Withdrawing from Year 12 Courses

A word from Jenny Offer, Principal Consultant, Certification

In March this year, I wrote about students deciding whether to change courses. It is now time for students to decide whether they are going to withdraw from Year 12 courses.

In March this year, I wrote about students deciding whether to change courses. It is now time for students to decide whether they are going to withdraw from Year 12 courses.

The difference between withdrawing and changing a course

It might seem obvious but it is important to be aware of the difference between changing a course and withdrawing from a course.

Changing means that you replace one course enrolment with another, but withdrawing means you are no longer studying a course. If you withdraw from a course, there will be no listing of your enrolment in the course for this year on your Western Australian Statement of Student Achievement (WASSA). This means you will not receive any credit for the work you have done for this year’s units prior to dropping the course.

Implications

Year 12 courses are studied as a pair of units. You must complete the pair of Year 12 units to receive credit for the grade to contribute towards meeting the WACE requirements.

Deadlines

The Authority needs to be notified of withdrawals to student enrolments in Year 12 ATAR courses with practical examination components by Friday, 27 July.

The last date for the Authority to be notified of withdrawals to student enrolments in Year 12 ATAR courses with only written examination components and other Year 12 General, Foundation and Preliminary courses is Friday, 17 August.

Note: Schools may have earlier deadlines in order to manage the administrative work that goes with changes to enrolments.

Seek good advice

The decision to change your enrolments should not be made lightly. You should discuss your options with your parents/guardians as well as your teachers, Year Coordinator or Careers Counsellor before you make a final decision. In particular, you should check (double check … triple check) that you will continue to be on track to meet the WACE requirements.

Checking with the WACE checker

The Authority’s WACE Checker can help you with your decision. You can use it to check on your progress towards meeting the WACE requirements. It is designed to show whether you have met (or are expected to meet) each of the requirements for the WACE.

You will find the Checker, and more information on how to use it, on the Authority website at https://wacechecker.scsa.wa.edu.au. If you have printed or saved a PDF of the report from the WACE Checker, you can use that when you talk to your school.

WACE requirements

The full WACE requirements are listed in the Year 12 Information Handbook, on the Authority website at https://www.scsa.wa.edu.au/publications/year-12-information. Year 12 students should know what they need to do to meet the WACE requirements. When considering withdrawing from a course, remember the WACE completion requirements. To achieve the WACE, you must complete:

  • a minimum of 20 units (which may include unit equivalents attained through VET and/or endorsed programs), including ten Year 12 units
  • four units from an English course, post-Year 10, including at least one pair of Year 12 units from an English course
  • one pair of Year 12 units from each of List A (arts/languages/social sciences) and List B (mathematics/science/technology).

Completing an ATAR course

To complete a Year 12 ATAR course means you are required to sit the ATAR course examination. For Year 12 ATAR courses with practical components, you must complete both the written and practical examinations.

If you do not sit an ATAR course examination, and you do not have an approved sickness/misadventure application for that course, the grade for the pair of units (Units 3 and 4) will not contribute to the calculation of the WACE.

You may be enrolled in ATAR course/s but may not need an ATAR for your future plans. Even so, you must sit the examination for that course for it to contribute to your WACE and for it to appear on your WASSA.

Consequences of not sitting an ATAR course examination – WACE requirements

If you stay enrolled in an ATAR course and then do not sit the ATAR course examination, then the grade for the ATAR Year 12 course where you were absent for the exam (without an approved sickness/misadventure application), will not contribute to:

  • completion of a minimum of 20 units, including ten Year 12 units
  • completion of at least one pair of Year 12 units from an English course (if the ATAR Year 12 course was either English, Literature or English as an Additional Language or Dialect)
  • completion of one pair of Year 12 units from List A (arts/languages/social sciences) or List B (mathematics/science/technology) {depending on the list of the ATAR Year 12 course}
  • achievement of at least 14 C grades or higher, including at least six C grades in Year 12 units
  • completion of at least four Year 12 ATAR courses.

Consequences of not sitting an ATAR course examination – certification

If you are enrolled in a Year 12 ATAR course and do not sit the course examination (without an approved sickness/misadventure application) you will not:

  • have a course mark generated
  • have a grade for the Year 12 ATAR course recorded on your WASSA
  • receive an ATAR course report.

What it comes down to

If you are enrolled in a Year 12 ATAR course, you need to know that withdrawing from a course is an important decision. Think carefully about what is right for you and work within the deadlines.

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