Official 2022 HSC rankings: See how your school performed

While individual students agonise over their HSC results, the overall ranking of NSW schools is what principals and teachers are sweating on. See how your school stacked up against the state.

William Cassell from Barrenjoey High School, Emma Briand from Kincoppal Rose Bay, Liana Zerafa from Gilroy Catholic College, Mia Young from Loreto Kirribilli and Zayn Boulad from Alpha Omega Senior College helped their schools achieve HSC success in 2022. Picture: Tim Hunter

The schools at the top of the charts in the 2022 HSC will come as no surprise to most parents, teachers and education experts, but the real winners are the schools who have made vast improvements on last year’s results.

At the top of the leaderboard, academically selective public school James Ruse has come in at first place for the 26th consecutive year, with more than two-thirds of the cohort achieving at least one Band 6 (or the equivalent E4) mark.

Hot on their heels, North Sydney Boys High School and Baulkham Hills High School have come in second and third respectively.

Baulkham Hills all-rounder Daniel Wang found the tension leading up to the release of HSC results “overwhelming”, but his patience paid off, with Thursday’s results revealing Band 6s in Biology, Chemistry, English Advanced, Mathematics Extension 1, Mathematics Advanced and Physics.

“I was excited and nervous, and a little bit anxious about the results I was getting, so afterwards I was happy,” he said.

Daniel also topped the state in Mathematics Advanced. He said his “really supportive” teachers at Baulkham Hills were a major reason the school performed so highly.

The rest of the HSC rankings, however, experienced an enormous shake-up, with several elite high schools falling from grace while public schools and schools hammered by repeated flood disasters have soared hundreds of places up the ladder.

Killara High School narrowly missed out on placing in the top 50, but at number 57 is one of few non-selective public schools in the top 100. More impressive still, the upper north shore school has moved up 124 places, after coming in at 181 in 2021.

This year, nearly a quarter of Killara’s Year 12s achieved a Band 6, and 14 all-rounder students who achieved results in the highest band in 10 or more units.

Principal Robin Chand said his school’s performance in 2022 proves great things can come out of public schools which accept anyone into their fold, without relying on academic selectivity.

“It’s our job is to lift students up to their full potential,” he said.

NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell congratulated students on their 2022 HSC results. Picture: Tim Hunter

“Our students have maintained a strong work ethic throughout their HSC journey, and this has included a laser-like focus on working in partnership with their dedicated teachers and maintaining a routine that includes a balanced approach to their studies,” he said.

“Our students know that there are no shortcuts to success, it’s hard work and grit.”

Among the top achievers in the cohort were Coco Wang and Clive Guo, who both achieved an ATAR of 99.

“I’m proud of him (Clive), we were friends all the way through school,” Ms Wang said.

“As a year group we did really well,” Mr Guo added.

Multiple schools that were awarded Commendations for Resilience after their students faced the loss of homes and property in the floods jumped up the leagues table.

Mullumbimby High School, the state’s single greatest improver, was one such school, moving up 405 places in the rankings. In 2021, under 1 per cent of students achieved a Band 6. In 2022, 11.4 per cent of the cohort were named Distinguished Achievers, with the school ultimately placing 150th.

Xavier Catholic College at Skennars Head near Ballina has cracked the top 70 after placing 135th in 2021. That’s despite the school being used as an evacuation centre during the Northern Rivers floods, and many of its students either facing loss themselves or chipping in to help the SES provide assistance to their community.

Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said a special team from the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) had worked closely with schools on the North Coast and in the Northern Rivers after the floods to ensure students were marked fairly.

“Many of this year’s cohort have been impacted by natural disasters, and they’ve still performed really well,” she said.

“We know that this year’s group had HSC results that were consistent with previous years, so despite the challenge they’ve been able to overcome that adversity and perform exceptionally well.

“A number of students in that part of the world have made the merit list today. We’re super proud of them, but we’re also really grateful to their teachers and their schools.”

It wasn’t all good news, with some chart-topping schools from 2021 experiencing a slide. Sydney Girls High School in Surry Hill noticeably slipped from fith to the still-impressive ranking of 17th highest HSC performer. Tangara School for Girls fell from 37th to 76th.

The biggest drop was Marist College Kogarah, who slid 100 places from their commendable spot of 78th on the leaderboard last year. In 2021, 20.4 per cent of students achieved a Band 6. This year, that number fell to just under 10 per cent.

Ms Mitchell congratulated each and every one of the 67,000 students who received their HSC results, regardless of whether they achieved the mark they dreamed of.

“Many of you will be happy and excited about the results coming out today - you have a clear trajectory for what you want to do, and that’s fantastic,” she said.

“But also for those who maybe didn’t get the marks that they were after or are a little bit discouraged today, please don’t be disappointed.

“You should be really proud of yourself and what you’ve been able to achieve by getting your HSC in the first place, and there’s so many pathways and opportunities available for you.”

Geographic analysis of the top ranked schools in the state shows NSW’s education system is still suffering from a Sydney superiority problem.

In the east, north, and upper north shore up to half of all HSC students are achieving the highest marks available in the HSC. The Hills district, where selective school James Ruse is based, also performs strongly.

On the outskirts of Western Sydney and into the Hawkesbury region, schools slipped into the red.