When it comes to evaluating the best high schools in Australia, there are many factors to consider.
From an outsider's perspective, the only way to measure schools' 'best' rankings is to study their data. We, the outsiders, relied on several online tools to help us refine our search. Once we narrowed our field down to Australia's six major cities, we explored each city's top schools.
Read to find out more about the best high schools across Australia!
Determining High School Rankings
We examined the same data points for every high school across Australia on our list. English and Maths score averages, enrolment volumes and State Overall Ranking, a score which reflects the schools' overall academic standings.
When possible, we included ATAR scores as a data point, however not every school discloses that information, so it gives an incomplete comparison. Exam scores and rankings should always be taken with a grain of salt and used as only one portion of your school evaluation, anyway. Other aspects are far more important!
The NAPLAN (National Assessment Program – Literacy and Numeracy) is another data point that can give you a little more information about a school, which we have also included in our considerations.
In this article, we summarise our findings, city by city, to show you the top secondary schools in Australia.
Here is what we came up with:
| School Name | Nearest Large City | Location | Sector | Total Enrolment (2023) | % Achieving HSC / Equivalent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Telopea Park School | Canberra | Barton, Australian Capital Territory | Public | 1596 | unknown |
| Canberra Girls Grammar School | Canberra | Deakin, Australian Capital Territory | Private | 1102 | 100% |
| James Ruse Agricultural High School | Sydney | Carlingford, New South Wales | Public | 849 | 100% |
| Sydney Grammar School | Sydney | Darlinghurst, New South Wales | Private | 1893 | unknown |
| Queensland Academy for Science, Mathematics and Technology | Brisbane | Toowong, Queensland | Public | 1316 | 100% |
| Brisbane Grammar School | Brisbane | Brisbane, Queensland | Private | 1879 | 99.2% |
| Glenunga International High School | Adelaide | Glenluga, South Australia | Public | 2282 | 99.6% |
| Pembroke School | Adelaide | Kensington Park, South Australia | Private | 1696 | 100% |
| Melbourne High School | Melbourne | South Yarra, Victoria | Public | 1369 | 100% |
| Presbyterian Ladies' College | Melbourne | Burwood, Victoria | Private | 1514 | unknown |
| Perth Modern School | Perth | Subiaco, Western Australia | Public | 1449 | 99% |
| Christ Church Grammar School | Perth | Claremont, Western Australia | Private | 1719 | 97.99% |
But before starting, let's make one more general point. The Australian government has established eight nationally recognised key subjects that every school we examined teaches, public or private. They are English and Languages, Maths and Science, Arts and Humanities, Physical Education and Technology.
Electives, enrichment and extracurricular activities vary from one school to the next so you'll read about these aspects, not the core curriculum subjects that every school shares. Also, many states offer Christian/religious learning and 'gendered' education (eg. all-boys and all-girls schools). You'll see references to such throughout this article. Also, don't forget to check out the dates of school holidays this year to help you make the best decision. Now, with everything explained, let's get started.
Western Australia: Perth School Ranking
Looking at Perth by the numbers is a sobering exercise. It's the fourth most populated city in Australia, home to around 80% of the state's total inhabitants. The numbers turn out to be, roughly:
- 26.01 million Australians
- 2.91 million Western Australians
- 2.2 million Perthians
It didn't take us long to hone in on Perth Modern as the city's best public school. It was also the city's first public high school and the first to welcome female senior students. Perth Modern has lost none of its pioneering spirit; it maintains one of Australia's finest performing arts programs.
This city's top independent school, Christ Church Grammar favours athletics over art - though it too has a well-developed Arts curriculum. This all-boys grammar school welcomes around 1700 boarders at its Claremont campus dorms. Day students of all ages and abilities learn at the school's other three facilities. But every student is allowed to join the school's rugby, football, cricket and hockey teams. These factors make it one of the best private high schools in Australia.
Perth-area high schools were among those that followed the standard public/private 'split'. Public schools have a reputation for overcrowding while private schools feature a more advantageous teacher-student ratio. But that's where the norm ends. Perth's top high schools boast comparable achievement rates whether public or private.
South Australia: Best High Schools in Adelaide
This South Australian city has the distinction of being home to Australia's first-ever government-funded school. Adelaide High School opened its doors in 1879, welcoming female students exclusively - another Australian first.
Soon, Adelaide High became coeducational, giving it one more 'first' for its record books. And this public high school claims yet another distinction: it is South Australia's only Special Interest Language School.
However, the distinction for the best high school in Australia located in SA go to: Government-funded Glenunga International High School and Non-government Pembroke School. Both schools are coeducational, which is great for allowing all students the opportunity to attend the best schools.
Pembroke is an independent school that teaches the International Baccalaureate curriculum, like its public school counterpart. These two schools' high enrolments give testament to them being the best schools in Adelaide.
Students who pass the required exams and earn enough credits in year 12 receive a high school completion certificate, known by different names in each state:
HSC in NSW,
VCE in Victoria,
QCE in Queensland,
WACE in Western Australia.
Queensland: Brisbane’s Best Schools in Australia
Queensland's 2021 decision to no longer publish ATAR scores didn't stop us from appraising the state's best public and private schools. At the top of the list, we found one of Brisbane's youngest schools, Queensland Academy for Mathematics, Science and Technology (QAMST). This public school enjoys relatively low enrolment numbers and delivers high Maths and English scores.
Many insist that it is a University of Queensland feeder school because that institution influenced QAMST curriculum and course structures. There may be some truth to that assertion but that's not what makes Brisbane-area schools unique. Besides, two other universities helped plan and design other Brisbane-area public schools.
This city has great private schools, too, such as Brisbane Grammar School and its sister campus, Brisbane Girls Grammar School. These independent schools' records of excellence mirror QAMST's.
They offer loads of extracurricular and enrichment programs, like so many other Brisbane-area high schools do. Brisbane’s schools are some of the top secondary schools in Australia.
School Ranking in Victoria: Melbourne High Schools
VIC is legendary for its culturally diverse population and for having some of the most densely populated cities in Australia. Victoria's capital city is home to more than three-quarters of the state's population. That gave us lots of schools to explore.
We ran into the familiar pattern of private schools outranking government learning centres in practically every metric. Presbyterian Ladies' College is a sterling example of such; this day and boarding school boasts low enrolment numbers and high achievement scores, making it one of the top high schools in Australia.
But Melbourne's public schools have their merits, not the least of which are broad-ranging elective subjects. One of the best public high schools in Australia, Melbourne High School, takes the place as the number one public school in Victoria. It consistently boasts great outcomes for its students, in addition to offering competitive sports teams, a renowned music program, debate clubs, and various cultural societies to its students.
Ranking the Best Schools in the Australian Capital Territory: Canberra Schools
The Australian government guarantees each student an education in the public primary and secondary schools within their postcode. This ironclad rule reduces the search for the best schools to an academic exercise. At the most, such rankings might benefit learners searching for private or independent school education and families exploring relocation opportunities.
Relocation is a prominent reason for scoping out top-ranked schools in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT). State representatives may move their families while they serve their terms in office. Many consider which schools their potential new homes are zoned for, targeting properties in the highest-rated school districts.
Like every other Australian city we toured, Canberra has a fine balance of public and private schools.
Canberra Girls Grammar School is one of the best private schools in Australia located near Canberra. It offers a wide array of extracurricular activities while promoting healthy self-development and academic achievement among students.
The best private school in the area is Telopea Park School, which offers a unique experience of bilingual education in French and English. Students will benefit from learning not only a new language but learning to think like a multilingual person, which is beneficial for so many reasons!
The Best High Schools of New South Wales: Sydney-area Schools
That segment title is not hyperbole; Sydney-area schools are genuine record-holders in the Top Schools category. James Ruse Agricultural High School ranks as the top school in NSW and the most prestigious high school in Australia; a record it's claimed for 32 years.
Al-Faisal College is Australia's largest Islamic school. It ranks among the top NSW private schools, along with Sydney Grammar School. This grammar school is non-denominational but Sydney boasts many Anglican, Unitarian and Christian schools. Most of the faith-based learning centres we explored were 'combined schools', facilities that included primary and secondary education.
Sydney-area schools are remarkable for that and several other reasons. From a statistical perspective, they invert conventional public-private school data. To wit, government school students report a higher socio-economic status background and lower enrolment numbers than Christian and independent schools do.
Also, public schools outperform their private counterparts in overall academic standing.
Sydney-area's top government-funded schools are academically selective. Students applying for Year 7 entry must sit a placement test; enrolment is based on merit and academic achievement.
However, senior high school students transferring in needn't sit any exams. Also unlike schools in other states, a fair number of Sydney-area high schools are gendered.
Wherever you go in Australia, you’re likely to find a school that meets your academic needs and more!
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