REFLECTIONS

Charlize Abounader

Bachelor of Law and Business, UTS

What is your fondest memory of your time at PLC Sydney?

My fondest memory at PLC Sydney is the strong friendship connections I have made with my fellow students, that will last a lifetime, but also my teachers, as it enables me to feel comfortable in talking to them, asking for help and being more involved in class.

Sora Beebar

Events Captain All-Round Achievers List (ATARs over 99)

Bachelor of Law and Bachelor of Science, majoring in Biotechnology/Genetics, UNSW

If you could offer advice or a tip to someone about to do their final year, what would it be?

1. Have confidence! :) My journey at PLC Sydney has really tested my confidence and my self-belief. Being in a school with so many talented girls can cause you to have self-doubts and cause you to question if you’re good enough. I really struggled with these doubts for a while, but by having such a wonderful support system around me, I’ve learnt that almost everyone, even the most talented of girls, have these doubts every now and then. Sometimes, you have to fake it to make it!

2. Really try to not dwell on past mistakes. Everyone messes up sometimes and has experiences that challenge them, but what differentiates you from everyone else is how you get back up from these setbacks. Never lose sight of your goals. If your ambition demands you to go through all these challenges in order to get there, then execute all the steps with confidence and no regrets.

3. Being very organised, setting out clear goals and then executing the necessary steps to complete these goals contributed to how I approached my final year in school. In addition, surrounding myself with a support system of friends and family was just as essential, they gave me the confidence and assurance to jump back from challenges or setbacks I experienced.

Bachelor of Science, University of Sydney

What is the most valuable lesson you learned at PLC Sydney?

That supporting those around you may also benefit your own doing. I have learned many leadership and teamwork skills at PLC Sydney through the many opportunities I have been given. These skills and attributes have helped guide me. I have also valued the connection with my teachers and peers throughout my schooling this is what motivates and encourages me to be the best person I can be.

School Vice-Captain International Blazer Recipient - Public Speaking

Bachelor of Law and Bachelor of Politics, Philosophy and Economic, ANU

What contributed to your final year/and or HSC success?

Starting tasks and revision as early as possible helped me implement discipline and structure into my routine. Due to my tendency to procrastinate and my busy schedule, I really needed to force myself into working. I used the mentality that I deserved to give the HSC my best effort considering how much work and time I had put into my schooling; I owed it to my friends, my family and myself!

Catherine Chen

Music Captain

Cambridge A LevelsCambridge IGCSE Computer

Science Grade A, Cambridge

IGCSE Physical Science

Grade A, Cambridge IGCSE

Mathematics Grade A*

Bachelor of Medicine, UNSW

What is your fondest memory of your time at PLC Sydney?

I really enjoyed going away on camps with all my friends. I particularly remember Year 11 Camp where our year as a cohort all bonded together. Apart from my studies, I loved all the co-curricular activities the school provided. I have my Bronze Duke of Ed Award and also played Badminton, Basketball, Hockey, Tennis and Volleyball. I also competed at every Mathematics and Science competition I could, from the Australian Intermediate Mathematics Olympiad, to NSW Schools Titration Competition and the Australian Science Olympiad and everything in between.

Deborah Chew

Productions Captain Bachelor of Oral Health, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga

What is the most valuable lesson you learned at PLC Sydney?

I think the most valuable lesson I have learnt is that ‘this too shall pass’. The phrase came up during the last United Day we had this year, and it made me reflect on its truth. Sometimes I think back to when I was in Year 9 or 10, and so stressed completing a DT assignment the night before it was due. At the time, it seemed like the end of the world, but it wasn’t. Everything works out in the end. Or, in the present, I’ve failed things before, I’ve stuffed up greatly - many, many times - but problems are usually temporary. And I’m here, I’m happy, everything is okay, and this too shall pass.

Phoebe Cox

Boarders’ and Hockey Captain

Science, University of Sydney and also won an Elite Athlete Scholarship in Hockey

What contributed to your final year/and or HSC success?

All of the support from teachers, parents and peers. The reassurance and motivation to keep going has lifted me and encouraged me to continue being resilient and determined throughout my studies and sporting commitments.

NB You can play sports and keep on top of your academic studies too, if you use your time productively and effectively. Tip: use the extra time to finish homework in between training and school.

Rhiane Fotaras

School Community Prefect

Bachelor of Psychology (Honours), University of Sydney

If you could offer advice to someone about to do their final year, what would it be?

I was lucky enough to pick the subjects I love and am very grateful that I did so. Therefore my advice would be not to worry about the scaling of subjects, but rather choose what you are most interested in, so you will put in the most effort. It is also very important to keep organised with both notes and time and cherish all the fun moments.

LUCY HAMMOND

Selected for ARTEXPRESS

Bachelor of Law/Bachelor of Communications (Social and Political Sciences), UTS

What contributed to your final year/and or HSC success?

Honestly, attending every study lecture you can, asking teachers for constant revision and wanting the raw feedback for tasks I had completed were my keys for success. Ask lots of questions too - your teachers are there to help you. Taking on feedback, and learning from it is the holy grail of HSC studying success. To find where you went wrong and improve on past writing etc, regardless of the subject, helps construct stronger responses for future tasks. I also found having a monthly calendar really helped me when putting things into perspective. ALWAYS write down tasks you need to do, regardless of how simple they may seem. Ticking things off too, always gave me a sense of purpose and satisfaction.

Deanne Kalis

Wilkie House Captain

Bachelor of Biomedical Engineering (Honours) and Bachelor of Medical Science, University of Sydney

What is your fondest memory of your time at PLC Sydney?

I have so many fond memories from my time at PLC Sydney, it is too difficult to single out one in particular. Some of my fondest memories include Grandparents’ Days, Open Day and Fair, the camps, the musicals, the choirs and various other events. Year 3 was wonderful, whether it was picking strawberries from the garden, cooking with the freshly grown ingredients, taking care of Mrs Mitchell’s worm farm, or our class pet beetle. We also had a little take home toy dog which we would all get to take care of for the weekend, meaning it was our turn to write in the journal about its adventures. There is a wide collection of beautiful memories and moments that come to mind regarding PLC Sydney. These are all things I will never forget and will forever cherish.

OLIVIA LOW School Vice-Captain All-Round Achievers List (ATARs over 99)

Bachelor of Dentistry and Oral Health, Griffith University, Qld

What is the most valuable lesson you learned at PLC Sydney?

To have courage. From the opportunities I’ve been afforded, I have learnt that taking a leap of faith is incredibly rewarding. I feel so grateful to have met so many inspiring teachers and students who have encouraged me to ask questions without fear, to audition for ensembles/co-curriculars and to push myself in all aspects of school. I think this has really helped with developing my sense of self and confidence.

EMILY LYE

Boarders’ Prefect Bachelor of Nursing (Advanced Studies), University of Sydney

How important was it for you to balance your academic focus with other activities?

It was really important for me to implement sport into my life along with staying focused on academics. Through engaging in term sports such as netball, water polo and soccer I have had the opportunity to be an active member of my community. It also gave me the opportunity to get away from the sometimes overwhelming nature of study.

JANE MA

Nominated for ENCORE, Music Performance (Violin) and Composition

Mechanical Engineering, UNSW

What is the most valuable lesson you learned at PLC Sydney?

1. That confidence is a skill that can be learned

2. The importance of being comfortable with yourself

3. To never compare yourself to others, but only to your past self.

GEORGIA MACDESSI

2022 School Captain All-Round Achievers List (ATARs over 99)

Selected for OnSTAGE: Group Drama Performances

Bachelor of Laws (Honours) / International Security Studies, ANU

What is the most valuable lesson you learned at PLC Sydney?

I think the most valuable lesson I learned at PLC Sydney was how to feel confident and have faith in myself. Over the years I’ve learned lots of different things, different life skills, that have contributed to who I am. Now it’s just a matter of trusting who that person is. I’ve learnt how to be honest with myself, how to recognise my strengths and weaknesses and how to use them to my advantage, never being anyone else but me. And the biggest lesson that’s come out of that, is how to be happy with that.

Ruby Mccluskie

Bachelor of Arts, majoring in History, minor in Archeology, University of Sydney.

What contributed to your final year/and or HSC success?

Something that contributed to success in my final year was working on my timekeeping skills and planning out all my tasks to keep up to date with what was coming up and what I needed to do, especially as my days got busier.

Sophie Mclachlan

Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award Bachelor of Science, (majoring in Earth Sciences) ANU

How important was it for you to balance your academic focus with other activities?

I found that playing sport gave me time away from school and an opportunity to clear my head. It helped me to perform better in my studies. I also participated in the Gold Duke of Edinburgh Awards. I found that this gave me an opportunity to expand my friendships and also gave me a well rounded Year 12 experience.

Emma Olsonkeating

International Blazer Recipient - Triathlon Sports Scholarships to Queens University of Charlotte, North Carolina USA

If you could offer advice to someone about to do their final year, what would it be?

Balance and scheduling: I do triathlons which is three sports, therefore I spend a lot of time exercising. Balancing my academics with sport has been very important for me because I use sport as a break from school - a chance to go into a different type of focus. Sport has also helped me to form more strict schedules and structure my days more effectively.

I also learned the value of service to the community, especially those less fortunate than ourselves and the importance of having integrity and purpose in everything I do.

SATSUKI OTA-JONES

Top Achievers in CourseJapanese Continuers - 2nd Selected for TEXSTYLE & Nominated for SHAPE

Taking a Gap Year

What contributed to your final year/and or HSC success?

The cohesion and closeness of our year group made a great contribution to my success and the enjoyment of my final year. Everyone was always so supportive and easy to chat to in the common room, even if you never really had a conversation with them before. Because of such cohesion I think our year group as a whole was able to succeed. I collaborated with others and the HSC became less of a competition against each other, but more of a race we were running together in.

Lily Ritchie

Service Learning Captain

All-Round Achievers List (ATARs over 99)

Selected for OnSTAGE Group Performance

Bachelor of Medical Scienceleading directly into Medicine, UniSC (The University of the Sunshine Coast, Qld)

What is your fondest memory of your time at PLC Sydney?

My fondest memory of my time at PLC Sydney was performing in Black Comedy in 2020, playing the character of Carol Melkett. I found that this production gave me confidence in all aspects of my school life and it was such a joy to perform on the stage. Being part of a small cast was such an incredibly special experience as I formed strong connections with girls in many different years.

Marina Ruan

STEM Captain

Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award

Top Achievers in CourseJapanese Extension - 3rd All-Round Achievers List

(ATARs over 99)

Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) / Master of Biomedical Engineering, UNSW.

What is your fondest memory of your time at PLC Sydney?

My fondest memory would have to be the Science Festival celebrating the lunar eclipse last year. I loved talking with the younger girls during the night, and watching so many people come together to celebrate science. I also loved my physical science lessons with Mrs Bruno. My classmates and I had so many fun times and I was really inspired by Mrs Bruno’s passion.

Olivia Stavrianos

Gold Duke of Edinburgh Award

Bachelor of Music / Bachelor of Media and Communications, majoring in Interactive Design, Macquarie University

If you could offer advice to someone about to do their final year, what would it be?

Don’t be afraid and worried about marks, a mark doesn’t reflect who you are. What matters is to choose the subjects at school that you are passionate about and work hard in. If you commit and do something you love, you will become not only good at it, but you’ll thrive.

People choose subjects that they believe will get them further in life and dismiss their natural talents. The best advice I can give is: don’t waste the talents that God gave you. Everyone is gifted and beautiful in different ways. We are all unique and sometimes a singular mark on the page cannot calculate and reflect who we truly are.

Jasmin Usham

School Community Prefect

Top Achievers in CourseDrama - 4th All-Round Achievers List (ATARs over 99)

Taking a Gap Year

What contributed to your final year/and or HSC success?

I always treated co-curricular activities as a breath of fresh air amidst intense learning - they helped relieve some anxiety, renewed my concentration and rejuvenated me throughout the day. Volunteering encouraged me to look up and outit’s always a rewarding and humbling experience. Looking forward to these activities allowed me to be more conscious, wise and efficient with how I used my remaining time.

Maintaining a solid work ethic. I tried to hold myself accountable with the hope of going to bed every night knowing I had achieved what I sought that day. Establishing study groups not only helped us hold each other accountable but also deepened my understanding of content through discussions and having to simplify concepts to their nuts and bolts when explaining them to others.

RUBY WILKINSON

Bachelor of Business, UTS

What is the most valuable lesson you learned at PLC Sydney?

To be extremely appreciative of the resources around memaking sure to listen carefully and use the wisdom of others to grow my own understandings of not just academic fields, but the world in a greater sense.

YVONNE ZHAO

Achieved PLC Sydney’s top ATAR of 99.85

All-Round Achievers List (ATARs over 99)

Top Achievers in CourseJapanese Extension - 2nd Bachelor of Science and Doctor of Medicine, University of Sydney

What contributed to your final year/and or HSC success? Revising and doing work on a regular basis, even if the teacher didn’t set any homework. This enabled me to be less stressed and feel more prepared when exams came around, since I had spread out my workload over a long period of time.