should i drop legal or chem? (1 Viewer)

[grindtil2026]

hi i currently have 14 units so i want to drop a subject as soon as possible but im so torn between legal and chem..

for legal, i ranked 2/28 in year 11 (1st was just one mark more than me), my teacher is rly great and i find that since im good at memorisation and the essay writing style for legal seems to be rly easy for me, it doesnt take much time and effort into it (at least for y11, not sure how much worse itll get for hsc but..)
but i have no interest in pursuing anything law related in uni and i also find the content alot more boring compared to chem.

for chem, i ranked 17/80, but i was only one mark off from 10th place because there were 7 people who tied 10th place. so im actually not too far off from the top 10. i really enjoy chemistry and i want to go into dentistry or medicine, so i think it would def be helpful to have chem as i wont have to do alot of catch up in uni and some unis interstate have chem as a prerequisite so it opens up more options for me. however, i spend basically half my time studying for chem and i do feel there is so much more i have to do in comparison to legal. i also go to chemistry tutoring so its also taken alot of money and time investing into it.

if my legal results are better and dont require as much time or tutoring even though its more boring and isnt something im interested in for the future, is it better to keep legal? or is it better to do what i enjoy more although it takes up lots of time and money for not as high but still okay results...im also worried about scaling but i did hear it doesnt impact me much if im getting high scores anyways

i got a mark of 98/100 for my year 11 yearly report in legal but chem was 89/100 and that was scaled

also i havent rly considered this but should i drop from 4u to either 3u or 2u maths? my chem rank is lowkey better than my maths which is 20/88..and it also does take alot of time and tutoring too...

 

[WTbattleace]

I've had "don't let scaling dictate your subjects" drilled into me constantly. That's my take on it, I do what I enjoy.

Maybe raise your concerns with both your teachers/careers/year advisors?

 

[grindtil2026]

I've had "don't let scaling dictate your subjects" drilled into me constantly. That's my take on it, I do what I enjoy.

Maybe raise your concerns with both your teachers/careers/year advisors?

ive talked to my careers advisor and both my legal and chem teachers..but they both say ill do well in both regardless and its just a matter of what i want to do.. but im not sure bc its either chem which is harder + more time taken away from other subjects but i enjoy it more or legal which is easiier + more time for other subjects but boring...

 

[Geniusly]

ive talked to my careers advisor and both my legal and chem teachers..but they both say ill do well in both regardless and its just a matter of what i want to do.. but im not sure bc its either chem which is harder + more time taken away from other subjects but i enjoy it more or legal which is easiier + more time for other subjects but boring...

Keep in mind that results from Yr 11 have no impact on your performance in Yr 12. So whilst you did really well in Legal for Prelims, the rank doesn't carry over into HSC. As someone who has finished HSC, there will be many times when you can't be bothered to study due to stress, fatigue or boredom. The way I pushed through was because I loved all of my subjects (apart from English). In my opinion, I'd keep chem since you want to get into medicine or dentistry. If you are really passionate about that career, you'll be more motivated to study chem than legal, which will really help over HSC. Besides also 89/100 is certainly not a bad mark, just focus on what you need to improve. Chem is certainly a subject where, if you enjoy it and put in the work, results will come your way.

Good luck with your HSC regardless of the decision you make!

 

[coolcat6778]

just do physics

a balance of history and piss easy calcs

 

[grindtil2026]

Keep in mind that results from Yr 11 have no impact on your performance in Yr 12. So whilst you did really well in Legal for Prelims, the rank doesn't carry over into HSC. As someone who has finished HSC, there will be many times when you can't be bothered to study due to stress, fatigue or boredom. The way I pushed through was because I loved all of my subjects (apart from English). In my opinion, I'd keep chem since you want to get into medicine or dentistry. If you are really passionate about that career, you'll be more motivated to study chem than legal, which will really help over HSC. Besides also 89/100 is certainly not a bad mark, just focus on what you need to improve. Chem is certainly a subject where, if you enjoy it and put in the work, results will come your way.

Good luck with your HSC regardless of the decision you make!

im just worried that if i put all my effort into chemistry i wont have time for my other subjects and my ranks for them will go down...so i was thinking it might be better if i do legal so i can manage my time better...89/100 was also scaled and my actual test results were like 78% although the average was like 60 something

do u think its safer to do t1 exams and see how i go for them? or would that be a waste of time and make me perform worse since im preparing for so many exams

 

[Geniusly]

im just worried that if i put all my effort into chemistry i wont have time for my other subjects and my ranks for them will go down...so i was thinking it might be better if i do legal so i can manage my time better...89/100 was also scaled and my actual test results were like 78% although the average was like 60 something

do u think its safer to do t1 exams and see how i go for them? or would that be a waste of time and make me perform worse since im preparing for so many exams

At the end of the day it is up to you. I personally think that 14 units is way too many exams, but some people are able to cope with it. Maybe test it out for the next few weeks and if it is too difficult then a subject. I don't think that chem will take that much of your time even if you struggle with it, but again up to you. If you are more confident doing legal and think you will consistently get high marks then keep that.

 

[axoloty]

14 units is a lot, imagine both chem and legal not counting to your final hsc at all. Ultimately, the final marks aren't everything, but if you're aiming high (which it sounds like you are), then it kinda becomes a disadvantage having that much more work to do.

Your results look like you're in a position to do well in year 12 for either of them. So pick the one you enjoy. If you find the chem content more interesting, you're more likely to want to spend the time studying for it.

Also, rankings aren't necessarily the end of the world. If your chem cohort is strong, then being ranked top 20 could actually give you a better final hsc result than being top 5 in legal. If in doubt, ask your teachers or look at your school's past performances in the two subjects.

 

[flummi]

just do whatever subject you believe you'll perform better at in y12.
but id say keep chem since you seem to enjoy it more, so id therefore assume you'd be willing to improve your performance (even though its already good)

i have no experience with legal, but chem doesnt have an exponential difficulty increase with that jump from y11-12, it just requires consistent practise.

 

[melanie_o]

hi i currently have 14 units so i want to drop a subject as soon as possible but im so torn between legal and chem..

for legal, i ranked 2/28 in year 11 (1st was just one mark more than me), my teacher is rly great and i find that since im good at memorisation and the essay writing style for legal seems to be rly easy for me, it doesnt take much time and effort into it (at least for y11, not sure how much worse itll get for hsc but..)
but i have no interest in pursuing anything law related in uni and i also find the content alot more boring compared to chem.

for chem, i ranked 17/80, but i was only one mark off from 10th place because there were 7 people who tied 10th place. so im actually not too far off from the top 10. i really enjoy chemistry and i want to go into dentistry or medicine, so i think it would def be helpful to have chem as i wont have to do alot of catch up in uni and some unis interstate have chem as a prerequisite so it opens up more options for me. however, i spend basically half my time studying for chem and i do feel there is so much more i have to do in comparison to legal. i also go to chemistry tutoring so its also taken alot of money and time investing into it.

if my legal results are better and dont require as much time or tutoring even though its more boring and isnt something im interested in for the future, is it better to keep legal? or is it better to do what i enjoy more although it takes up lots of time and money for not as high but still okay results...im also worried about scaling but i did hear it doesnt impact me much if im getting high scores anyways

i got a mark of 98/100 for my year 11 yearly report in legal but chem was 89/100 and that was scaled

also i havent rly considered this but should i drop from 4u to either 3u or 2u maths? my chem rank is lowkey better than my maths which is 20/88..and it also does take alot of time and tutoring too...

Keep in mind that for most undergrad med/dent degrees, chemistry is a PREREQUISTIE (not all unis, but some). Especially due to the competitiveness of these degrees, having lots of doors open (in terms of meeting prerequistes) can work in your favour. Also chem in year 12 I found to be more rewarding compared to prelim.

 

[coolcat6778]

Keep in mind that for most undergrad med/dent degrees, chemistry is a PREREQUISTIE (not all unis, but some). Especially due to the competitiveness of these degrees, having lots of doors open (in terms of meeting prerequistes) can work in your favour. Also chem in year 12 I found to be more rewarding compared to prelim.

well our teacher sucks so idk how chem can be rewarding at all (❁´◡`❁)

 

[flummi]

well our teacher sucks so idk how chem can be rewarding at all (❁´◡`❁)

no chem teacher for any school can teach for shit

 

[melanie_o]

no chem teacher for any school can teach for shit

Cataylst chemistry comes in clutch!