Sydney's Best Public and Private High Schools
If you're from Sydney, you might be curious as to which the top Public and Private High Schools are, we'll you're in the right place - keep reading to find out!
9 months ago
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7 min read
Choosing the best school for achieving academic goals or catering to your interests is an extremely difficult process. This aims to aid in this decision process by providing information on the top-ranked public, private and selective high schools in Sydney.
On the basis of the 2021 HSC results, we have compiled details entailing the top high schools in Sydney. Within each category, you can see the school ranking within the category, overall rank (across all types of schools) and the success rate which refers to the percentage of exams sat by each school that achieved a band 6 (Distinguished achiever).
Top Public High Schools (non-selective)
Although government schools are quickly disregarded when looking for a school that will foster academic success, many public schools in Sydney are great options for those seeking high academic achievements.
Rank | Overall Ranking 2021 | School | Success rate |
1 | 65 | Willoughby Girls High School | 22.6% |
2 | 72 | Northern Beaches Secondary College Balgowlah Boys Campus | 21.3% |
3 | 102 | Newtown High School of Performing Arts | 17.8% |
4 | 108 | Cherrybrook Technology High School | 15.5% |
5 | 110 | Cumberland High School | 15.3% |
6 | 116 | Cheltenham Girls High School | 14.8% |
7 | 122 | Engadine High School | 14.5% |
8 | 123 | Burwood Girls High School | 14.4% |
9 | 125 | Northern Beaches Secondary College Mackellar Girls Campus | 14.4% |
10 | 130 | St Ives High School | 13.9% |
Top Private schools:
Independent schools greatly dominate the top-achieving high schools with 70% of the top 150 schools in 2021 being independent schools (105 schools).
Rank | Overall Ranking 2021 | School | Success rate |
1 | 4 | Sydney Grammar School | 56.1% |
2 | 6 | Reddam House | 52.3% |
3 | 11 | Kambala | 47.7% |
4 | 12 | Meriden School | 47.1% |
5 | 15 | Abbotsleigh | 43.8% |
6 | 16 | Ascham School | 46.3% |
7 | 17 | SCEGGS Darlinghurst | 42.2% |
8 | 18 | Moriah College | 40.5% |
9 | 20 | Ravenswood School for Girls | 38.7% |
10 | 21 | Loreto Kirribilli | 38.7% |
Top Selective Schools
Selective schools tend to consistently rank extremely high, with James Ruse Agricultural High School
Rank | Overall Ranking | School | Success Rate |
1 | 1 | James Ruse Agricultural High School | 70.58 |
2 | 2 | North Sydney Boys High School | 59.29 |
3 | 3 | Baulkham Hills High School | 58.24 |
4 | 4 | Sydney Girls High School | 53.23 |
5 | 6 | Northern Beaches Secondary College Manly Campus | 51.99 |
6 | 7 | Hornsby Girls High School | 51 |
7 | 8 | North Sydney Girls High School | 49.25 |
8 | 9 | Normanhurst Boys High School | 49.15 |
9 | 10 | Sydney Boys High School | 46.55 |
10 | 13 | Conservatorium High School | 43.92 |
Top 150 Schools
School | 2021 Rank | 2020 Rank | Success Rate 2021 (%) |
James Ruse Agricultural High School | 1 | 1 | 70.58 |
North Sydney Boys High School | 2 | 3 | 59.29 |
Baulkham Hills High School | 3 | 2 | 58.24 |
Sydney Grammar School | 4 | 5 | 56.13 |
Sydney Girls High School | 5 | 9 | 53.23 |
Reddam House | 6 | 12 | 52.34 |
Northern Beaches Secondary College Manly Campus | 7 | 13 | 51.99 |
Hornsby Girls High School | 8 | 6 | 51 |
North Sydney Girls High School | 9 | 4 | 49.25 |
Normanhurst Boys High School | 10 | 7 | 49.15 |
Kambala | 11 | 21 | 47.68 |
Meriden School | 12 | 17 | 47.09 |
Sydney Boys High School | 13 | 10 | 46.55 |
Conservatorium High School | 14 | 8 | 43.92 |
Abbotsleigh | 15 | 16 | 43.79 |
Ascham School | 16 | 11 | 43.77 |
SCEGGS Darlinghurst | 17 | 14 | 42.15 |
Moriah College | 18 | 41 | 40.47 |
Girraween High School | 19 | 27 | 39.43 |
Ravenswood School for Girls | 20 | 58 | 38.73 |
Loreto Kirribilli | 21 | 23 | 38.67 |
Fort Street High School | 22 | 18 | 38.65 |
St Catherine’s School | 23 | 29 | 38.42 |
Wenona School | 24 | 15 | 38.26 |
Pymble Ladies’ College | 25 | 31 | 36.67 |
Al-Faisal College | 26 | 54 | 36.19 |
St Aloysius’ College | 27 | 20 | 36.06 |
Kincoppal – Rose Bay School of the Sacred Heart | 28 | 56 | 34.81 |
St Clare’s College | 29 | 86 | 33.74 |
Knox Grammar School | 30 | 19 | 32.95 |
Alpha Omega Senior College | 31 | 55 | 32.69 |
Al Noori Muslim School | 32 | 32 | 32.47 |
Penrith High School | 33 | 37 | 32.36 |
Tara Anglican School for Girls | 34 | 28 | 31.82 |
Cranbrook School | 35 | 36 | 31.71 |
Emanuel School | 36 | 38 | 31.18 |
Tangara School for Girls | 37 | 25 | 30.89 |
Loreto Normanhurst | 38 | 26 | 30.3 |
MLC School | 39 | 51 | 29.71 |
Hurlstone Agricultural High School | 40 | 33 | 29.65 |
St Luke’s Grammar School | 41 | 24 | 29.55 |
Sydney Technical High School | 42 | 42 | 29.17 |
Roseville College | 43 | 35 | 29.14 |
Caringbah High School | 44 | 30 | 28.95 |
St George Girls High School | 45 | 39 | 27.76 |
Frensham School | 46 | 67 | 27.62 |
Sefton High School | 47 | 70 | 27.53 |
Presbyterian Ladies’ College Sydney | 48 | 22 | 27.28 |
Queenwood | 49 | 65 | 26.44 |
Merewether High School | 50 | 50 | 26.21 |
The King’s School | 51 | 34 | 25.7 |
Monte Sant’ Angelo Mercy College | 52 | 53 | 25.69 |
Parramatta Marist High School | 53 | 46 | 25.53 |
SHORE – Sydney Church of England Grammar School | 54 | 40 | 25.38 |
Barker College | 55 | 47 | 25.13 |
Newcastle Grammar School | 56 | 45 | 25 |
Smiths Hill High School | 57 | 68 | 24.64 |
Brigidine College Randwick | 58 | 49 | 24.62 |
Danebank – An Anglican School for Girls | 59 | 75 | 24.35 |
Chatswood High School | 60 | 69 | 24.16 |
International Grammar School | 61 | 96 | 23.22 |
Santa Sabina College | 62 | 48 | 23.11 |
Bethany College | 63 | 80 | 22.92 |
Saint Ignatius’ College | 64 | 44 | 22.67 |
Willoughby Girls High School | 65 | 59 | 22.59 |
Brigidine College St Ives | 66 | 62 | 21.95 |
St Mary and St Mina’s Coptic Orthodox College | 67 | 0 | 21.85 |
Masada College | 68 | 113 | 21.75 |
St Ursula’s College | 69 | 77 | 21.64 |
St Vincent’s College | 70 | 52 | 21.45 |
Arden Anglican School | 71 | 79 | 21.43 |
Northern Beaches Secondary College Balgowlah Boys Campus | 72 | 60 | 21.31 |
St Augustine’s College Sydney | 73 | 66 | 20.67 |
Freeman Catholic College | 74 | 110 | 20.46 |
Central Coast Grammar School | 75 | 83 | 20.42 |
Marist College Kogarah | 76 | 117 | 20.38 |
The Scots College | 77 | 63 | 20.28 |
Emmanuel Anglican College | 78 | 149 | 20.26 |
St Spyridon College | 79 | 74 | 20.11 |
Prairiewood High School | 80 | 181 | 19.82 |
Clancy Catholic College | 81 | 214 | 19.26 |
Mount St Benedict College | 82 | 126 | 19.25 |
St Mark’s Coptic Orthodox College | 83 | 88 | 19.2 |
Macarthur Anglican School | 84 | 78 | 19.07 |
Cerdon College | 85 | 163 | 19.01 |
Gosford High School | 86 | 72 | 19 |
Marist Sisters’ College Woolwich | 87 | 128 | 18.96 |
MacKillop College Port Macquarie | 88 | 175 | 18.79 |
Macquarie Fields High School | 89 | 124 | 18.76 |
Marist Catholic College Penshurst | 90 | 129 | 18.73 |
The Hills Grammar School | 91 | 106 | 18.18 |
Amity College | 92 | 119 | 18.1 |
Norwest Christian College | 93 | 0 | 18.09 |
Newington College | 94 | 179 | 17.64 |
Marist College Eastwood | 95 | 105 | 17.35 |
Stella Maris College | 96 | 100 | 17.31 |
Aquinas Catholic College | 97 | 102 | 17.24 |
Australian International School Malaysia | 98 | 145 | 17.02 |
Our Lady of Mercy College Parramatta | 99 | 81 | 16.67 |
St Columba Anglican School | 100 | 139 | 16.64 |
William Clarke College | 101 | 94 | 16.3 |
Newtown High School of Performing Arts | 102 | 91 | 15.81 |
St George Christian School | 103 | 107 | 15.81 |
St Charbel’s College | 104 | 141 | 15.74 |
Malek Fahd Islamic School | 105 | 152 | 15.73 |
Patrician Brothers’ College Fairfield | 106 | 190 | 15.73 |
Mercy Catholic College | 107 | 93 | 15.6 |
Cherrybrook Technology High School | 108 | 90 | 15.53 |
Scots All Saints College | 109 | 165 | 15.51 |
Cumberland High School | 110 | 243 | 15.34 |
Blacktown Boys High School | 111 | 272 | 15.05 |
Maronite College of the Holy Family – Parramatta | 112 | 316 | 14.97 |
Rosebank College | 113 | 156 | 14.87 |
Mount St Patrick College | 114 | 232 | 14.81 |
Oxford Falls Grammar School | 115 | 73 | 14.78 |
Cheltenham Girls High School | 116 | 84 | 14.75 |
St John Bosco College | 117 | 158 | 14.69 |
St Philip’s Christian College – Waratah | 118 | 85 | 14.62 |
Pacific Hills Christian School | 119 | 138 | 14.53 |
Our Lady of the Sacred Heart College | 120 | 99 | 14.46 |
Holy Cross College | 121 | 297 | 14.45 |
Engadine High School | 122 | 201 | 14.45 |
Burwood Girls High School | 123 | 82 | 14.43 |
Domremy Catholic College | 124 | 220 | 14.41 |
Northern Beaches Secondary College Mackellar Girls Campus | 125 | 43 | 14.4 |
SCECGS Redlands | 126 | 151 | 14.32 |
Marcellin College | 127 | 116 | 14.15 |
Tempe High School | 128 | 166 | 13.91 |
St Patrick’s Marist College | 129 | 174 | 13.89 |
St Ives High School | 130 | 111 | 13.85 |
Xavier Catholic College Ballina | 131 | 146 | 13.78 |
St Patrick’s College (Strathfield) | 132 | 125 | 13.75 |
Carlingford High School | 133 | 97 | 13.74 |
St Euphemia College | 134 | 104 | 13.66 |
Covenant Christian School | 135 | 134 | 13.65 |
Redeemer Baptist School | 136 | 0 | 13.41 |
Canley Vale High School | 137 | 279 | 13.4 |
Epping Boys High School | 138 | 76 | 13.39 |
Mary MacKillop Catholic College | 139 | 241 | 13.39 |
Rose Bay Secondary College | 140 | 95 | 13.38 |
St Pius X College | 141 | 114 | 13.34 |
Blakehurst High School | 142 | 176 | 13.24 |
All Saints Grammar | 143 | 233 | 13.23 |
Menai High School | 144 | 164 | 13.08 |
Blacktown Girls High School | 145 | 203 | 13.05 |
Al Amanah College | 146 | 0 | 13.04 |
Killarney Heights High School | 147 | 87 | 12.79 |
St Joseph’s College (Hunters Hill) | 148 | 71 | 12.73 |
Blue Mountains Grammar School | 149 | 115 | 12.65 |
Bonnyrigg High School | 150 | 221 | 12.62 |
Looking Past Academics
In addition to looking at the previous lists, it is essential to look past just the academic success of the school as it is also imperative to consider other factors which may cater to particular individuals.
Notably, some schools may excel in sports, which would appeal to athletically driven students. For instance, Endeavour Sports High School and Hills Sports High School are some of the many high schools which specialise in sports.
Another factor that may be overlooked is inquiring into the student-to-teacher ratio at schools of interest. This is important when determining the quality of education that will be received as lower quantities of students per class enable a more personalised experience and greater opportunity for assistance to each individual student.
The location and pricing of schools are also important to consider. A good school may require excessive travel which may be tiring for students and deplete their ability to complete study/school work. Besides travel time, consider transportation options if students cannot be dropped off and picked up. Is it easily accessible by public transport? Moreover, private schools greatly excel in results, however, they may not be financially accessible for you. Hence, you may consider scholarship opportunities or high ranking public schools.
High school can really be a lot of work, so why not get some support? Explore our top high school tutors.
Written by KIS Academics Tutor Sandrine Maximous, for HSC Legal Studies, Maths and more! Sandrine is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Actuarial Studies and Information Technology (majoring in Data Science) at MQU. You can view Sandrine's profile here and request her as a tutor.
