Life at Bellarine Secondary College

Bellarine Secondary College is the product of a long and proud history on the Bellarine Peninsula.

Bellarine students are central to all that we do, and here in the Bellarine Times we are going to cover what it’s like being at Bellarine Secondary School.

Niamh Partridge

Hi, I’m Niamh Partridge, a Year 12 student at Bellarine Secondary College. This year, I’m completing my final year of VCE and it’s been a rewarding journey so far. Alongside my academic responsibilities, I’m passionate about running and have committed to training nine times a week, as I work towards racing track and cross country in the NCAA following my graduation. To achieve this goal, I have spent the last few months in contact with many American collegiate athletics programs through emails and zoom calls, so I can earn an athletics scholarship to compete on their team. Managing this demanding schedule, whilst still finding time to be with my friends and family requires lots of dedication, but it’s something I really enjoy and value. To support my massive training and academic workload, I make sure to maintain a healthy diet, which keeps me energised and motivated. Balancing these aspects of my life has taught me a lot about discipline and time management. It’s definitely difficult at times, but pursuing my goals in both academics and athletics helps me stay committed and focused.

Darcy and James Taylor

VCE can be pretty stressful at this time of the year, with so many SACs for the last of the Unit four content and the looming presence of exams, there’s a lot of work to do. As such it can be easy to get overwhelmed, but we think we’ve handled it well so far. We believe it’s important to keep a healthy balance between study and entertainment, this is something we have maintained throughout the year and has contributed immensely to our ability to score well. It’s integral for our mental state to relax every now and then, plus it helps to stay focused on the work when we do get back to it. We also believe in the importance of changing up your study location, as we do often. Studying for hours in your bedroom, staring at your computer, can be demotivating at times. To change it up we go to the library often, the new Drysdale Library has some great study spaces that really helps break up the never-ending mundane homework that’s part of Year 12. Our school also runs their weekly Arvo Club, essentially extra study periods after school with some snacks provided (thanks Ms Fahy), which we attend regularly. This has been extremely helpful as it can at times be hard to concentrate at home, and the additional support of teachers leads to a very productive couple of hours. Being twins has provided us with a unique advantage, allowing us to bounce ideas off each other and help one another when needed. It also helps we are studying all the same classes. We are somewhat competitive, something which has undoubtedly inspired us to push ourselves further to achieve more than we would on our own. We would strongly recommend for anyone out there to find your own study partner; it helps a lot. We are now in the final stretch of Year 12, preparing for exams. Next year, we both seek to study Engineering at Melbourne Uni, a goal we hope to achieve through our required ATAR. We’ll continue our study practices and hopefully, by the end of the year, be celebrating our results.

The college operates across two campuses serving communities on the eastern half of the Bellarine Peninsula.

The tradition and heritage developed from the former Queenscliff High School is greatly valued and has been remembered in the naming of building wings at the Drysdale Campus and Ocean Grove Campus.

For more information, head to bellarinesc.vic.edu.au