NSW selective high schools
The Department lists 48 selective high schools for 2028 entry: 17 fully selective, 27 partially selective, 4 agricultural. Together they offer 4,248 Year 7 places; with Aurora College's 90 online places the Department's statewide total is 4,338. One application covers up to three schools, and your child receives at most one offer. No school has a published cut-off mark.
Every school, 2028 entry
| Type | Students | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexandria Park Community SchoolAlexandria | Sydney - Inner West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Armidale Secondary CollegeArmidale | Regional NSW | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Auburn Girls High SchoolAuburn | Sydney - West | Partially selective | Girls | 30 |
| Baulkham Hills High SchoolBaulkham Hills | Sydney - North | Fully selective | Co-educational | 18090 boys, 90 girls |
| Blacktown Boys High SchoolBlacktown | Sydney - West | Partially selective | Boys | 30 |
| Blacktown Girls High SchoolBlacktown | Sydney - West | Partially selective | Girls | 30 |
| Bonnyrigg High SchoolBonnyrigg | Sydney - South West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Caringbah High SchoolCaringbah | Sydney - South | Fully selective | Co-educational | 15075 boys, 75 girls |
| Chatswood High SchoolChatswood | Sydney - North | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Elizabeth Macarthur High SchoolNarellan | Sydney - South West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Farrer Memorial Agricultural High SchoolTamworth | Regional NSW | Agricultural | Boys | 110 |
| Fort Street High SchoolPetersham | Sydney - Inner West | Fully selective | Co-educational | 15075 boys, 75 girls |
| Girraween High SchoolGirraween | Sydney - West | Fully selective | Co-educational | 12060 boys, 60 girls |
| Gorokan High SchoolLake Haven | Central Coast | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Gosford High SchoolGosford | Central Coast | Fully selective | Co-educational | 18090 boys, 90 girls |
| Grafton High SchoolGrafton | Regional NSW | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Granville Boys High SchoolGranville | Sydney - West | Partially selective | Boys | 30 |
| Hornsby Girls High SchoolHornsby | Sydney - North | Fully selective | Girls | 120 |
| Hurlstone Agricultural High SchoolGlenfield | Sydney - South West | Agricultural | Co-educational | 18090 boys, 90 girls |
| James Ruse Agricultural High SchoolCarlingford | Sydney - North | Agricultural | Co-educational | 12060 boys, 60 girls |
| Karabar High SchoolQueanbeyan | Regional NSW | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Kooringal High SchoolKooringal | Regional NSW | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Leppington High SchoolLeppington | Sydney - South West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Macquarie Fields High SchoolMacquarie Fields | Sydney - South West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 9045 boys, 45 girls |
| Merewether High SchoolBroadmeadow | Hunter | Fully selective | Co-educational | 18090 boys, 90 girls |
| Moorebank High SchoolMoorebank | Sydney - South West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Normanhurst Boys High SchoolNormanhurst | Sydney - North | Fully selective | Boys | 120 |
| Northern Beaches Secondary College Manly CampusNorth Curl Curl | Sydney - North | Fully selective | Co-educational | 12060 boys, 60 girls |
| North Sydney Boys High SchoolCrows Nest | Sydney - North | Fully selective | Boys | 150 |
| North Sydney Girls High SchoolCrows Nest | Sydney - North | Fully selective | Girls | 150 |
| Parramatta High SchoolParramatta | Sydney - West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Peel High SchoolTamworth | Regional NSW | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Penrith High SchoolPenrith | Sydney - West | Fully selective | Co-educational | 15075 boys, 75 girls |
| Prairiewood High SchoolWetherill Park | Sydney - South West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Richmond High SchoolRichmond | Sydney - West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 3015 boys, 15 girls |
| Rose Bay Secondary CollegeDover Heights | Sydney - East | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Ryde Secondary CollegeRyde | Sydney - North | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Sefton High SchoolSefton | Sydney - South West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 8844 boys, 44 girls |
| Smiths Hill High SchoolWollongong | Illawarra | Fully selective | Co-educational | 12060 boys, 60 girls |
| St George Girls High SchoolKogarah | Sydney - South | Fully selective | Girls | 150 |
| Sydney Boys High SchoolSurry Hills | Sydney - East | Fully selective | Boys | 180 |
| Sydney Girls High SchoolSurry Hills | Sydney - East | Fully selective | Girls | 180 |
| Sydney Secondary College Balmain CampusRozelle | Sydney - Inner West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Sydney Secondary College Blackwattle Bay CampusGlebe | Sydney - Inner West | Partially selective | Co-educational | Years 11-12 only |
| Sydney Secondary College Leichhardt CampusLeichhardt | Sydney - Inner West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Sydney Technical High SchoolBexley | Sydney - South | Fully selective | Boys | 150 |
| Tempe High SchoolTempe | Sydney - Inner West | Partially selective | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
| Yanco Agricultural High SchoolYanco | Regional NSW | Agricultural | Co-educational | 6030 boys, 30 girls |
Places, type and students come from the Department's list of selective high schools (NSW Department of Education, CC BY), checked on 30 October 2026. Regions are our grouping. A school name that links has its own page; the others are added as each page is written and checked.
How the places are shared out
Equal places for girls and boys
From the 2027 intake, every co-educational selective and partially selective school offers the same number of places to girls and to boys. Girls and boys are each ranked on their test results for their own share of places. If one group cannot fill its share, the spare places go to the other. The Department gives the reason as a fall in the number of girls applying for and accepting places. Single-sex schools are not affected.
The Equity Placement Model
Up to 20% of the places at each school are held for students from four groups. The first 80% of places go on test results alone, and equity students who reach that level outright take one of those. The held places then go to equity students whose results are within 10% of the lowest score that received a first-round general offer. Places that are not filled go back to general applicants. Families do not apply for this; the Department identifies students from the application and its own records, and nobody is told whether an offer came from a held place.
| Group | Places held | Who qualifies |
|---|---|---|
| Low socio-educational advantage | 10% | Attends a school serving a community with high disadvantage |
| Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander | 5% | Identifies as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander |
| Rural and remote | 2.5% | Home address and current school are in a rural or remote area |
| Disability | 2.5% | Receives a supplementary, substantial or extensive adjustment under the national disability data collection |
Source: the Department's fair access page, checked on 30 October 2026. The percentages can change from year to year.
How your list of schools is used
- You list up to three selective schools on one application, in order of preference.
- Your child is considered for every school on the list on test results alone. Listing a school first earns no extra consideration.
- Your child receives one offer at most: from the highest-listed school whose required level they reached. Lower choices then show "Not applicable".
- You cannot decline an offer to take one from a lower choice, so list only schools your child would attend, in the order you would choose them.
Source: the Department's choosing a school page. The full process, with dates, is in our guide to how to apply.
Questions parents ask
What is the difference between fully and partially selective schools?
At a fully selective school every Year 7 student is placed through the selective test. A partially selective school runs selective classes alongside comprehensive classes for local students, and only the selective places go through the test. The four agricultural schools are selective and teach agriculture as a compulsory subject in Years 7 to 10.
How many selective schools can we apply for?
Up to three, in order of preference, on one application. Your child is considered for each on test performance alone; the order decides which single offer they receive if they reach the level for more than one.
Do selective schools have cut-off marks?
The Department publishes none: it says the level each school needs is not fixed. It moves every year with the number of applicants, their results, the places available and how many offers are declined.
Are places split between girls and boys?
Yes, at co-educational schools. From the 2027 intake the Department offers equal places to girls and boys at every co-educational selective and partially selective school; unfilled places go to the other gender.
Do selective schools charge fees?
No. The Department says selective high schools charge no attendance fees, though a school may ask for curriculum, excursion and sport contributions. Boarding fees at the agricultural schools are set by each school.
Free selective practice papers
Sit a free selective practice paper on the same computer-based screen as the test.