By Noel Towell, Caroline Schelle and Alex Crowe
After an exam period marred by controversy, there were scenes of jubilation and relief across the state on Thursday as 75,000 year 12 students received VCE results and ATAR scores.
Few of the students spoken to by The Age mentioned the inadvertent pre-publication of questions on 65 of the most-sat exams this year, which plunged the exam cycle into controversy.
Patrick Phan is congratulated by his Melbourne High schoolmates on his 99.55 VCE score.Credit: Joe Armao.
At Capel Sound on the Mornington Peninsula, nine Melbourne High School students had hired a holiday home in the seaside getaway to await their results together.
The selective-entry school students used a spinner to decide who got their marks first at 7am on Thursday morning.
“There was a lot of anticipation in the air. It was really tense. Just a lot of excitement and a great mix of emotions,” Patrick Phan said.
Phan had every reason to feel excited, having obtained a perfect score of 99.95.
“I was in utter disbelief. I mean, I set high expectations for myself, but I kind of blew it out of the water,” he said.
Phan plans to study medicine in Melbourne next year, probably at Monash University.
Also pursuing medicine, Aaron Zhang was “definitely very happy” to have achieved 99.9.
“As soon as we finished reacting as a group and calmed down I called my parents to tell them the news, and they were ecstatic,” he said.
Phan said sharing the news with family had been a priority.
“When I said the number, it took a while for the gears to turn in their heads. When they realised they were ecstatic as well,” he said. “They also had high expectations, but I guess I lived up to that.”
All nine of the Melbourne High mates obtained the scores they needed for their chosen university courses.
Phan said being surrounded by students who are dedicated to their study is a big driver.
“If everyone’s really giving their best, you sort of feel compelled to do that as well. It’s quite inspiring, I think.”
The Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre described the process of getting the results out as smooth, and although more than 200 phone calls had been taken by VTAC’s help centre by 11am, the vast majority of the queries were routine.
Education Minister Ben Carroll made a results-day visit to Coburg High School, in just its ninth year of operation. The school had a VCE median study score of 30, and the minister called for a day of celebration for staff and students.
But Carroll was still fielding questions on the exam debacle that affected 65 of the most popular exams this year, seeking to offer an assurance that Thursday’s results could be relied upon.
“We’ve had an independent expert advisory panel. Indeed, we’ve had auditors now go through the examinations,” Carroll said.
Coburg High School principal Brent Houghton with this year’s dux, Dani McIntosh, who scored 99.55.Credit: Chris Riordan
“No student has been disadvantaged; every student is getting the mark they’ve worked so hard for.”
The Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority, which sets the exams, urged schools in recent days not to encourage appeals against results, arguing that reviews would be pointless when no marks had been deducted as a result of the publication blunders.
But Carroll said on Thursday that students were welcome to exercise their appeal rights if they were disappointed with their results.
“Everyone is welcome to appeal,” the minister said. “Phone lines are open all weekend at both the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority as well as the Victorian Tertiary Admissions Centre.”
But not everyone was reassured.
One student, who did not want to be identified, said he questioned whether leaks had hurt his final results, and he was particularly concerned about his legal studies mark.
“I can’t help but question if the leak had an impact, as so much of the exam got out,” the teen said.
The student’s overall ATAR was an impressive 95.35, but he said he was a bit disappointed with his result.
“When I saw my results I was in complete silence, honestly a bit deflated, but I’m still grateful.”
An unnamed VTAC official advised students not to rush into changing university course preferences.
“If I could give students one piece of advice, it’s to keep their most wanted course as their first preference, even if you think you won’t get in,” the official said.
“The number of places in a course can change from year to year, so you won’t know exactly what score you need until the offers are made.
“Even if you don’t get in, keeping the course as your first preference does not hurt your chances of receiving a lower preference offer.”
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