Year 12 student, Ari Bursac, has found the college’s Maths Bootcamp the most valuable thing he’s experienced at BSSC. However, as a new Year 11 student he was initially reluctant to turn up.
“I’m pretty shy so it was hard taking that first step. Once I did, I realised how good it was and I’ve been going ever since—it’s been so helpful and it’s free!”
While Ari may sound like someone who’s always been into maths, in fact he’s not always enjoyed the subject and it’s quite a change of heart for him to say, “maths should be mandatory throughout school because it’s so useful.”
Although Ari is increasingly appreciating maths, his favourite subject has long been computing. He got hooked in his early years at primary school and this year has taken on an extra IT subject through Federation Uni with CHES (Centre for Higher Education Studies) on top of his VCE load.
“I also attended the National Youth Science Forum (NYSF) in Canberra over the summer school holidays. It helped me immerse myself in STEM and confirmed that my passion is definitely in computers and engineering. I also hope to have a sustainability focus in my future career.”
Ari plans to study Computer Science at La Trobe Uni Bendigo—so he’s very glad he kept up his commitment to maths.
“Computer Science is really about developing your own programs—unlike what most of us do, which is to use something another person had designed.”
Ari points out that he will eventually be able to work anywhere in the world so long as he has a laptop and Wi-Fi.
Meanwhile, BSSC has worked well for him and he recommends the college to others.
He’s discovered a positive vibe, supportive staff, many resources—including bootcamps—the way students are treated like adults, and how much is offered to students in terms of subject choice and extra-curricular opportunities.
“You don’t have to do Year 11 or Year 12, so everyone is here because they want to be.”
His biggest challenge is the workload. Being consistent with a good routine, seeing holiday homework as an opportunity to get ahead, and accessing extra resources such as ATAR Notes (he’s found these fantastic) and online lectures—are all practices Ari has found really helpful.
“I also think when you sit down to study, it should be easy. I like having everything set up and knowing where everything is,” he says.
“I have a shelf for each of my subjects next to where I study and I use a number of computer monitors so I can have everything I need open and ready to access.”
One of the great BSSC opportunities Ari took up in Year 11 was to join one of the leadership teams.
He chose the Environmental Leadership Team and enjoyed the projects they took on—such as ‘Travel greener to senior’.
This initiative encouraged students and staff to choose an environmentally friendly way to travel to school—and involved creating a very engaging video demonstrating everything from pushbikes to skateboards to ski gear!
He didn’t really feel he was making a particularly huge contribution to the environment and was surprised when he won a Year 11 Environmental Award and subsequently, a City of Greater Bendigo Sustainability and Environment Award.
However, when Ari heard someone read out the list of what he’d actually contributed, he realised he had actually done quite a lot.
“I am concerned about Climate Change,” he says, “and our family is doing all we can to minimise our footprint, like repairing computers, driving an electric car (it costs only a few cents to drive to Melbourne), and recycling everything we can.”
Ari is frustrated by the amount of ‘greenwashing’ he hears from large organisations who advertise how they’re really making a difference, but are actually not truly committed to reducing their carbon footprint.
In stark contrast to this lack of commitment, Ari’s role model is his sister Lea.
“I am very fortunate to have an older sibling who encourages me to take opportunities, inspires me to get out of my comfort zone, and really believes in me.
“She shows her resilience every day by achieving big things (Lea is studying medicine) and living life to the fullest while managing her cystic fibrosis.”
Ari is very grateful to his parents who have given him wonderful opportunities and really encouraged him to take on some things he was initially unsure about.
“I don’t think I could have achieved all I have without their ‘you can do it’ support.”
When he needs some downtime—and there’s not a lot of downtime in VCE when you have a study load like Ari’s—he enjoys gaming with his friends.
He began piano lessons and training in Karate from when he was around 5 years of age. He is still reaping the benefits of his Karate training, currently a Second Dan Black Belt, and volunteers at his Karate club coaching younger members.
If he could give some advice to his younger self, Ari would advise himself to, “turn up and don’t give up. If you’re there, that’s half the battle.”
Ari has a few favourite quotes and one is particularly pertinent for any Year 11 or 12 student:
‘The days are long but the years are short.’
