The exams are almost upon our year 12 students, and just in time a snapshot has been released of what this year's cohort of students looks like.
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Joshua and Emily are the two most common names of students taking part in the HSC in NSW this year.
Calrossy's Emily Madirazza sure reflects that having a, surprisingly, common name certainly didn't mean she had common goals.
Good luck to all of the students, we all did this together and it will be fine in the end, wherever we end up.
- Emily Madirazza
The HSC student is currently working towards studying genetics at ANU.
"I'm surprised, because it doesn't really seem like a common name, I don't know many Emilys, but it must be more common than most," she laughed.
For Tamworth High School's Georgia Holbonbe-Nancarrow, she was surprised to hear her VET course was more popular with girls than with boys.
Undertaking a Business Studies VET course alongside her other subjects, she wasn't surprised that it was the second most-popular VET course in the state.
"I didn't expect it to be more popular for girls than boys - it's crazy to be honest. In my class it's pretty even, but in the cohort overall there are more girls enrolled than boys," she said.
"But I actually met two girls from last year that did it, and they talked me through it and were my mentors. So it's doesn't surprise me that it's so popular overall, it's a good thing."
I didn't expect it to be more popular for girls than boys - it's crazy to be honest.
- Georgia Holbonbe-Nancarrow
A total of 1607 students are currently undertaking their HSC in the New England this year, against a backdrop of more than 60,000 students in the state.
Reflecting on their common obstacles this year, both girls say their biggest challenge was having time out of the classroom working remotely.
In response to the pandemic stress, Education Minister Sarah Mitchell announced this week the NSW Government is continuing to increase its wellbeing support.
"With the HSC written exams starting on October 20, we are continuing to remind students to look after their mental health, recognise their resilience and reduce anxiety around the HSC, as part of the Stay Healthy HSC campaign," Ms Mitchell said.
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Originally launched in May as a partnership with Reachout Australia, the campaign has a new hub to connect students, schools, and families with more information on looking after their wellbeing.
But the thing to remember is, according to Emily and Georgia, you are all in this together.
"Good luck to all of the students, we all did this together and it will be fine in the end, wherever we end up," Emily concluded.
Resources for students and parents can be found here.
