1. Seymour College: SENIOR SCHOOL INFORMATION NIGHT 2016 Respect – Inspire - Excel

2. TIMELINE FOR THE EVENING 6.30Parents and students, Years 9 and 10: AUDITORIUM ‘Choosing a senior course’ Mr D. Rimes Assistant Principal 7-12 Seymour College 6.55School Based Apprenticeships – Daryl Webb 6.30 – 7.00Parents and students, Years 11 and 12 - an opportunity to seek information from a range of tertiary, TAFE, vocational providers: MAIN FOYER 7.10Parents and students Years 11 and 12: AUDITORIUM - ‘Applying for Tertiary Studies’ Ms Shioban Downing, La Trobe University - Karen Edwards Melbourne University Diploma in General Studies - WEP Exchange – Annie Taylor 7.10 – 8.30All parents and students: further opportunity to talk to tertiary/TAFE providers AND VCE/VCAL teachers about individual subjects and courses – MAIN FOYER

3. So Many Choices! As a Year 9 or 10 student about to choose your VCE or VCAL study program, the choices can seem a little overwhelming. There might be many questions you are asking yourself: * How do I know what I will want to do in 2 or 3 years? Study? Work? Travel? * What if I change my mind? * How do I know which studies are going to suit my interests? * How do I know which studies are best for me? * What if I don't get a good ATAR, and what is a good ATAR? * What do I need to do to get my VCE or VCAL Certificate? It is important to realise that the decisions you make now are not binding for life. There are many avenues to tertiary study and/or the job you want. It doesn't hurt however to do some investigation and planning so that you give yourself the best opportunity to be happy with your choices in the long run. (Mr Linton – Careers!!) Think about what you like, are good at and what field of study and/or work you are interested in pursuing. So many choices! The latest 2015 Federal Government statistics suggest 7-10 career changes and 29 job changes in a lifetime. 44% of jobs to become automated and 60% of current careers over the next 10 years to disappear!

4. Senior School Pathways VCE: Victorian Certificate of Education For students who may wish to access University or TAFE studies Provides a tertiary entrance ranking (ATAR) Can be done as an unscored course State wide certificate done over two years Leads to: Employment, traineeships, apprenticeships, TAFE and University studies Can include VET studies such as Automotive, Engineering, Building Hospitality for example. VCAL Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning For students seeking employment Cannot provide access to University study State wide certificate; one or two years Leads to: Employment, some apprenticeships and traineeships, some TAFE courses Must include work placements or VET studies VET Vocational Education and Training For students in either VCE or VCAL, seeking trade or technical training One day per week, either at Seymour College or at TAFE venues National qualification, usually Cert 2; two years Leads to: Trade or technical qualification Traineeships, TAFE studies, apprenticeships, employment Can count as credit towards a future apprenticeship

5. The Victorian Certificate of Education is the most commonly accepted way to gain entry into a tertiary or advanced certificate course. The VCE is designed to be undertaken in Years 11 & 12 but can be started in Year 10. Many Victorian Year 10 students undertake some VCE units. In total there are 129 VCE studies ranging across education fields including humanities, science, mathematics, technology, the arts and language as well as incorporating vocational studies At Seymour College we offer a wide range of VCE and VET units. Top 10 VCE subjects 201 (i.e. biggest enrolment): English (including English Second Language) 47,411 Further Mathematics 27,668 Mathematical Methods (CAS) 16,532 Psychology 16,024 Health and Human Development 13,099 Business Management 12,470 Biology 10,968 Physical Education 9,658 Chemistry 9,089 Carly Burgess: Law student Legal Studies 8,332 Taken up a job offer with a large Melbourne based law firm after completing VCE at Seymour *All offered at Seymour College! College Victorian Certificate of Education

6. VCE Structure VCE studies are either: Units 1, 2, (Typically Year 11) Units 3, 4 (Typically Year 12) One semester in length. Units 1 & 2 can be taken as single semester units. Units 3 & 4 must be taken as a sequence over the whole year. A VCE program will generally consist of 20 – 24 units taken over two years. At Seymour College, students usually do 22. You may do a Unit 3 /4 sequence in Year 11 but remember the level of difficulty is greater. Your VCE subject selections may be limited by timetable constraints. Students are recommended to choose broadly-based courses in Year 11.

7. VCE Pathways Options The VCE can be completed with SCORED or NON SCORED Assessment. For the Non Scored Option: There is no change to Year 11 which is assessed by the award of an S or N result. In Year 12, students complete units and outcomes for the award of S or N results however there will be no SAC / SAT grades given and students will not sit EXTERNAL EXAMS. This option is for students who have no intention of progressing to Tertiary Studies in the year following Year 12. No ATAR will be awarded for unscored students. These students will still be awarded their VCE Certificate. Students are strongly recommended to sit Exams.

8. How do I get my VCE? You must satisfactorily complete at least 16 units. At least 3 units from the English group which includes either a sequence of unit 3&4 English or Literature. Students who do not complete units 3&4 English will not be eligible for an ATAR score. Three sequences of units 3&4 studies in addition to the sequence chosen for your compulsory English. These sequences may include VCE studies and/or VCE VET programs. * A minimum 80% attendance requirement Maths teachers will provide counselling as to the appropriate VCE level Maths for all students selecting Maths units.

9. VCE Assessment VCE studies are assessed both internally (in school) and externally (through VCAA). During Unit 1/2 all assessment is internal, whilst in Unit 3/4VCAA assessment is conducted both internally via SACs and SATs and externally via Exams set by the VCAA. Students will be assessed at the end of each VCE unit as either: “S” (Satisfactory completion) “N” (Unit not completed) Assessment tasks within units are graded from A+ - E SACs and SATs in Units 3 and 4 are graded numerically. Work which fails minimum requirements will be ungraded Work not submitted for assessment is given NA Internal Exams are run each semester in Units 1&2 Unit 3&4 coursework assessments are passed to the VCAA and there is an external Exam component for score assessed students. External exams are run by the VCAA state wide and marked independently of schools. There have been no mid year external exams since 2014.

10. Scaling & the ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank) The VCAA award study scores to students who satisfactorily complete units 3&4 of a VCE study. These scores give students a score out of 50 based on assessment tasks and examinations. VTAC takes these individual study scores and applies a scaling process to adjust them based on the overall performance in that study. The ATAR is developed from an aggregate made up of English, the next best three permissible subjects and 10% of the fifth and/or sixth ATAR subject scores. In all, up to six scores may be used to calculate this average and provide a ranking of students. An ATAR of 50 means that 50% of students achieved a better result than you did.

11. Subject scaling & the ATAR Scaling Adjustment for the ATAR 2015 State Average 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 Biology 19 25 30 36 41 46 50 Chemistry 23 29 34 39 44 47 50 Health & HD16 21 26 31 37 43 50 Physical Ed.17 22 27 32 38 44 50 Mathematics Further 18 23 27 33 38 44 50 Methods 21 28 34 40 45 49 51 Specialist 27 34 41 46 50 53 55

13. What does all this mean? Remember, there is no pass or fail ATAR. Every VCE student who receives an ATAR has successfully completed the VCE. An ATAR of 50 is not the pass rank, nor is it the average rank. An ATAR of 50 means you have performed better than 50% of the state age cohort. The ATAR represents your overall performance across all studies, not individual studies. To get a good ATAR, you should therefore pick studies which interest you and in which you can perform well. Be wary of choosing VCE studies only because you think they will maximise your ATAR!

14. Fast tracking VCE Year 10 students who elect to do a VCE subject in place of an elective choice gain the potential benefit of ending Year 12 with an extra Unit 3/4 sequence. Having a 6 th subject will contribute directly towards the ATAR as either one of the Primary 4 or as a 10% increment. -E.g. Year 10 = Core + 1 Elective + VCE Units 1&2 Year 11= 5 VCE Units 1&2 + VCE Units 3&4 Year 12= 5 VCE Units 3&4 *Fast track units will be offered on a numbers basis and subject to suitability based on results.

15. Tertiary Entrance 2019 Students beginning VCE in 2017 will begin tertiary studies in 2019. Prerequisites and entry requirements for all tertiary courses in 2019 have already been published in VICTER. This is available for download off the VTAC site. http://www.vtac.edu.au/pdf/publications/prerequisites-2019v2.pdf

16. Example: VICTER Prerequisites

17. Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning The Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) is an alternative certificate to the VCE and is a hands-on option for Years 11and 12 students. The VCAL gives you: * practical work-related experience * employability skills * literacy and numeracy skills * personal skills that are important for life and work. SEYMOUR COLLEGE STUDENTS STUDY: Intermediate VCAL - Year 11 Senior VCAL Year - 12 STRANDS COMPRISING OF: Literacy and Numeracy Skills Industry Specific Skills Work Related Skills Personal Development Skills a VET component - eg Business, Automotive, Engineering, Building, Hospitality, ICT

18. Vetis Vocational Education & Training Students at Seymour College may elect to do a range of Vocational Courses typically run either at school or off Campus. Examples of VET include: -Certificate 11 in Automotive Technology -Certificate 11 in Engineering Studies -Certificate 11 in Building & Construction -Certificate 11 in Sport & Recreation -Certificate 11 in Hospitality These courses run 1 day per week, involve external materials costs which are documented in the VET Handbook and may involve some travel. These courses do provide direct VCE credits and do contribute towards the ATAR score. They are also a great way of getting experience and a qualification in a trade area which is Nationally recognised.

19. Timeline Year 10 & 11 students have received VCE / VCAL /VET information and 2017 Handbooks in the mail. All year 10 students will be counselled by Senior School Staff and assisted with Subject Selections & Pathways. Families will have the opportunity to discuss pathways via interviews starting weeks of Sept 5th & 12 th scheduled through Compass School Manager Course selections will be completed using Google forms via hyperlink. These will be done initially as indicative selections to be used to determine final subject offerings. https://goo.gl/forms/62CGhup2rblBHUqg2 Year 9 students have been mailed Handbooks and will be given elective selections and fast tracking options before the end of Term 3.

20. Places for information VICTORIAN TERTIARY ADMISSIONS CENTRE  http://www.vtac.edu.au/ http://www.vtac.edu.au/  http://www.vtac.edu.au/CourseSearch/searchguide.htm VICTORIAN CURRICULUM ASSESSMENT AUTHORITY http://www.vtac.edu.au/CourseSearch/searchguide.htm  http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/ http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/  http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/vce/index.html http://www.vcaa.vic.edu.au/vce/index.html SUBJECT TEACHERS & THE CAREERS ROOM And if it still doesn’t make sense, try:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_Certificate_of_Education http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_Certificate_of_Education  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7W2_x53Bns How VCE works! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i7W2_x53Bns