Meriden has extensive experience in nurturing students to become accomplished and well-rounded citizens, and the HSC has proven to be an appropriate pathway that leads to local, national and international opportunities.
Listed below are some of the reasons that Meriden has deliberately chosen the HSC as its only Year 12 credential.
The HSC offers more than 110 courses...
making it accessible and flexible to all students. This wide choice enables students of all abilities to succeed and achieve their potential because it allows them to tailor their subject choices to their interests, talents and aspirations.
Students who are unsure of their future career or who are generalists are able to compile a broad study pattern, while other students are able to specialise.
The HSC also caters very well for able students because subject areas can be studied in depth. Many girls at Meriden have a clear idea of their academic strengths and interests by Year 10 and wish to specialise in their subject choices in Years 11 and 12. The HSC allows this. For example, girls who are interested in pursuing a career in Science can choose up to four courses (7 units) of Science in Year 12. Linguists can focus on foreign languages; creative students can emphasise Music, Drama, Visual Arts, Design and so on. Extension subjects are available in many areas. In other words, the HSC allows for a depth of study if the student so wishes.
The HSC is an internationally-recognised qualification for students who have successfully completed secondary schooling in NSW. HSC results are accepted by overseas universities for their clarity and academic rigour. Each year, Meriden graduates are accepted into elite overseas universities; recently, these universities have included Harvard, Cambridge and Seoul National University. Australian universities also recognise the value of the NSW HSC and prepare their first-year university courses around the knowledge which has been acquired through HSC study.
Importantly, the HSC is a one-year course.
While a Preliminary course is completed in Year 11, a student’s final HSC marks are calculated using only their Year 12 results. This allows students the opportunity to get to know the course content and expectations in Year 11 before high-stakes learning occurs in Year 12.
The HSC assessment schedule is structured to include 50% internal assessments, which are undertaken throughout the year, with the other 50% of a student’s final HSC result coming from the HSC examinations. These internal assessments allow students to track their progress in a meaningful way at a measured pace, while also catering for students who do not perform well in examinations.
The HSC is a NSW credential that is recognised worldwide.
The Head Office of the NSW Educational Standards Authority (NESA) is based in Sydney which means that there is easy access to assistance if there is ever a problem with an HSC result. Any problems, and these are rare, are dealt with immediately, and resolved. We are proudly an Australian school and we choose the HSC because it is a worthwhile, reliable, Australian qualification for our girls.