What's 4U like? (1 Viewer)

[lala2]

Is it true that to do 4U well you need to be a High Distinction/Distinction winning person in the UNSW Maths comp? And how well in your Year 11 2 and 3 Unit papers do you need to do in order to stand a good chance of doing 4U reasonably ok, e.g. 80% and over?

I'm also concerned I'm not in the class where the potential 4U people might be. Were any of you like that, and still managed to do 4U?

Thanx!

 

[withoutaface]

I got 86% in my 2u HSC trial last year, and I am currently doing 4u and doing reasonably well (84/120 & 2nd/17) in my 4u trial, so I guess it really depends on how much work you're willing to put in. Apart from 15 people from the 2u accelerated class we also had 2 people come up from year 11 3u, so I wouldn't worry too much about not being in the 'right' class.

 

[steverulz55]

UNSW maths comps have nothing to do with 4U and 3U. It really depends whether your interests and ability lies in maths - if you think you can handle 3U pretty easily then take up 4U. If you're in it for the "scaling" then forget about it - you probably won't do well in 4U.

I got like 98% or something in my 2U yearly in yr11, and something like 95% in my 3U so if your results lie around there then you have no problem tackling 4U.

 

[Estel]

My teacher says 90% in 3U, a love of mathematics, and insanity are prerequisites for 4U.

 

[mervvyn]

My teacher says 90% in 3U, a love of mathematics, and insanity are prerequisites for 4U.

something along those lines - for me it was the insanity that did the trick
if you can handle 3u so far, then have a go at 4u - being able to get the concepts, not including stupid mistakes.
if you are worried about whether you're in the right class or not, talk to your maths teacher/head of maths about it, let them know you're interested and that you want to try it (assuming you do)

 

[Constip8edSkunk]

.any decent 2/3 unit mark in yr11 would be enough AS LONG AS YOU ARE COMMITTED in yr 12 ...lotsa ppl bum around in yr 11 and despite what they say about maths u can pick it up pretty quickly if you have understood, albeit a bit unlearly, most of the yr11 and pre yr11 stuff. the only thing that matter is practicing alot.

half of my grade did 4U ... more than half of them hated maths and did it for the scaling and most were rewarded in the end. interest helps but by no means is it necessary for 4U maths

also none of the math math comps have any correlation to 4u results unless u r at the very top(ie. medalling in AMC and consistently getting prizes in UNSW)... heaps of ppl got better marks then me in 4U when i did better in AMC..

 

[Slidey]

I'd say the only Distinction I get in the UNSW maths comp will be this year and/or next year.

My teacher told me he had a guy who was getting 70%'s consistently in 3u yr 11, but went ahead and did 4u and did very well.

You can't categorise and say "You meet a cut-off, you should do it. You don't meet a cut-off, sorry, don't do it." (there is of course a trend, where people with lower scores should be less inclined to do 4u maths)

It also depends on how much effort you are willing to put it. For me, it won't be as hard because I've already started (and finished!) some 4u topics.

Perhaps interest and love of mathematics is the most important part because skill follows from this, not bynecessity, but by learning.

 

[:: ck ::]

i almost didn get into 4unit coz i didn try hard in the first term of yr 11

then i got pissed and studied... and got 98% for 3u half yrliez ... then i got allowed in

since then ive studied maths properly... and i have done quite well

dont worry if u dont think ur up to standard... just have a go... if u cant handle it... u can always drop it...

 

[mojako]

UNSW maths comps have nothing to do with 4U and 3U. It really depends whether your interests and ability lies in maths - if you think you can handle 3U pretty easily then take up 4U. If you're in it for the "scaling" then forget about it - you probably won't do well in 4U.

I got like 98% or something in my 2U yearly in yr11, and something like 95% in my 3U so if your results lie around there then you have no problem tackling 4U.

I agree with you.
but you need to be getting about 85% in the Extension1 course.

 

[ngai]

u need to be interested in it
ppl can fail 3u...ie <50% in the yr11 prelim, then go on and do 4u
but if u hate it, then ur not gonna get good marks

 

[Slidey]

I agree with you.
but you need to be getting about 85% in the Extension1 course.

I disagree. Sometimes you'd be suprised how well people can do when they try very hard, ignoring how they've done in the past. I think a cut-off of 85% is too high.

 

[ngai]

oh and one more thing
unsw math comp is no indication of 4u ability
ppl can get nothing from 3 attempts, and get top marks in 4u

 

[turtle_2468]

oh and one more thing
unsw math comp is no indication of 4u ability
ppl can get nothing from 3 attempts, and get top marks in 4u

UNSW comp you're allowed to bring in books anyway

 

[mojako]

I disagree. Sometimes you'd be suprised how well people can do when they try very hard, ignoring how they've done in the past. I think a cut-off of 85% is too high.

I'll lower down my cutoff to 80%
I assumed that most people don't show a big improvement in the amount of time and effort they put in when they get to year 12.

UNSW maths comp.. is that the same as the "Australian Mathematics Competition"? (my certificate from last yr shows its Westpac)

I'm also concerned I'm not in the class where the potential 4U people might be. Were any of you like that, and still managed to do 4U?

Don't worry, you'll be fine
About 5 people moved to the 4U class from 3U in my school, and some do quite well.
But a guy who was one of the top 3U students does really bad in 4U (and doesnt do really well in 3U either), so it all comes down to how much effort u put into the subject.

The best way to do well in 4U is to do as many questions as you can, on a variety of topics and from a variety of sources. (something I havent done yet haha)

 

[velox]

im doing 4u, well should be. And im doing crap in yr11. It depends on how much you can commit to it in yr12 imo.

 

[kimmeh]

meh..i'm doing 4u maths for the second time and i only get credit for the maths comp i think that if you consider even taking on ME2, then you must have some confidence in yourself. ME2 is NOT a breezy subject. No one will tell you that they find it easy or they wont study and get good marks0if they do, they are full of it. it needs alot commitment and i spend most of my time on it than all of my subjects combined. slide rule says he's seen consistency, which is true. i was a consistent person with my marks of about mids 70s and i came top 15 and i got offered to do ME2 in the beggining. I think beleive that motivation, consistency andwillingness to sacrifice will lead you to great places with ME2. Dont even bother if you're not going to do at least an hour and a half of maths a night.

 

[Rorix]

Dont even bother if you're not going to do at least an hour and a half of maths a night.

:O :O :O :O :O

 

[lala2]

Hi everybody!

Thanks for your advice...I seriously did sooooo badly in the 2U paper (82.5%) but I've been getting freak results all year in topic tests from like 76% (that was bcos I hated the topic really badly) up to 98% so yeah....not that consistent but putting that aside...

For the 3U paper, I missed out on full marks by one mark (dammit!) but it's kinda worrying me though because the 3U exam was just Year 12 2U work (sequences and series, locus) and some easy 3U work (induction and geometrical applications of calculus) but do you think that is sufficient to prepare me for 4U (like, is it too easy?)?

Also, will a ranking of about 18th out of 100 3U people be decent?

Thanks!

 

[mojako]

Also, will a ranking of about 18th out of 100 3U people be decent?

yes.
btw what topic do u hate?
just to get an idea of what topics u like and dislike (and hopefully i can relate that to the 4U topics).

 

[mervvyn]

who knows what will be sufficient... if you're interested, have a go for a term, get a feel for the course and the materials - it won't kill you - and if it doesn't work out, wel, you tried.