HSC Consultations
The Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences has proudly established the HSC Society and Culture Personal Interest Project (PIP) and the HSC Aboriginal Studies Major Project consultation programs to assist students with their research projects. In these programs, our academic staff and students facilitate consultations to support HSC students to enhance their analytical skills while providing guidance and feedback in topic selection and exploring key principles in conducting ethical research.
Society and Culture: Personal Interest Project (PIP) Consultation
Designed by the Discipline of Gender and Cultural Studies within the School of Humanities, the Society and Culture PIP Consultation program provides HSC students with tailored guidance and support on their PIP projects. The program aims to improve access to undergraduate courses for disadvantaged students by helping to achieve improved results in their major work assessment, connect with current University students, and inspire secondary students to pursue future studies in their field of interest.
Going forward, this program will be offered to a select number of schools due to funding and resource availabilities.
2024 partner schools have been selected. Expressions of Interest for our 2025 program will open in October 2024.
| Date | Annually in March |
| Structure | 15-minute one-to-one consultation with PhD candidates or Postdoctoral students. HSC students can conduct an expert interview, have a topic area discussion, or seek assistance with their project design and research methods. |
| Delivery | Online |
| Open to | Year 12 Society and Culture students from select partner schools. |
| Selection process | Each year, partner schools of the University of Sydney are invited to express interest for their students to participate. Applications go through a competitive selection process due to the popularity of the program. Priority is given to students in rural and remote areas and low-SES schools. |
| Area of expertise | The areas of expertise may vary each year based on availabilities of our students. They may include cultural policy, diversity, the environment, identity, gender, sexuality and intimacy. |
| Learning outcomes | Participants have shared a wide variety of benefits from the consultations, including learning new ideas and perspectives, increased understanding of their topic area, developing confidence in their project, and connecting with current PhD students who work closely with the University's leading researchers and academic experts. |
I loved how willing my academic was in providing perspectives, research and further suggestions that would benefit the topic. The conversation flowed very well and allowed me to obtain a strong sense of direction and support about the topic.
I liked how the consultation provided an opportunity to discuss my topic with someone who could pose different perspectives as a result of their own research and expertise.
I really enjoyed vocalising my ideas for my PIP and I received very helpful feedback as well as more information on my topic and the future directions of my PIP.
HSC Aboriginal Studies: Major Project Consultation Program
Led by Ms Irene Wardle, Indigenous Studies and Aboriginal Education lecturer within the Sydney School of Education and Social Work in collaboration with Kinchela Boys Home Aboriginal Corporation and Aboriginal community representatives, the program aims to support HSC Aboriginal Studies students and teachers in Part III Research and Inquiry Methods: Major Project of the HSC Aboriginal Studies syllabus requirements.
The program engages in effective and genuine community consultation, focusing on cultural protocols and qualitative methodologies to be used by students in creating their Major Project.
| Date | 2024 date to be advised. |
| Structure | The program includes presentations, group consultations and a live Q&A. |
| Delivery | Online |
| Open to | Year 12 Aboriginal Studies students completing their HSC in 2025. Places are limited. Priority may be given to schools in rural and remote areas. |
| Important information | Only teachers are able to register their classes for this program and they must accompany students at all times. Some pre-work may be required. While participation to the program is free of charge, we highly encourage schools to donate to Kinchela Boys Home Aboriginal Corporation. |
What I enjoyed most about this program is the range of presenters we were able to hear from. This really helped not only consolidate my ideas surrounding my major work program but also increased my level of knowledge in multiple different areas.
This was one of my first experiences with community consultation. To hear their stories and summarise the information has been a great skill to develop and I like that the program helped me develop this.