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Students at James Ruse Agricultural High recorded the highest average scores of any public school in the Higher School Certificate last year.<\/p>\n
A Herald analysis of hundreds of public schools\u2019 HSC results found James Ruse students\u2019 average mark across all subjects was 91.3 last year, placing it just above students at North Sydney Boys and North Sydney Girls.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Selective schools dominated the top performers, taking out 19 of the top spots.<\/p>\n
But several non-selective single-sex schools \u2013 including Willoughby Girls, Balgowlah Boys and Cheltenham Girls \u2013 outperformed several partially selective ones.<\/p>\n
The Herald analysis uses precise average subject marks, contained in public high schools\u2019 annual reports, across all subjects.<\/p>\n
This analysis stands in contrast to the Herald\u2019s end of year HSC league tables<\/a>, which use limited performance data provided by the NSW Education Standards Authority each December. That data shows the proportion of students at a school scoring in the top band, with a mark over 90 per cent in each subject. On that measure, North Sydney topped the state, but on averages alone, it placed second to Ruse.<\/p>\n Inside his office this week, James Ruse principal Matt Dopierala refused to be drawn on his school recording higher average marks than North Sydney Boys. He simply said his school\u2019s success was driven by a culture of collaboration.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re one team, all heading for the same goal\u2013 to turn academic success into well-rounded young people who can succeed in anything they do,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n In staff meetings over the past two years, there\u2019s been a greater focus on discussing pedagogical approaches while some teachers get release time off class so they can observe how their colleagues deliver a lesson.<\/p>\n \u201cYou become a better educator, a better student, or a better learner, no matter who you are, by being part of Ruse,\u201d Dopierala said.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The school might have the best results, and an even better reputation. But for some prospective parents whose children are offered a place, it is not always enough.<\/p>\n Dopierala says that is because an offer from Ruse is a \u201cvery good lure\u201d to the private school system because it acts almost as \u201ca guarantee of good performance\u201d for how a student will perform.<\/p>\n \u201cSo the private schools are very willing then to offer places to these families, and sometimes with a scholarship,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Related Article \u201cThe shiny things can be attractive to families, but you can\u2019t buy the people who are here.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you come here, it\u2019s like making the Olympic team. You don\u2019t say no to that. You continue to compete. You continue to extend yourself. You continue to engage because then you\u2019re going to be the best you.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd when you\u2019re joining the others that are just like you, that excellence is amplified. It\u2019s not diluted.\u201d<\/p>\n Year 11 Ruse student Zain Abdu, who is an incoming school captain, said his friends outside of school had a certain stereotype of James Ruse.<\/p>\n Related Article \u201cIf I tell one of my friends from, I don\u2019t know, Punchbowl Boys, for example, they\u2019ll think, \u2018Oh, how much do you study? Is it seven or eight hours a day?\u2019 And \u2018Oh wow, you\u2019ve come out of the study den, you\u2019ve finally come to see us\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n While his friends might be facetious, the reality is different, he says.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I were to describe what it\u2019s like to be a James Ruse student: I come to school to engage in extracurricular activities, and then at some point maybe I start thinking about studies the day before the assignment or something.\u201d<\/p>\n Catholic and private schools were not included in the analysis because most do not publish comparable data.<\/p>\n An exception is selective private school Sydney Grammar, which last year had an average score of 90.63.<\/p>\n Sydney Grammar headmaster Stuart McPherson said the school took every HSC course \u201cvery seriously\u201d but was also committed to a broad education because a \u201cliberal course of education\u201d was written into the act that established the school in 1854.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s why at Grammar we require boys to take 12 units (not the standard 10) in year 12,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n It equipped students with a broad-based education, he said, across humanities, social sciences, languages and creative arts, alongside English, maths and the sciences.<\/p>\n \u201cThis means that boys at our school can\u2019t do the English, maths extension 2, two sciences set of subjects that is common amongst other high-achieving academic environments.\u201d<\/p>\n Chatswood High was the top-scoring partially selective school, where the average student result in a subject was 81.88. It was followed by partially selective Parramatta High and Sydney Secondary College Blackwattle Bay.<\/p>\n NSW Education Department Secretary Murat Dizdar said the outstanding HSC results reflect the sustained hard work of students, the expertise of teachers and school leaders, and the strong focus on explicit, evidence-based teaching in schools.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are a powerful reminder to parents of the quality of education available at their local public high school, where students are supported to pursue excellence, their passions and realise their full potential,\u201d Dizdar said.<\/p>\n Start the day with a summary of the day\u2019s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n Save<\/p>\n You have reached your maximum number of saved items.<\/p>\n![\"Year](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/e722a3f6c710f2812021aa52400daf096f2b95cd.jpeg\")
Year 11 students Rachel Chen, Zain Abdu and Arani Mahalingam at James Ruse Agricultural High School.Sam Mooy<\/p>\n![\"North](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/8858b98b40a89d0cae180914a2f7d9bf43252b614c30231b6588a8ed86593fec.gif\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Matt](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/d52e8a1709de90c0ca794ca25c035edbd1978ea3.jpeg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Sydney](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/977508c08a38870d8711bb9de5a002fa223b3352.jpeg\")
Sydney Grammar headmaster Stuart McPherson.Steven Siewert<\/p>\n