After 13 years of formal education, two dozen school reports, countless arguments over homework and, in many cases, buckets of shed tears, the day of reckoning has arrived.
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More than 76,000 students will today receive their all-important Higher School Certificate exam results.
But, are they really all-important?
Is the future course of these young people’s next half-century or so truly destined by these much-anticipated numbers?
Well, yes and no.
A wonderful Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) may give a student the fast-track to the career of their dreams.
There are many studious young people who pass successfully from secondary to tertiary education, plough with dedication through their degree, then immediately embark on their chosen profession.
But how many of us have changed paths on the way? We all know someone: the hairdresser who became an industrial chemist, the carpenter who became a movie star, even the trainee accountant who became a newspaper editor.
Human beings are smart enough to reassess based on new information. For many – even those who scored well in their HSC – a gap year has become a mandatory part of coming of age.
An opportunity to experience travel, independence, employment, or simply smell the roses and contemplate the future with a stress-free brain.
And further study isn’t mandatory for success. We all know people who aren’t “book smart” but are intelligent, informed and successful.
The message is: Very few decisions or actions in life are truly irreversible. If you change your mind, you can almost always change your course and achieve your goals.
The HSC is one such example. There are numerous pathways to further study and career opportunities if the ATAR arrives and is a dismal disappointment.
Regardless of the result, we congratulate you.
