Is it going to be tough getting 95+ ATAR at a school ranked in the 150-200 (1 Viewer)

Sokc

New Member
Joined
Sep 20, 2016
Messages
19
Gender
Male
HSC
2018
I currently go to a school that isn't that great but has recently become partially selective (around 2010ish). Although we are improving as a school I am woriried that due to our schools rank I will be unable to get my desired atar of 95+ as the mainstream people will weigh us down. Will it be possible for me to realistically achieve my goals at this school or am I aiming to high and will only end up disappointed?
 

jazz519

Moderator
Moderator
Joined
Feb 25, 2015
Messages
1,955
Location
Sydney
Gender
Male
HSC
2016
Uni Grad
2021
Yes it is possible I think there was a user on this forum called porcupinetree who got 99.90 while attending a 300 ranked school
 

turntaker

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 29, 2013
Messages
3,908
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
2015
my sis got 97 in a rank 480s school so yea
 

giabaoftdt

New Member
Joined
Mar 22, 2016
Messages
7
Gender
Male
HSC
2017
Highly depends on you mate, there were 5-6 people got 93~96 ATAR at my school, it ranked ~330th
 

chickencoop

Active Member
Joined
Aug 31, 2016
Messages
105
Gender
Male
HSC
2016
personally speaking, i attend a school which in my HSC year was ranked around the 150's and i managed to come out with an ATAR just slightly above 95. I remember also asking the same question u did before entering the HSC (since my school is also partially selective- ish), with a major concern on the mainstream students weighing me down.

However, what you need to understand as i did at the time; is that going to a lower ranked school does not mean you will get a bad ATAR, it just simply implies a higher importance for you to rank higher internally, specially if you consider your cohort dead weight.

Have the mentality that if you are the best out of your entire school, then you should rank 1st in all your subjects without trouble, and i can promise you that if you rank first in all your subjects and continue your efforts throughout the external examinations, you will definitely get an ATAR above 95... Maybe even above 98 if you do extremely well externally + decent scaling subjects.

Happy studying!
 

EarthSci34

Good grief.
Joined
Oct 19, 2014
Messages
284
Location
New South Wales
Gender
Male
HSC
2015
I currently go to a school that isn't that great but has recently become partially selective (around 2010ish). Although we are improving as a school I am woriried that due to our schools rank I will be unable to get my desired atar of 95+ as the mainstream people will weigh us down. Will it be possible for me to realistically achieve my goals at this school or am I aiming to high and will only end up disappointed?
This was exactly the scenario my when I took my HSC exams. I ended up with an ATAR higher than 95 :D don't underestimate the mainstream classes- back at my school one of the high achievers came from one of those classes :)
 

Zoinked

Beast
Joined
Nov 30, 2014
Messages
540
Gender
Male
HSC
2016
I currently go to a school that isn't that great but has recently become partially selective (around 2010ish). Although we are improving as a school I am woriried that due to our schools rank I will be unable to get my desired atar of 95+ as the mainstream people will weigh us down. Will it be possible for me to realistically achieve my goals at this school or am I aiming to high and will only end up disappointed?
It is definitely possible, the hardest part is staying focused among the other students who honestly don't give a fuck. At my school, 60%ish of our bands were 3s and 4s, having all these kids who detest the hsc and belittle you for working hard are what will weigh you down. If you can ignore them, you can get that 95 atar.
 

the_matrix

Active Member
Joined
Nov 1, 2014
Messages
171
Location
38th Parallel North
Gender
Male
HSC
2016
My tutor went to Cabramatta High School and achieved 97 ATAR, also got into USyd Psychology and did 2 masters.. so yes you can if you're willing to.

Where there's a will, there's a way.
 

chickencoop

Active Member
Joined
Aug 31, 2016
Messages
105
Gender
Male
HSC
2016
My tutor went to Cabramatta High School and achieved 97 ATAR, also got into USyd Psychology and did 2 masters.. so yes you can if you're willing to.

Where there's a will, there's a way.
Any way i can contact your tutor? im planning on USYD B. Psychology too and i asked one of the past students who was answering general Q&A's about how hard it is to stay in the degree and he responded with "Theres roughly 2000 students to begin with, and by 4th (honours) year, theres only around 100 left. i would really appreciate it if i could ask your tutor about his experiences and for tips etc!
 

atarguide

New Member
Joined
Feb 1, 2017
Messages
5
Gender
Undisclosed
HSC
2017
I currently go to a school that isn't that great but has recently become partially selective (around 2010ish). Although we are improving as a school I am woriried that due to our schools rank I will be unable to get my desired atar of 95+ as the mainstream people will weigh us down. Will it be possible for me to realistically achieve my goals at this school or am I aiming to high and will only end up disappointed?
Yes. It's possible for very high ATARs to be achieved in any school, as long as you focus on getting the highest possible marks AND outperforming your subject cohorts. Scaling is the main problem with attending a low-ranked school, but it shouldn't matter as long as your own personal performance is extraordinary.
 

shumphrey

Member
Joined
Oct 21, 2016
Messages
74
Location
Tom Alegounaria's dungeon
Gender
Male
HSC
2017
go to a school with similar rank and always 1-2 people in the 97-98 ATAR range with several others in the 93-96 range so yeah its possible but those people study really hard, also if your at a low ranking school theres a chance the teachers will not cover the syllabus in enough detail and only intend for the class to pass not excel--> find online notes/ resources and work on stuff yourself, i have to do it for 3 of my subjects:(
 

zhu0902

New Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2017
Messages
23
Gender
Male
HSC
2019
yes, of course you can, i know someone got 98 in ranking 200 school, she is a really hard working student. So if you try your best u can do it
 

GeorgeYLin

New Member
Joined
Feb 10, 2017
Messages
24
Gender
Male
HSC
2016
You'll need to be 1st (or close to that) in all of your subjects, but it's very possible!!
 

infiniteknowledge

New Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2016
Messages
12
Gender
Male
HSC
2013
My school had around 4 students who got 99 and around 20 who got 90+ from a cohort of 150.

School ranking was around 250 so yes - you can definitely get 95!
 

boredsatan

Member
Joined
Mar 23, 2017
Messages
572
Gender
Male
HSC
1998
It's definitely possible to do well at any school if you work hard enough!
 

Users Who Are Viewing This Thread (Users: 0, Guests: 1)

Top