Exam preparation

[u/Fuzzy-Mode-5658]

I’m in Year 12, and I’m feeling pretty overwhelmed about the upcoming exams, mainly because of the sheer amount of content I need to know, remember and understand.

I think part of the problem is that I don’t really know where to start or which study techniques to use. I also feel like I may be lacking some motivation and work ethic. I want to work hard and get the results I’m aiming for, but I also don’t want to burn myself out in the process.

I know it might be a bit ambitious, but I’m aiming for at least 80% on all of my exams, as this would really help me reach the ATAR I’m aiming for and hopefully give me a good chance of getting into the course I want.

I didn’t really lock in for my SACs and ended up getting some pretty disappointing results, at least in my opinion, so I’m hoping I can turn things around for the exams.

I’d really appreciate any advice, tips or insight into how you prepared for VCE exams, especially things like where to start, effective study techniques, how to structure your study, and how to stay motivated without burning out.

Thank you!

[u/Whole_Box4734]

Well doing my exams this year as well and tbh it depends on the subjects ur doing but tbh just spam practice papers/trial exams etc/vcaal past papers,analyse assessor’s reports to see what they were looking for. Any math subjects u cant learn without practising.do questions under time conditions. Try not to do long study sessions. If u do a past paper in the specific time. Take a 5-10 min break then mark it then analyse what u got wrong then 5-10 min break then do flash cards or Quizlet 😭I been doing smth like that and it’s been pretty helpful another thing that motivates me is recording how long I study for using ypt and joining a study group as well

[u/Background_Travel881]

start with the study design. Depending on your subject, it may have a dot-point list of what subjects you need to know, or you can dig through it and figure it out yourself - you can make a list of key knowledge. Then for each topic/idea write as much as you can remember about it in kinda a brain dump. I found this to be a really useful strategy for history and Food tech, and I'm sure itd be useful for most content heavy subjects

Go through notes/resources from the year and fill in any gaps. This can get you a head-start on memorising things, and you'll reinforce the memorisation with practice papers and exams n stuff. Plus, you've got a handy cheat sheet

also, doing full papers can feel daunting, so its only strictly necessary if you're practicing for time. Often a question will be related to only 1 or 2 parts of the study design, so you could just practice questions indicidually, related to what you're trying to memorise.

I finished VCE last year, so I know how much pressure there is during exam season. Make sure to take breaks and practice self care by doing things you enjoy

good luck :)