The verdict is in with students overwhelmingly upbeat about English Paper 1, which kicked off the 2024 HSC exams today.

More than 43,000 students from NSW public schools and TAFE are among the 76,000 students sitting the HSC, which runs until November 8.

Ingleburn High’s Sayad Hasan said he had been preparing “his whole life” for the exam and was happy with his efforts.

“A lot of different emotions but overall, I’m feeling great,” he said.

“The essay question at the end was a bit challenging, so I did have a bit of trouble, but I gave it the best shot that I could.”

Classmate Arisha Erin said she was worried in the lead-up to the exam, but quickly settled once she was in the test centre. Arisha said the support from her family before the HSC was appreciated.

“I was terrified, I’m not going to lie. But I got into the groove that you get in when you’re focused. I did okay I think,” she said.

“We have this in my culture where, when you need good luck, you go around to all your relatives and collect money. So, I’ve done pretty well!”

At Colo High School, the consensus was that all the preparation had been worth it, as students were happy with their performance, and excited they could cross one exam off the list.

“I am feeling very relieved and a bit giddy,” Laura Henderson said.

Practice makes perfect, or at least better prepared, according to Amber Sherrard who said the many hours spent completing practice exam papers meant she felt ready to take on the HSC.

“I think staying calm is key. As long as you’ve done the study and prepared well, you will do well,” she said.

Wollongong High School of the Performing Arts student Amelia Green had to overcome nerves, and the traffic, to complete her exam.

“I was caught in a highway closure and the traffic that was caused by it. I arrived an hour late even though I left home an hour early after hearing the news of the closure. I was given extra time to calm down and to finish the whole exam. I felt very supported,” she said.

“The trickiest part was probably memorising the quotes to use for the essay and remembering what the quotes were, and the techniques and analysis, and matching them to the questions.”

Oak Flats High School captain Cheyenne Brown said now the first exam was done, she was feeling far more confident about what was to come.

“I was a little bit stressed at first coming into it, but now that I’ve started one of them, I feel like the rest are just going to flow,” she said.

“Some of the questions were challenging because we’ve been learning about human thoughts, but the questions asked about human qualities, so they switched up the wording.”

Glenwood High students Sam Freedman and Evangeline John said their teachers had ensured students were well prepared heading into the exams.

“What I hoped would be in the exam was pretty much what they gave us. I thought the questions were pretty similar to the ones I practised,” Sam said.

“We had lots of practice exams in my class,” Evangeline said.

“The unseen questions are always a bit daunting because there are so many possible things that they could ask you. But I practised by having a broader and open-minded outlook. I just asked myself ‘how could I prepare for each type of text’?”

Woonona High School’s Adax Brienen said he made sure he responded to each question.

“I answered every question to a substantial extent. It’s a relief, and I can’t wait to tackle the next ones,” he said.