How Many Subjects Should You Do in VCE?

"Should I do five subjects or six?" is one of the most common VCE decisions — and it's worth understanding the maths behind it before you choose. The answer hinges on how the ATAR is actually built, and on being honest about what you can carry.

How many count towards your ATAR

Your ATAR isn't the sum of everything you do. It's built from a primary four plus increments:

• Your best English study score, plus
• Your next best three scaled scores (that's the primary four, all at 100%), plus
• 10% each of your fifth and sixth scaled scores, as increments.

The full breakdown is in how the ATAR is calculated, and you can see it in action with our free ATAR calculator.

The key consequence: your fifth and sixth subjects can only add a little. A sixth subject contributes at most 10% of its scaled score — it can't rescue a weak primary-four score, and it can't do the heavy lifting.

What most students do

Most students take six subjects in Year 11 and five in Year 12, dropping their weakest at the end of Year 11. Some carry six into Year 12 as a safety net or because they genuinely enjoy the sixth. Both are normal.

Five or six in Year 12?

Here's the real trade-off:

• A sixth subject as a safety net — if one primary-four subject bombs, your sixth can slot up into the aggregate. That's the main argument for six.
• But it costs time and energy — and since it only adds a 10% increment, if the sixth subject drags attention away from your primary four, it can actually lower your ATAR.

So: do six if you can carry it comfortably or want insurance; do five if focusing your time gives your best subjects a genuinely better shot. For most students, a well-executed five beats a stretched, exhausting six.

When dropping a subject is the smart move

Consider dropping a subject when:

• It's consistently your weakest, and
• You don't need it for a course prerequisite, and
• Carrying it is hurting your stronger subjects.

Because only your best scores count heavily, giving that time back to your primary four often raises your ATAR more than white-knuckling a sixth subject to a mediocre score. If burnout is part of the picture, how to deal with VCE burnout is worth a read too.

The bottom line

You need study scores in at least four subjects including an English for an ATAR, and your aggregate comes from your best English + next best three, plus 10% of your fifth and sixth. So extra subjects add only a little. Do six if you can carry it comfortably or want a safety net; do five if focusing sharpens your best subjects — and don't be afraid to drop a weak subject you don't need, because your best scores are what count.