I’m considering dropping out. (3 Viewers)

[Sam Rowan]

as many of you know, it’s the beginning of year 12. i’m getting my prelim marks back, and except for english and maths, i’m not passing anything. well since i did alright on my assignments i didn’t *fail* overall, but i’m still not fairing well.

I go to a really low ranking school, it’s extremely rare that someone gets a band 6. however, because i go to such a school, i’m eligible to a lot of university entry schemes for low income students who go to bad schools.

I joined this school in year 10, and i hated it on my first day, and i still hate it today. i really wanted to change to online school, but my parents were against the idea. i have absolutely no friends in this school, and i’ve got bad grades. i’m thinking of pivoting and taking some apprenticeship in TAFE and figuring it out from there.

My parents aren’t going to pay for tutoring. i take advanced english, standard math, chemistry (more like cheMYSTERY because i have no idea what’s going on), biology, HMS and modern history.

Because i take such hard subjects, i get scaled up (well at least i think that’s how that works), and because i go to a bad school i get extra bonus points (i’m pretty sure). so maybe i should just stick it out, try my best and just see what happens. i can probably bullshit my way into university because diversity or something. If i were to go to university, i would major in genetics and genomics, as that really interests me.

i didn’t drop out after year 10 because i really do love learning. I spent my time last year looking at the GCSE course for biology and chemistry, not because someone told me to, but because i love science, and the stupid booklets that a 10 year old could understand weren’t meeting my needs. I took elective history with mandatory stage 5 history which meant i had history every single day except Wednesday when my teacher didn’t work, and not once did i complain because i loved history. (i’m more of an ancient history person though)

I really thought i would do well in year 11. i put all my effort into it, it’s not like i have many friends so i spent a lot of time studying. i did all the practice papers, i did everything right. but i guess i didn’t put enough hours, i didn’t put enough energy, i didn’t care enough because i still failed.

I don’t know where to go from here, and i’m sick of crying about it. But also, i really don’t think I can spend another recess alone. I’ve done it all my life, and it never seems to get easier. any and all advice is welcome.

 

[Study to success]

I mean I don’t recommend dropping out especially if u want to go to uni. Even if u aren’t getting the results u want to u always have time to improve and do better. And even if u don’t get the atar u want to, with ur adjustment points, schemes, etc u can even get into diploma courses without an atar. But it’s better to complete ur hsc, no matter how bad ur marks are so that u can open ur options up for future study

 

[coolcat6778]

if you did the gcse why u doing the hsc? can't u just do a level?

 

[killer queen]

hey, I hope you're doing okay! it doesn't sound easy, I wish you'd been able to do online school - I know people who did and they greatly enjoyed the change.

the hard subjects "scaling up" is true but it's not quite that simple - there are many explanations on here, I'm sure! the simplest explanation is that raw marks get aligned (i.e. changed) to another mark based on its difficulty, and it also contributes positively to your ATAR, but this is definitely not the most entirely accurate.

you will definitely be eligible for a lot of early entry programs, so check those out - gateway at UNSW, for example. it might even be unconditional if they think your year 11 grades are good enough, which takes off a lot of pressure. (other people definitely know more about it...) I would also check what unis offer courses you're into, and what the ATAR requirement actually is - it's scary, but knowing what you're aiming for might help.

you have a nice subject spread! have you considered dropping anything? if the workload is a lot and you feel like you're giving it your all, maybe you need a mental break. those who know me would know I'm a huge advocate of sleep, haha! but seriously, make sure you're taking a break, because it sounds like you're putting a lot of effort in.

considering you kind of have a game plan for uni, I wouldn't recommend dropping out, as it's not the kind of degree that would be easy to get into without ATAR. if you decide to, don't be ashamed! there's plenty of wonderful jobs out there, and if offloading the strain on your mental health is worth it, then by all means go ahead. but since you seem passionate about genetics and genomics, personally I hope you continue with school. there's a lot of scholarships on offer, as well as bonus points or selection rank, so have a look if you're eligible for any of those.

don't say that you didn't do enough, or that you didn't care enough. it might feel that way, and I get it. but though there are technically always more hours in the day, recognise your limits, and recognise what you're capable of! you can improve, I'm sure of it.

 

[jane1820]

Hey im not commenting to reply to your question but to tell you that the concept of a friend is someone who is there for you and will support you and wanted to tell you that we have a relatively big online community here (Class of 2026) and you can make a bunch of friends. Ik its never the same as a physical person but maybe itll have less of a weight on you!

 

[jazz_priv999]

as many of you know, it’s the beginning of year 12. i’m getting my prelim marks back, and except for english and maths, i’m not passing anything. well since i did alright on my assignments i didn’t *fail* overall, but i’m still not fairing well.

I go to a really low ranking school, it’s extremely rare that someone gets a band 6. however, because i go to such a school, i’m eligible to a lot of university entry schemes for low income students who go to bad schools.

I joined this school in year 10, and i hated it on my first day, and i still hate it today. i really wanted to change to online school, but my parents were against the idea. i have absolutely no friends in this school, and i’ve got bad grades. i’m thinking of pivoting and taking some apprenticeship in TAFE and figuring it out from there.

My parents aren’t going to pay for tutoring. i take advanced english, standard math, chemistry (more like cheMYSTERY because i have no idea what’s going on), biology, HMS and modern history.

Because i take such hard subjects, i get scaled up (well at least i think that’s how that works), and because i go to a bad school i get extra bonus points (i’m pretty sure). so maybe i should just stick it out, try my best and just see what happens. i can probably bullshit my way into university because diversity or something. If i were to go to university, i would major in genetics and genomics, as that really interests me.

i didn’t drop out after year 10 because i really do love learning. I spent my time last year looking at the GCSE course for biology and chemistry, not because someone told me to, but because i love science, and the stupid booklets that a 10 year old could understand weren’t meeting my needs. I took elective history with mandatory stage 5 history which meant i had history every single day except Wednesday when my teacher didn’t work, and not once did i complain because i loved history. (i’m more of an ancient history person though)

I really thought i would do well in year 11. i put all my effort into it, it’s not like i have many friends so i spent a lot of time studying. i did all the practice papers, i did everything right. but i guess i didn’t put enough hours, i didn’t put enough energy, i didn’t care enough because i still failed.

I don’t know where to go from here, and i’m sick of crying about it. But also, i really don’t think I can spend another recess alone. I’ve done it all my life, and it never seems to get easier. any and all advice is welcome.

hey there id like to chip in about the self learning science part, as someone who didnt go to tutoring but still did well throughout high school. dont despair! your subjects are good in that you can still excel without tutoring, just need to find good accurate resources for learning. Also, in year 12 ur results reflect ur efforts a lot more because there are past papers for everything and you can study everything cause yk exactly what type of stuffs gonna pop up
For self studying, I highly recommend Science Ready on youtube ( chemistry and physics, not sure if theres bio) and Atomi for everything else. If your school doesn't offer atomi or edrolo then I would ask your parents to pay for a subscription as tutoring is a lot more expensive and offers far less return on investment. Catalyst chemistry has rundowns on chemistry on youtube for free, they made it piss easy to understand whereas my teachers explanation thoroughly confused tf out of me.

Also, dont lose that spark for science. it will take you far.

 

[99.95dreams]

hey!! i'm really sorry you are going through this i personally know what it feels like to put your 100% and nothing changes, and i know it sucks.

but i also know that it won't always be like that. i can't tell you to just 'work harder,' because i already know you are pushing your limits. instead, just keep trying.

maybe change up your study methods (i find that handwriting notes for chem and bio helps me memorise content better ) for history, just do lots of extra readings - read as many textbooks as you can, find as many quotes and contextual points as you can. not enough people realise the value of just reading their textbooks and what an impact it can make. you said you are more of an ancient history person - it's too late to switch now, but why don't you consider taking history extension? that way, you can focus on any topic in ancient history you like, and trust me, it is such an easy atar booster of a subject.

there is NOTHING wrong in dropping out and finding your passions through tafe - that is a completely viable option with so many career paths. i'm hesitant to encourage you to do so, however, because you say you love learning. even many of the toppers aren't able to love it truly. plus, you already have a set out university degree in mind, with the ambition of genetics and genomic (super cool btw).

the best advice i can give is, honestly, try to tough it out for just one more year. focus of what you really love (history and science from what i gather), drop a subject you don't. i know you feel lonely at school, and i know what a terrible experience it is. BUT i think you need to prioritise yourself, your ambitions, your future - as hard as it is, don't let the fact that you feel alone be one of the reasons you want to drop out.

also, like jane said, we do have a big bos community. i hope you can find some sort of friendship through us hang in there!!