calculators were not needed for the maths component, so I was pretty confused.

Thank you so much for your reply!

 

[Futuremedstudent]

Yeah, the test is tomorrow, and I wanted to study for it, but I wasn't too sure what to study! Also, the school sent out an email saying that calculators were not needed for the maths component, so I was pretty confused.

Thank you so much for your reply!

Your welcome good luck and remember to pace yourself and if there is a logical non-verbal reasoning section then practice pick the middle questions or the next one in the sequence.
Also here are some past papers if you haven't done them yet: http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/learning/k-6assessments/shsplacement/ss_sampletest.php

 

[vanessa77]

Your welcome good luck and remember to pace yourself and if there is a logical non-verbal reasoning section then practice pick the middle questions or the next one in the sequence.
Also here are some past papers if you haven't done them yet: http://www.schools.nsw.edu.au/learning/k-6assessments/shsplacement/ss_sampletest.php

Do you know anything about the English part? Apparently they're going to give us a picture of a city for stimulus (I'm not sure if this is true) and I've also heard that the English sections are really difficult.. :-(

 

[Futuremedstudent]

Do you know anything about the English part? Apparently they're going to give us a picture of a city for stimulus (I'm not sure if this is true) and I've also heard that the English sections are really difficult.. :-(

Last year apparently the comprehension part was confusing and the texts were difficult. The writing section was 20 minutes last year.
I suggest for the writing if that's the stimulus then write down the plot, main characters, setting and memorise it so you spend more time writing.

 

[vanessa77]

Honestly, there's not much you can prepare for in terms of the HAST test. You know the UNSW competitions where all the science data is given to you? That's pretty much what the science section is like (logical reasoning). The maths component is the most basic of all sections, in my opinion, so just know how to calculate things fast and watch out for trick questions (they actually put so many of those in). The writing is the worst, they give you two writing sections and the stimuli are very basic, which is what makes it all the more harder. The only thing I can really say is to expand your vocab and try and incorporate some similies/metaphors/all those techniques at some point, because its marked by a marking criteria which assesses your spelling, grammar etc rather than the quality of what you produce. You get 20 min per piece so I'd say stick to a page and a half max, just make it really worthwhile.

This is a side note but seeing this test is so unpredictable (in the sense you can't really prepare for it), I'd advise you to make your application stand out as much as possible so that you get a good chance. I made it to Hornsby and North Sydney not solely because of the exam, but also because of the extra-curriculars I put in, which really boosted me up for the 'application' component (worth around 50%... at least thats what the NSG deputy told my mum LOL). They already know your academic levels from the exam so they actually don't care about your school reports and NAPLAN as much as they do about these additional things, which will differentiate you from other students

Good luck!

Thank you so much!!

Last year apparently the comprehension part was confusing and the texts were difficult. The writing section was 20 minutes last year.
I suggest for the writing if that's the stimulus then write down the plot, main characters, setting and memorise it so you spend more time writing.

Ah, coolios! Thank you so much for your help

 

[PatHummels]

lol futuremedstudent did u put n/a in your hsc year because people were taking the piss at your young age

 

[Fiction]

I think you have a high chance of getting into either school. Last year the people who go into nsghs were all from manly selective.
When is it? if it's not tmr then purchase some past HAST papers and make sure you practice persuasive or creating writing cos last year my friends did it and they said it was a persuasive piece on' Is tv a distraction. Justify your answer'

Uh no. Last year only one kid from manly got into 2014 year 11 NSGHS. Where did you get that info from?
I don't know whether to be insulted or not from your comment about MSC haha

 

[falances]

Heyyy have you heard from NSG yet?

 

[Futuremedstudent]

Lat year my friends tried out and they got their results/ acceptance letter at the start of term 4.

 

[vanessa77]

Heyyy have you heard from NSG yet?

I've replied to your PM!! But nope, I haven't heard back from them yet )-:

Lat year my friends tried out and they got their results/ acceptance letter at the start of term 4.

Really? Dang, I don't know if I can wait that long D:

 

[vanessa77]

Any word yet Vanessa?
My daughter sat ACER Test at Hornsby Girls High in 2013 and 2014. Got letter dated 10 Oct 2013 saying she was unsuccessful.
This year they indicated Test would be processed much quicker and we got letter dated 10 Sep advising she had made year 10 waiting list for 2015.
Wait list remains open until end of Term 2 next year.
No idea what position she is on the list. In 2012 only 3 Year 10 vacancies arose and only 5 arose in 2013. All we can do is keep our fingers crossed!

Hello! I received an acceptance letter around the 12th of September (I'm not 100% sure of the date). I wish you the best of luck for your daughter! ^-^

 

[itzKev]

Hi Vanessa! Since I applied to Hurlstone and you're in the same grade and from Hurlstone, can you give me an idea of approximately how many people you think would be leaving Hurlstone and what is the current number of students in your grade at Hurlstone? Thanks!!

 

[vanessa77]

Hi Vanessa! Since I applied to Hurlstone and you're in the same grade and from Hurlstone, can you give me an idea of approximately how many people you think would be leaving Hurlstone and what is the current number of students in your grade at Hurlstone? Thanks!!

Hello! There are usually 20-ish spots available (give or take a few), and as far as I know, only 3-4 people leaving. I'm not entirely sure, but I think there are around 160 people in my grade (-: Good luck for Hurlstone!! My/our grade is absolutely fantastic, and they're so welcoming. If you have any questions/inquiries, feel free to PM me ^-^

Thanks and a big congratulations!
You can now plan with heaps of confidence for the final two years. We'll keep our fingers crossed that a vacancy arises. I would like my daughter to do year 10 at HGHS so she can adjust to the new environment. If not, she will try to emulate you next year

Thank you!! HGHS seems like a fantastic school, and I'm so excited for the next 2 years!!

 

[QAIUM]

Where can I purchase authentic past papers to practice for HAST. Also I am more than happy to purchase relevant books.