Peter Bannan
THE nervous wait for VCE students is finally over, with Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) results released yesterday.
With his mind set on a career in dentistry, Daniel Hughes has become Swan Hill College’s dux for 2019.
Receiving an ATAR score of 99.75, Daniel said he was shocked when he heard the news.
Daniel said when he received the score, he thought it was too high.
“I was aiming higher, but not that high, so it didn’t feel real and almost like they’d made a mistake or something,” he said.
Meanwhile, for the second consecutive year, a member from the Ryan family has become the dux of St Mary MacKillop College.
This year, Greta Ryan was the school’s top student with an ATAR of 97.5.
Last year, the dux was her brother Paddy Ryan.
On hearing the news yesterday morning, Greta said she was surprised.
Adding to his list of achievements, earlier this year Daniel won the Premier’s VCE Awards Study Awards for his study score of 50 in physical education last year.
This year, Daniel studied English, chemistry, biology, mathematical methods and psychology, with study scores above 40 in all subjects but one.
The highest study score a student can get in any subject is 50.
He also completed physical education and further mathematics last year.
Following his year 12 exams, Daniel said he had walked out feeling he had done “okay”.
But, said the year had gone quicker than he thought it would.
“It wasn’t too bad with all the social things and that sort of thing around year 12,” he said.
“I think that’s what helped kept me pushing through.
“I’d like to thank all my friends and the teachers for their help they’ve given me over the years.”
Daniel is hoping to study a dentistry course at La Trobe University in Bendigo next year.
In year 10, Daniel gained work experience with Swan Hill Dental Group, which he said had sparked an interest in a career in the industry.
“How they were helping people and improving their confidence,” he said.
This year, Greta studied English, psychology, mathematical methods, physical education and Japanese, receiving three study scores over 40.
She also completed biology last year.
Greta said year 12 had been stressful, but said she still enjoyed the year.
“I always liked school,” she said.
“It was stressful at times with SACs (school assessed coursework) and stuff when I wasn’t prepared, but I got through it all.
“Then with exams, I wasn’t happy during that period, but obviously I was a bit harsh on myself.”
Next year, Greta hoped to study a Bachelor of Occupational Therapy (OT) at Deakin University in Geelong.
Swan Hill College principal Andrew Sartori said the school was “super happy” with the school’s results.
“We’ve got a really good spread going through,” he said.
“Both from some really high scores and from students who maybe would have gotten a lower score, but just worked super hard and turned that into a better score.”
Minister for Education James Merlino congratulated all the students, most of who received their results online.
This year, 49,324 students will graduate with their VCE — a record completion rate of 98.1 per cent. A record number of students — 13,942 — completed their Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL).
This year, nearly 21,969 study scores of 40 or more were awarded.
“For some students, this may not be the result you wished for but just remember that your results do not define you. There are many pathways to success including higher education, TAFE, traineeships and full-time work,” Mr Merlino said.
