Study Stress in VCE: What to Do When It Builds Up

When you're holding the whole list in your head, each item keeps coming back on its own and it's hard to sort. Writing everything on one page, with when each thing is due, lets you see the week at once. You can use the three groups below. In the example, the SAC (school-assessed coursework, the tests and tasks you do at school) is due first.

You can start a small step tonight without facing the whole task, and it still moves things along. Once you've picked one, you can choose a time to stop and leave the rest of the list on the page rather than in your head.

If the same squeeze comes back every week, our weekly study planner lets you lay out a realistic week around school, sport and work, and print or save it.

The items in your “take to a teacher” group are worth raising in the next few days. You can ask your teacher which topics or draft changes to focus on first, and whether your school's rules allow any change to the timing. If you bring the list itself, “This is my week, and I'm not sure what to do first” is enough to start the conversation.

When the pressure comes from several subjects at once, your year level coordinator can look at the whole week rather than one subject. You can also tell either of them how you're feeling, not only what's due. Youth Central's advice on study stress, from the Victorian Government, suggests exactly that.

When the list is long, the first things to go are often the ones that aren't on it: training, sleep, time with friends. Those hours can look like the easiest to give up. The Victorian Government's advice for young people says the opposite: eating and sleeping well, exercising and doing things you enjoy can help manage stress around exams.

You can treat one of those things as part of the plan, the same as a SAC. That might mean keeping Tuesday training, seeing a friend on Saturday afternoon, or sticking to the finish time you set. A night off can be part of getting through to the last exam.

If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 000.

Sometimes the pressure doesn't ease once a deadline passes. You might notice it's been going on for weeks rather than days, or it's getting into your sleep, your eating or the time you spend with friends, or it's stopping you doing things you need or want to do. That's a good time to talk to someone.

At school, the wellbeing team is a good first conversation. If you're not sure who that is, a teacher you trust can point you to them.

If you're not sure how things have really been, our study stress check-in can help you look back. It asks 14 short questions about the past two weeks, covering things like sleep, workload and worry about results, then gives you a reflection with ideas you can choose to try and where to find support. Your answers aren't saved or sent to us, and it isn't a diagnosis.

You don't need the right words or a crisis to get in touch. “School feels like a lot right now” is a reason to talk to someone.

What helps in the days before an exam?

Knowing the practical details takes some surprises out of the day. Youth Central suggests knowing the time, the place and what to bring, and arriving at least 10 minutes early. For VCE exams, VCAA asks every student sitting them in 2026 to read its VCE Exams Navigator, which covers the rules, approved materials and the exam timetable.

Can I get special arrangements in exams if stress is affecting me?

Possibly, but they aren't automatic. VCAA can approve special examination arrangements, such as rest breaks, for students whose disability, illness or other circumstances affect their ability to sit an exam. Your school applies on your behalf, so your VCE coordinator is the person to ask whether it suits you. Our guide to VCE special provision explains how to ask.

What if something happens on the day of an exam?

Tell your VCE coordinator as soon as you can. If an illness, injury or something serious stops you sitting an exam or significantly affects you during it, you can apply for a Derived Examination Score, which VCAA calculates to reflect what you've shown in that subject across the year. You'll need evidence of what happened.

Can I get support without making a phone call?

Yes. You can use Kids Helpline's webchat or email a clinician through eheadspace.

We checked these sources on 6 November 2026.