Year 12 HSC Economics study tips

With the HSC Examinations just around the corner, we tackle some of the most popular queries students like you have.

One of which we see year after year is how to study better for the Economics HSC Exam – and with good reason! Economics is quite a dense subject with many statistics to learn which can often feel like it’s impossible to overcome.

We show you how you can maximise your time and get a Band 6 in HSC Economics:

Start from the syllabus

Just like we’ve referenced in our previous blog posts about smashing the Biology and Chemistry papers, we highly recommend that the Economics Syllabus from NESA should also be your bible. It will outline everything you need to know, including all the content you will cover throughout the entire year.

When in doubt, always cross reference everything with the content available in the HSC Economics Syllabus. Keep a close eye on the syllabus, and don’t try to over analyse all of the dot points either.

Give examples

As a general rule for HSC Economics, the students who receive a Band 6 provide lots of examples which relate to the question. The more recent they are, the better! This is even applicable for short answer questions since it shows that you can relate real-life examples to the question provided.

RELATED: How To Study For The HSC Biology Exam

Create a cheat sheet

A one-page cheat sheet will be the best way for you to remember all the important information (including those key statistics) without feeling too overwhelmed.

Teach someone else the content

The best way to determine whether you understand the content, is always to teach it to someone else! If you don’t have a friend or family member who is willing to listen, the second best technique is to record yourself giving a lesson. You can run through the lesson at your own pace, and listening back to the recording to see what your strengths and weaknesses are.

Use reading time wisely

While this might be a given, use the short reading time you have to carefully read the questions (especially focusing on those essay questions towards the end of the paper) so you can start thinking of the answer you need to provide. This doesn’t mean that you should completely neglect the Multiple Choice questions – far from it! These are actually some of the trickiest questions that students don’t necessarily focus on, but are the easiest from where you should receive your marks.

Plan your essays

But not the night before the HSC! One of the best bits of advice our Band 6 students have shared with us is that you should try and plan your essays ahead of time. Now we know Economics is a content-heavy subject, but it is possible to memorise all the important information and content ahead of time to add some structure around your essays.

Learn the terminology

As we’ve discussed in our guides on getting a Band 6 in Biology, Chemistry and Physics, we strongly recommend that you understand the meaning of the terminology.

Address the question which is being asked to you, rather than relaying content which you have memorised that might fit with the answer.

Question from the 2017 Economics HSC Paper

Keep up with current affairs

There is nothing that will give you an advantage better than understanding and keeping up with current trends in the economic world. Whether you’re checking our popular websites or if you can grab an issue of The Economist, you’re already ahead of other students who wont be using these real-life examples in their answers.

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Give your answers structure

Another great tip from our Band 6 Economics students is that you cannot neglect structure. Even in your short answer questions, don’t waffle on about a topic thinking that if you write more, you’ll receive top marks in the answer. In regards to essays, make sure you have a clear introduction and always end your essays with a few sentences rounding up the conclusion, including your final statements.

Take a holiday course

Use the StuVac to your full advantage and sign up today to our Economics EXP course taking place during the October School Holidays. This is your last chance to prep before the HSC, and make sure that you have covered all the syllabus dot points before sitting the final exam.

Here at Talent, our comprehensive Economics EXP course reviews all the content from the new HSC Syllabus and prepares you for every type of question you will face in the final HSC Exam. You will receive:

Replica HSC Exams & Solutions: 6 replica HSC exams to take home and do at our own pace, or in exam conditions to get a gauge of where you’re at.

Exam Q&A Perfect Answer Review: Review your completed exam line by line with our Mentors to see where you gained and lost marks and how to improve. Go through sample essay questions and how to achieve a Band 6 result.

Click here to find out more about our Economics EXP Course, and start preparing for the upcoming HSC Exam today! Good luck to all students sitting the HSC Economics Exam this year, we hope our tips have been helpful, and will allow you to obtain your desired score.