KIS Summary:
- Maths Advanced (middle ground subject) is required for Extension 1 and Extension 2 (hardest HSC subject).
- Pick based on whether you genuinely enjoy maths (not just ATAR scaling), check your uni course prerequisites, and remember you can always take bridging courses later if needed.
- Do extensive practice questions from textbooks and past HSC papers, keep a mistakes book with every wrong answer + solution method, and do timed practice exams to simulate real conditions.
There is no doubt that it can be super stressful when having to decide which maths subjects you want to take for the HSC. Advanced? Extension 1? Extension 2? These subjects may seem super daunting and – quite frankly – rather abstract.
If you are at that point in year 10 or year 11 where you are considering your maths subject options, are starting one of these courses and want a quick summary of the content, or want some tricks to acing these subjects, you have most certainly come to the right place! To also help you along the way, a quick summary of the HSC Syllabus, HSC ATAR system and an ATAR guide can be useful to supplement your decision.
Table Of Contents:
- What Is HSC Maths Advanced?
- What Is HSC Maths Extension 1?
- What Is HSC Maths Extension 2?
- Factors To Consider Before Selecting A HSC Math Subject
- Study Tips For HSC Maths
- Conclusion On Which HSC Math Subject To Pick
- FAQs About Which HSC Math Subject To Pick
What Is HSC Maths Advanced?
If you are on the fence about choosing any HSC mathematics subject, then this is the right course for you! Maths advanced is one of those courses that sits in the middle of extension and standard, meaning that, depending on how much you enjoy it, you always have some wiggle room to change your courses around as you begin the year. Maths advanced is an enjoyable course and is a prerequisite if you want to pick up other maths courses such as extension 1 and extension 2.
In year 11 you will learn a variety of topics that often get built upon in year 12 including:
- Functions
- Trig functions
- Calculus
- Exponential and logarithmic functions
- Statistical analysis
In year 12, you will cover topics including functions, trig functions, calculus, financial maths and statistical analysis. You may have noticed the overlap between the two years of study. This overlap is just because you will be covering more difficult concepts in the same topic of study that builds upon your year 12 knowledge.
What Is HSC Maths Extension 1?
This subject was probably my favourite maths subject! Maths extension 1 is a course for both year 11 and year 12, and consists of various topics that not only build upon some areas of your advanced syllabus but also build upon itself! It is super enjoyable in that you begin to go into some abstract concepts such as vectors and proofs, without it getting overly complicated!
In year 11 you will learn a variety of topics including:
- Functions
- Trig functions
- Calculus and combinatorics
In year 12, you will cover topics including:
- Proof
- Vectors
- Trig functions
- Calculus
- Financial maths
- Statistical analysis.
If you’ve already decided maths extension 1 is the way to go, and are looking for resources on how to ace Maths extension 1, a crash course could be the way to go!
What Is HSC Maths Extension 2?
If you took an accelerated maths course (though not a must), you really, really enjoy maths, would like a challenge, and love solving complex, abstract problems, maths extension 2 is definitely the course for you!
Maths extension 2 is notoriously labelled as the ‘hardest HSC course’ and includes some topics from first-year uni maths, so it will definitely prepare you well for uni whilst giving you a nice challenge to chew on!
This course is only available in year 12 and though it requires you to have a solid foundation in both the maths advanced and extension 1 courses, it still gives you room to fill in any gaps you may have from the prerequisite courses.
The topics that you will cover include:
- Proofs
- Vectors
- Complex numbers
- Calculus
- Mechanics
Two important things to keep in mind about this course:
- Maths Extension 2 is worth 2 units – therefore if you complete advanced, extension 1 and 2 maths you will be completing 6 units of maths in total during your HSC year.
- When you choose to take Extension 2 Maths, your HSC maths advanced mark will not count toward your ATAR.
These among many other factors might be something you want to think about when deciding whether you would like to take this course!
Factors To Consider Before Selecting A HSC Math Subject
In general, here are some things you may want to consider when deciding which maths course you want to pick up:
- Whether you enjoy maths:
- This is probably one of the most important points that often does not get stressed enough. In senior year you are able to choose the subjects that you want to do, so utilise this opportunity! Choosing subjects that you inherently enjoy and find challenging to a certain extent will motivate you to try your best and continue studying, even when you might not want to!
- So, before you go ahead and choose a maths course, think about whether you will actually enjoy it and whether it will benefit you in the long run. From personal experience, I can guarantee that choosing a subject because you enjoy it, and for a good reason really does make it easier for you to ace!
- The prerequisites for your university course:
- Though this point is probably obvious, it’s still important to note here! At this point in your life, you might have a vague idea of what you want to do, or what university course you would like to enter.
- Using this information, have a look at the prerequisites for your courses, and decide on whether you would prefer to take the course during high school, or take a bridging course before uni starts.
- Generally, universities will offer subjects and courses so that you are prepared for your first year, so, if you choose not to complete a subject, then do not panic, because you can always make it up later down the track!
Study Tips For HSC Maths
Maths can be a difficult subject to study, so here are some study tips to help you ace any maths subject you do:
- Do A LOT of practice questions: The best way that you can prepare yourself for any maths exam – including the HSC exams – is by doing as many questions as you can. Try to find as many resources as you can, textbooks, past papers, past HSC papers. By doing a lot of questions, you simultaneously expose yourself to a variety of question types, different approaches, and different question-wording styles, thus making you more prepared for any type of question that the HSC might throw at you.
- Have a mistakes book: Now, there is not much of a point doing a lot of questions, if you don't learn from the mistakes that you made, right? It is super important that you carry something called a ‘mistakes book’ or even just a mistakes sheet. This will have every single question you ever got wrong, how to solve it, and tips on how to reason through similar types of questions. This list becomes really useful pre-exam time, where you can skim through the mistakes that you previously made so that you don't make them again in the test you are about to sit.
- Test yourself: Testing yourself is one of the best strategies to practise for an exam, so make sure you are completing many timed papers, marking them properly, and placing all the mistakes you made into your mistakes book!
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Conclusion On Which HSC Math Subject To Pick
I hope this gives you a clearer picture as to the differences between maths advanced, extension 1 and extension 2 while giving you some insight into how to ace these subjects!
If you're still on the fence when choosing the right HSC subject, it might be helpful to check out our comprehensive HSC Subject Selection Guide:
Manoj Arachige
Manoj Arachige
Manoj Arachige
FAQs About Which HSC Math Subject To Pick
1. What is the hardest HSC maths?
Extension 2 Maths is often considered the hardest HSC subject as it's demanding, abstract, requires creative problem-solving and deep theoretical knowledge to get right.
2. How to do well in HSC maths?
There's no single answer, but a combination of things you can do to increase your chances of being successful in HSC Maths includes:
- Practicing a variety of questions frequently (the harder the better)
- Keeping track of past mistakes so you do not repeat them again
- Testing yourself under exam conditions (e.g. timing your work)
3. What subjects can I Pick up or Drop?
- You CAN drop back from Extension 2 or 1, but can’t pick up Extension 1 or 2 in Year 12 if you didn’t do them in Year 11.
- Extension 2 students do not sit the Advanced HSC exam—their ATAR uses Extension marks only.
- Consult teachers for changes, as combinations affect your ATAR calculation and flexibility in other subjects.
4. What should you bring to a HSC Maths exam?
NESA suggests you bring the following:
- NESA approved calculator
- Pair of dividers
- Pair of compasses
- Protractor
- Coloured pencils and/or coloured felt pens
- Ruler
- (optional) A hand-held magnifying glass
- (optional) A piece of string or thread for measuring
