14 Dec 2020

Brace yourselves, ladies and gents. The colossal ATAR day is near!

I for one will never forget my stomach being bombarded with butterflies, palms sweating and knees wobbling as I read my ATAR. Thirteen years of school officially come to an end. Wow.

On this momentous day, there will be a fair few reactions to the dreaded ATAR. To prepare yourselves, here are five types of people you'll come across on ATAR day!

1. The boaster

As soon as they read their ATAR, their head enlarged almost twice the size. Their walk has become a smug saunter, their chin has risen higher, they keep referring to themselves as the reincarnation of Einstein with the body of an Adonis... I'm kidding, I'm kidding!

Look, they put the work in! They deserve some praise and adoration! Sure, it might get a bit annoying when they try to slip in their phenomenal score in every possible moment and compare yours to theirs, but just smile and nod people, smile and nod. 

2. The one negging out

They thought their ATAR would be better. They thought they'd get into their dream course at uni. But as soon as they read that number, their heart sunk.

Whilst those negging out will eventually realise that the ATAR isn't the be-all-end-all of our futures, ATAR day will still feel like a low blow. I mean, what should they do now? 

Amp up your disillusioned friends and make sure you let them know how red hot they are (and that they're WAY more than a number anyways) and that there are a million other options for them to follow their dreams.

3. The space cadet

After the HSC, the space cadet basically fell off the face of the planet. High school? That's so last month.

On ATAR day, they'll be flooded with messages asking what number they got... They'll probably be off the grid, replying a few days later with "wait, ATAR's are out?"

Perhaps they'll curiously take a squiz at their number, nod and move on. Maybe they won't even bother checking. They've moved on to bigger and better things and their ATAR doesn't have much to do with it.

4. The enigma

They spent their thirteen years of education cruising under the radar. Never seeming to study much or worry.

Then BOOM. They rank higher than basically everyone. 

You won't know what to feel. Jealous? Angry? Awe-inspired? I mean, before the English exam, they enigma literally told you that instead of studying, they watched four seasons of Kath and Kim.

No one knows how they managed it. No one knows what they'll do with it. All we know is they're an undercover Einstein.

5. The one in a frazzled frenzy

No matter their ATAR, this day just shoves them down a rabbit hole of anxieties.

"What am I going to do with my life?"

"Am I going to move out next year?"

"Should I study or not?"

You'll call them to attempt to calm them down but they'll just keep mumbling scattered things like "one minute you're in high school, the next, you're 95 in a nursing home."

Tell them to take a breather, meditate and maybe even get them to do our Post-School Plan.

Our Post-School Plan is essentially a groovy quiz with q's that’ll dig deep into your talents, values, interests and personality. It'll be a helping hand to figure out what career path you'd suit, what qualifications or experience you’d need and what skillset you’d want to have! This will definitely narrow down your options if you're frazzled when it comes to the future! So suss it out here!