Top 10 High Schools In Australia

Australia ranks among the highest in the world for education standards. If you are considering Private or Public education, Australia has some of the best High Schools you should consider for your child or ward.

Australia’s secondary schools adhere to a national curriculum framework, which is being progressively developed and implemented in schools to set high national standards in English, mathematics, science, history, languages, geography, the arts, health and physical education, information and communication technology, civics and citizenship, economics and business.

The typical school hours in Australia are 9.30am to 3.30pm for primary schools and 9.00am to 3.30pm for high schools.

We’ve put together a list of the top ranking schools in Australia based on the all-important factor of academic performance, as well as things such as co-curricular activities.

10 Best High Schools in Australia

1. International Grammar School

International Grammar School (IGS) is an independent secular day school for boys and girls situated in the inner-city suburb of Ultimo, near the Central Business District (CBD). It currently caters for around 1,200 students from preschool to year 12 and places the learning of languages and respect for diversity at the centre of its curriculum.

2. James Ruse Agricultural High School

James Ruse is an academically selective public school which currently enrols around 840 students in years seven to 12. Of the student population, around 95% are from a non-English-speaking background, mainly Chinese, Korean and Indian.

James Ruse has a history of academic excellence, being named the top school in NSW for 27 years in a row.

3. Sydney Grammar School

Sydney Grammar School was ranked as the top independent school in NSW last year, and has educated the highest number of Australian Prime Ministers, Rhodes Scholars and High Court of Australia judges in the country. The school offers a liberal and broadly pre-vocational education that gears its students up for university. It also has a diverse range of co-curricular activities including sport, chess, public speaking and the Australian Air Force cadets.

4. Cheltenham Girls High School

Cheltenham Girls High School consistently outperforms a number of selective public schools in the Higher School Certificate (HSC) – a credential awarded to year 12 students who have completed their high school studies. The school also encourages its students to participate in a wide range of extra-curricular activities, including debating and public speaking, performing arts, volunteering and gardening.

5. Geelong Grammar School

Geelong Grammar School is an independent Anglican co-educational boarding and day school. The school’s main campus is located in Corio on the northern outskirts of Geelong, Victoria, Australia, overlooking Corio Bay and Limeburners Bay.

Established in 1855 under the auspices of the Church of England, Geelong Grammar School has a non-selective enrolment policy and currently caters for approximately 1,500 students from Pre-school to Year 12, including 800 boarders from Years 5 to 12.

6. Baulkham Hills High School

Baulkham Hills High School (BHHS, colloquially known as Baulko) is a government-funded academically selective co-educational secondary day school, located in Baulkham Hills in the Hills District of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Established in June 1971, the school enrolled approximately 1,220 students in 2018, from Year 7 to Year 12, of whom one percent identified as Indigenous Australians and 83 percent were from a language background other than English. The school is operated by the NSW Department of Education in accordance with a curriculum developed by the New South Wales Education Standards Authority; the principal is Jeanne Bathgate.

7. Perth Modern School

Perth Modern School (colloquially known as Perth Mod, or just “Mod”) is a public co-educational academically selective high day school, located in Subiaco, an inner city suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Perth Modern is Western Australia’s only fully academically selective public school. Established in 1911, the school is the oldest public high school in Western Australia and the oldest co-educational high school in Western Australia. Perth Modern caters for students with high academic ability.

8. Conservatorium High School

The Conservatorium High School (colloquially known as Con High) is a public government-funded co-educational selective and secondary day school with a speciality in musical education. It is on the western edge of the Royal Botanic Gardens, off Macquarie Street, in the CBD of Sydney, Australia

9. Girraween High School

Girraween High School (colloquially known as Girra) is a government-funded co-educational academically selective secondary day school, located in Girraween, in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1976 and operated by the New South Wales Department of Education, the school caters for approximately 760 students from Year 7 to Year 12.

10. Fort Street High School

Fort Street High School (FSHS) is a government-funded co-educational academically selective secondary day school, located in Petersham, an inner-western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established in 1849, it is the oldest government high school in Australia, notably the first school not founded by a religious organisation. Today, it remains a public school operated by the New South Wales Department of Education. As an academically selective secondary school, it draws students from across greater metropolitan Sydney