VCE
Inspiring and Supportive
In Years 11 and 12 we offer the Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE). Our VCE students flourish in a supportive and inspiring atmosphere. Every opportunity is provided for them to achieve their personal and academic best through the VCE curriculum, informed by the pedagogy of Rudolf Steiner.
Teaching staff build on their long-standing connection with many of the students and their strong understanding of and commitment to the needs of each individual. This facilitates deep and inspiring engagement with their particular subject areas. Guided by these expert mentors, students are afforded great opportunities for participation and personal success.
Our VCE students are held in reverence by students in younger years, and they enjoy the responsibilities and privileges of being the seniors in the school. The challenges of these years are met with skill and determination. They find many benefits arise from our smaller class sizes and supportive community, including the deepening of friendships with peers and the dedicated attention and guidance of teachers.
Our highest endeavour must be to develop free human beings, who are able out of their own initiative to impart purpose and direction to their lives.
Rudolf Steiner
On this page
Looking to the Future
In Year 11 and 12 students begin to turn their gaze beyond school to the future and the wider world. We encourage them to find a balance of subjects, taking into consideration their interests and talents, their plans for the future, and areas they would like to develop within themselves.
We guide our students to choose subjects that inspire their curiosity and also meet the requirements for entrance to university, TAFE or other further training. We also encourage them to maintain enough breadth in their studies to allow for a range of career possibilities into the future.
Our VCE Program
The VCE program offers students a good range of subjects across Art/Humanities and Maths/Sciences. At MRSS we offer 15 VCE subjects and advocate for a general course of study to keep tertiary pathways open.
VCE subjects are made up of Units 1, 2, 3 and 4. Each unit is a semester or half a year in length. Students may study Unit 1 or 2 of a subject as a stand-alone unit, however Units 3 and 4 must be studied in sequence.
Students will normally complete 22 units over two years. To obtain their VCE they must satisfactorily complete 16 units, including at least three units from the English group (English, English (EAL), Literature or English Language) and at least three other Units 3 and 4 sequences.
At MRSS students choose 6 subjects per semester in Year 11, and 5 subjects per semester in Year 12. Students are strongly encouraged to choose subjects from both Arts/Humanities and Maths/Sciences.
What is the ATAR?
The Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) is a figure that reflects student achievement relative to everyone else in Year 12. The ATAR allows tertiary institutions to competitively rank students who have completed different combinations of VCE studies. It is calculated by VTAC solely for use by institutions for admission into some tertiary courses.
ATAR uses study scores from Unit 3 and 4 VCE studies and, where appropriate, VCE VET programs.
To qualify for an ATAR a student must:
- qualify for the VCE, and
- achieve study scores in at least four permissible Unit 3 and 4 VCE studies, including one from the English group.
VCE Subject Choices 2024
| Year 11 | Year 12 |
|---|---|
| ENGLISH Unit 1 & 2 | ENGLISH Unit 3 & 4 |
| LITERATURE Unit 1 & 2 | LITERATURE Unit 3 & 4 |
| BIOLOGY Unit 1 & 2 | BIOLOGY Unit 3 & 4 |
| CHEMISTRY Unit 1 & 2 | CHEMISTRY Unit 3 & 4 |
| PHYSICS Unit 1 & 2 | PHYSICS Unit 3 & 4 |
| FOUNDATION MATHEMATICS Unit 1 & 2 | FOUNDATION MATHEMATICS Unit 3 & 4 |
| GENERAL MATHEMATICS Unit 1 & 2 | GENERAL MATHEMATICS Unit 3 & 4 |
| MATHEMATICAL METHODS Unit 1 & 2 | MATHEMATICAL METHODS Unit 3 & 4 |
| SPECIALIST MATHEMATICS Unit 1 & 2 | SPECIALIST MATHEMATICS Unit 3 & 4 |
| ART Creative Practice Unit 1 & 2 | ART Creative Practice Unit 3 & 4 |
| ART Making & Exhibiting Unit 1 & 2 | ART Making & Exhibiting Unit 3 & 4 |
| GEOGRAPHY Unit 1 & 2 | GEOGRAPHY Unit 3 & 4 |
| HISTORY Unit 1 & 2 | HISTORY Unit 3 & 4 |
| DRAMA Unit 1 | DRAMA Unit 3 & 4 |
| LOTE | GERMAN Unit 1 & 2 | LOTE | GERMAN Unit 3 & 4 |
| LOTE | FRENCH Unit 1 & 2 | LOTE | FRENCH Unit 3 & 4 |
| MUSIC Unit 1 & 2 | MUSIC Contemporary Performance Unit 3 & 4 |
| PHYSICAL EDUCATION Unit 3 & 4 | MUSIC Repertoire Performance Unit 3 & 4 |
| MUSIC | ENQUIRY Unit 3 & 4 |
Careers Support
Our Careers Counsellor supports Senior Secondary students, both individually and collectively, with career pathways and tertiary entrance.
Beginning in Year 10, students explore different career paths via talks presented by people working in a diverse range of industries. Support then continues through to choosing VCE subjects and looking at the specific entrance requirements for courses students are considering.
Each student has the opportunity for year-round one-on-one access to careers discussions if requested to assist in their research into their future pathways. Our smaller year-level size allows us the opportunity to work with the students as their ideas evolve and develop throughout their senior school journey.