How our ex-student and current tutor transferred to a Selective School

You might consider transferring to a selective school for various reasons. Whether it’s because you want to surround yourself with more academically driven peers or reduce travelling distance to and from school, this is the guide for you.

Process of transferring schools

The Application Form

You must first fill in the Years 8 to 12 entry to selective high schools application form. This is downloadable directly from the participating schools’ website and must be lodged before sometime in July every year. 

You are given 3 preferences.

It is recommended to put the highest-ranked school as your first preference. For example, if you wish to apply for James Ruse Agricultural High School, Fort Street High School and North Sydney Girls High School, the order you should rank the schools on the form should be:

1.     James Ruse Agricultural High
School

2.     North Sydney Girls High School

3.     Fort Street High School

This is because if you have failed to get into a higher-ranking school, they will pass your application to the lower-ranking ones. 

Other Requirements

After filling out the application form, examine the various schools’ website for the specific information they need you to provide. Some schools require only a portfolio, whilst others require you to sit an additional exam called the Higher Ability Selection Test. 

Here is a list of the schools that require applicants to sit the HAST:

•         Caringbah High School

•         Fort Street High School – Year 11 only

•         Girraween High School

•         Gosford High School

•         Manly Selective Campus

•         North Sydney Girls High School

•         Penrith Selective High School

•         St George Girls High School

•         Hornsby Girls High School

For a more comprehensive list,
please visit: https://www.acer.org/au/hast-secondary/participating-schools-primary-and-secondary or the school’s website.

The HAST exam consists of four sections:

•         Reading Comprehension 

•         Mathematical Reasoning 

•         Abstract Reasoning 

•         Written Expression

Other schools do not use the HAST
exam and instead require a portfolio. The portfolio should consist of your most recent school report, NAPLAN results, competition results and evidence of extracurricular activities. 

How to prepare for the English components

The Reading Component

·     This 45-minute component consists of multiple-choice questions in response to several passages.

·     ACER, the test developer describes the test as one that:

To prepare,

·     The style and structure of the HAST reading component are very similar to other multiple-choice
exams, and as such, they provide good practice for this exam. Consider binge-doing exams like:

o  Harder year 6 selective exams if you are applying for year 8 or 9

o  ICAS exams

o  NAPLAN exams

o  SAT reading comprehension exams

to emulate the experience you will get on the day.

·     Read more outside of school. This piece of ancient wisdom actually works! By reading a variety of different texts (e.g. newspapers, novels, non-fiction, poetry) and increasing your exposure to different text types, you will be better equipped to dissect and understand the passages in the HAST.

·     Read carefully! From personal experience, in the two years I have done the exam, you have plenty of time to read and answer the questions. Preceding the final countdown towards the end of the exam, I would always hear the infuriating ruffle of pages near me from people trying to signify that they’ve done the exam and now are bored. However, it is very usual for you to miss certain details in the rush to finish the exam quickly. Therefore, take your time and don’t rush!

I enrolled in JP English right before I started preparing for the exams, and the analytical skills taught there helped me increase my speed and accuracy tremendously. 

The Writing Component

·     This component consists of two written tasks

o  Written Expression 1 is a discursive task that “presents candidates with an issue or topic and prompts discussion of the ideas.”

o  Written Expression 2 is a creative task that “prompts narrative or personal/ narrative writing” and usually has a visual stimulus.

·     You will be given 25 minutes per task

·     ACER, the test developer describes the test as one that:

To prepare,

·    Perfect your discursive and creative writing skills. This includes learning the structure and stylistic features relevant to discursive and creative pieces.

·     Expose yourself to more discursive and creative writing pieces.

o  Good sources of discursive texts include the New York Times, newspaper articles and opinion pieces.

o  Creative writing pieces are abundant and should be easy to find. Ask your tutor or teacher for some recommendations. 

·    Ultimately though, you can only excel at the written expression component through consistent practice and feedback. At JP English they not only gave me invaluable feedback, but they also taught me indispensable writing skills like how to avoid cliched phrases in creative pieces and construct my arguments in a more structurally sound way. 

Tips/Extra Comments

·     Put your hand up if you feel your table/chair doesn’t feel comfortable BEFORE the exam. Remember that you are going to sit there for 3 hours and 20 minutes! A wobbly table is going to distract you from performing to the best of your ability.

•         Don’t get too disheartened if you failed to get in the first time you try – or the second time – or the third. Keep on trying! Preparing for the HAST exam and making your portfolios help you gain a better understanding of your academic strengths and weaknesses anyways.

•         Adding on from this, schools generally increase their uptake of students year by year. The 2019 cohort at Hornsby Girls consisted of 1 girl who enrolled in year 8, 2 in year 9, 4 in year 10 and 5 in year 11. As you can see, the possibility of getting into a selective school generally increases as you approach year 11. 

•         Do well in school exams, NAPLAN and competitions! Regardless of whether the schools you are applying for require a portfolio or not, the skills required to excel at school are very similar to those you need to do well in the HAST. This is especially true for English. The reading comprehension and writing methods taught at JP English were crucial in helping me to succeed in transferring schools.  

•         Finally, good luck if you are applying!