Angelina Arora is a budding scientist — and for good reason.
Despite her young age, the Year 11 Sydney Girls High School student has already invented a biodegradable plastic made from shrimp shells, silk cocoons and other seafood waste.
She studies biology and chemistry, and now plans to add the new HSC science extension course — announced by the NSW Government today — to her timetable in October.
"I think it's a really good way to get students [to] discover something that they would really like to do in the future" she said.
"I would like to get into medicine … and invent in it and create new opportunities and potentially change the way that we do it."
The new course is designed to nurture the state's future generation of scientists and researchers.
A key component of the new course is a "scientific research project" each student can undertake in association with Australian and global researchers, universities and research institutions.
Education Minister Rob Stokes said the year-long course would give students a "head start" for the transition to university.
"It's a cross-disciplinary course that will engage our top young science students to really challenge themselves," Mr Stokes said.
"We need to start training the next Nobel Prize winner right now. Science teachers are excited about the opportunity to engage some really highly able and academically minded students in exploring their love of science."
Students can also partner with businesses and industry to pursue a research idea that has a commercial application.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the course would "inspire and challenge some of our best students".
"The future will be science based," she said.
"We want to be able to provide our next generation of scientists with the knowledge and skills they need to lead a modern scientific research."
Extension courses are already available for English, maths and history.
Students will be able to study up to seven units of science, including biology, chemistry and physics and science extension.
The first students to undertake the new subject will begin the program later this year.
