Students of Moruya High School were excited for the future as they walked out of their final HSC exams on Friday, November 1.
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Sammy Jackson was all smiles after finishing his construction exam: "I am pretty stoked for it to be over and will be going to the pub I reckon."
He found English and Construction "pretty easy", but said Maths was quite difficult.
"The HSC has been good and bad, 50/50," Sammy said.
"I haven't been overly prepared and my stress level has been about a five."
Sammy felt ready to finish school and go straight into a trade: "I am cheering".
Dylan Holmes also finished his final exam, Extension English. He was grateful of the Early Offer Year 12 Scheme where he received an early admission to a Bachelor of International Studies. Dylan's advice for future students, was to seek early entry options.
"The application process depends on the university, but I definitely say do it - it takes away so much stress," he said.
"Even though we have been told there are other pathways into uni - it can still be stressful without early entry.
"It feels like it could make or break what you want to do with your future."
Dylan has a strong interest in history and hoped to explore career paths in the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
"International Studies will help integrate some of my interest in history to foreign cultures and places where I can make a practical difference in the world," he said.
"A position in an embassy overseas would be pretty cool."
Dylan felt HSC exams were "kind of dumb".
"It's supposed to measure how smart you are, but it's only measuring how good you are in a particular area, of a very particular subject," Dylan said.
He believed the process should focus on students' ability throughout their schooling, rather than exams at the end.
Mallee Smith had similar views to Dylan. She said the HSC was "quite boring".
"It's all revision, there's nothing new - that's what I don't like," she said.
Mallee also applied for early admission to university. She was accepted by the Univeristy of Wollongong to study a Bachelor of Sustainable Communities.
"It took away the stress of having to achieve a good ATAR," she said.
"Someone had told me, in five years time, how little the HSC will matter - there's no point in stressing about it now."