NSW selective high schools list and minimum entry scores
Selective high schools take students from Year 7 on the result of the Selective High School Placement Test. This page lists the 48 schools on the Department of Education's list for Year 7 entry in 2027, and explains what is (and is not) published about entry scores.
About entry scores. The Department says "there are no set minimum entry scores". The performance needed for an offer is different for each school, and it depends on how many students apply, how they perform and how many places the school has. So the tables below list names and places only, not scores.
The three kinds of selective high school
- Fully selective (17 schools). Only students placed through the selective process can enrol in Year 7.
- Agricultural (4 schools). The Department lists these as their own group. Agriculture is compulsory in Years 7 to 10. Richmond Agricultural College is different: it is partially selective and appears in the third list.
- Partially selective (27 schools). These schools fill only part of their Year 7 places through the selective process. They are more likely to offer vocational education subjects.
Aurora College is another option: online selective classes for rural and remote students. It is not a named school, so it is not in the tables below.
Fully selective high schools (17)
| School | Suburb | Area |
|---|---|---|
| Baulkham Hills High School | Baulkham Hills | Sydney |
| Caringbah High School | Caringbah | Sydney |
| Fort Street High School | Petersham | Sydney |
| Girraween High School | Girraween | Sydney |
| Gosford High School | Gosford | Central Coast |
| Hornsby Girls High School | Hornsby | Sydney |
| Merewether High School | Broadmeadow | Hunter |
| Normanhurst Boys High School | Normanhurst | Sydney |
| Northern Beaches Secondary College, Manly campus | North Curl Curl | Sydney |
| North Sydney Boys High School | Crows Nest | Sydney |
| North Sydney Girls High School | Crows Nest | Sydney |
| Penrith High School | Penrith | Sydney |
| Smiths Hill High School | Wollongong | Illawarra |
| St George Girls High School | Kogarah | Sydney |
| Sydney Boys High School | Moore Park, Surry Hills | Sydney |
| Sydney Girls High School | Surry Hills | Sydney |
| Sydney Technical High School | Bexley | Sydney |
Agricultural high schools (4)
| School | Suburb or town | Area |
|---|---|---|
| Farrer Memorial Agricultural High School | Tamworth | Regional NSW |
| Hurlstone Agricultural High School | Glenfield | Sydney |
| James Ruse Agricultural High School | Carlingford | Sydney |
| Yanco Agricultural High School | Yanco | Regional NSW |
Partially selective high schools (27)
| School | Suburb or town | Area |
|---|---|---|
| Alexandria Park Community School | Alexandria | Sydney |
| Armidale Secondary College | Armidale | Regional NSW |
| Auburn Girls High School | Auburn | Sydney |
| Blacktown Boys High School | Blacktown | Sydney |
| Blacktown Girls High School | Blacktown | Sydney |
| Bonnyrigg High School | Bonnyrigg | Sydney |
| Chatswood High School | Chatswood | Sydney |
| Elizabeth Macarthur High School | Narellan Vale | Sydney |
| Gorokan High School | Gorokan | Central Coast |
| Grafton High School | Grafton | Regional NSW |
| Granville Boys High School | Granville | Sydney |
| Karabar High School | Queanbeyan | Regional NSW |
| Kooringal High School | Kooringal | Regional NSW |
| Leppington High School (PROV, a provisional name) | Leppington | Sydney |
| Macquarie Fields High School | Macquarie Fields | Sydney |
| Moorebank High School | Moorebank | Sydney |
| Parramatta High School | Parramatta | Sydney |
| Peel High School | Tamworth | Regional NSW |
| Prairiewood High School | Wetherill Park | Sydney |
| Richmond Agricultural College | Richmond (two campuses) | Sydney |
| Rose Bay Secondary College | Dover Heights | Sydney |
| Ryde Secondary College | Ryde | Sydney |
| Sefton High School | Sefton | Sydney |
| Sydney Secondary College, Balmain Campus | Rozelle | Sydney |
| Sydney Secondary College, Blackwattle Bay Campus (Years 11 to 12 only) | Glebe | Sydney |
| Sydney Secondary College, Leichhardt Campus | Leichhardt | Sydney |
| Tempe High School | Tempe | Sydney |
The Department counts 27 partially selective schools, and Blackwattle Bay Campus is one of them even though it has no Year 7 entry. Suburbs are as listed by the Department. The "Area" column is our own simple grouping to help you scan the list. School names and numbers can change from year to year, so check the current list.
How placement works
- One test. Year 6 students sit the Selective High School Placement Test in early May: Reading (45 minutes), Mathematical Reasoning (40), Thinking Skills (40) and Writing (30).
- You rank your schools. Offers depend on test performance and the order of your choices. There is no extra consideration for ranking a school first, so list them in the order you truly prefer.
- One offer at first. You receive an offer from only one school, the highest choice your child qualifies for, and may be on reserve lists for higher choices.
- Equity places. Up to 20% of places at each school are held for students from specific equity groups, who are still assessed on test performance.
- Reserve bands. Bands A to F estimate if and when a reserve offer might come, from "by the end of September" (A) to "by the end of January" (E). Band F means an offer is unlikely.
Roughly a quarter of students gain a selective high school place, according to the Department. Read about the earlier step in our OC test guide, and see OC cut-off scores for how the band report works.
Thinking Skills in the selective test
Thinking Skills is a full 40-minute section in the Selective test. In our view, children who meet these question types early often feel calmer later. Our Thinking Skills guide explains the question types.
Always check the current details on the NSW Department of Education website: the selective high schools list and the outcomes page. The list above is for Year 7 entry in 2027.
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