About the statistics
Each year NESA provides statistics on HSC students and their courses. Find statistics from 2022, or view more from different years.
Cohort insights
2010 was the year that most students who are completing the HSC in 2022 started their 13 years of schooling.
The HSC is the most popular school credential in Australia in 2022.
Students on track to complete their HSC
Making the HSC the most popular school credential in Australia in 2022
Number of additional students studying 1 or more HSC courses in 2022
Most of these students are not yet in year 12.
How many students are studying for the HSC?
The HSC is the most popular high school credential in Australia with 75,493 students studying one or more HSC courses in 2022. Of these students, 67,327 are on track to complete their HSC this year.
Where are students studying their courses?
The majority are studying for the HSC at schools in major cities. The others are studying in regional and remote areas of NSW, and a small number outside Australia.
The location is based on Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Remoteness Area classification.
Enrolment data is taken from 1 September 2022.
Learn more about the HSC course enrolments by region
Learn more about HSC course enrolments
What courses are students studying?
There are almost 150 Board developed HSC courses, covering a broad range of subjects, are available to meet students' diverse needs.
These include:
- 103 examinable courses
- 12 Industry Curriculum Frameworks (with optional examinations)
- 32 Life Skills courses for students with disability.
In addition, there are over 120 Board Endorsed courses available, including vocational courses, for which students can also achieve an Australian Qualifications Framework credential, and courses designed by schools to meet local needs.
It is compulsory to study an English course for the HSC. 68,158 students (90% of the total cohort) are enrolled in at least one of the following HSC English courses:
- English Standard
- English Advanced
- English Extension 1
- English Extension 2
- English EAL/D
- English Studies
- English Life Skills.
59,000 students (78% of the total cohort) are enrolled in at least one of the following HSC Mathematics courses:
- Mathematics Standard 1
- Mathematics Standard 2
- Mathematics Advanced
- Mathematics Extension 1
- Mathematics Extension 2
- Mathematics Life Skills
- Numeracy (Content Endorsed Course).
32,232 students (43% of the total cohort) are enrolled in at least one of the following HSC Science courses:
- Biology/Living World Science Life Skills
- Chemistry/Chemical World Science Life Skills
- Physics/Physical World Science Life Skills
- Earth and Environmental Science/Earth and Space Science Life Skills
- Investigating Science/Investigating Science Life Skills
- Science Extension.
5,317 students (7% of the total cohort) are enrolled in at least one HSC Language course.
19,103 students (25% of the total cohort) are enrolled in at least one HSC Vocational Educational and Training (VET) course. Of these, 17,080 are enrolled in one or more of the VET Industry curriculum frameworks.
2,344 students are enrolled in at least one HSC Life Skills course.
Highest candidature subjects
There are almost 150 Board developed HSC courses.
| Rank | Subject | Unique students |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | English | 68,158 |
| 2 | Mathematics | 59,000 |
| 3 | Biology | 19,304 |
| 4 | Business Studies | 18,413 |
| 5 | Personal Development, Health & Physical Education | 17,399 |
| 6 | Studies of Religion | 14,755 |
| 7 | Legal Studies | 10,510 |
| 8 | Modern History | 10,465 |
| 9 | Chemistry | 10,098 |
| 10 | Community and Family Studies | 9,472 |
| 11 | Visual Arts | 8,723 |
| 12 | Physics | 7,746 |
| 13 | Hospitality | 6,795 |
| 14 | Ancient History | 6,641 |
| 15 | Industrial Technology | 5,965 |
| Rank | Language | Unique students |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Japanese | 1,448 |
| 2 | French | 847 |
| 3 | Chinese | 760 |
| 4 | Italian | 472 |
| 5 | Spanish | 385 |
| Rank | Framework | Unique students |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hospitality | 6,795 |
| 2 | Construction | 3,800 |
| 3 | Business Services | 2,446 |
| 4 | Retail Services | 1,503 |
| 5 | Entertainment Industry | 1,003 |
Fun facts
Joshua and William topped the list of given names for the 2022 cohort. There are 815 sets of twins and 14 sets of triplets who are enrolled in HSC courses.
| Rank | First name | Total |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Joshua | 600 |
| 2 | William | 580 |
| 3 | Thomas | 574 |
| 4 | Jack | 563 |
| 5 | Olivia | 505 |
| 6 | Emily | 498 |
| 7 | James | 492 |
| 8 | Lachlan | 480 |
| 9 | Daniel | 466 |
| 10 | Charlotte | 458 |
| Rank | First name | Total |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nguyen | 532 |
| 2 | Smith | 466 |
| 3 | Lee | 278 |
| 4 | Tran | 255 |
| 5 | Jones | 238 |
| 6 | Williams | 236 |
| 7 | Brown | 219 |
| 8 | Chen | 214 |
| 9 | Wilson | 203 |
| 10 | Taylor | 192 |
| Sets of twins | Sets of triplets | Sets of multiple births |
|---|---|---|
| 815 | 14 | 829 |
Participation and fairness data
Explore student performance and participation in the HSC by category, plus fairness and integrity data for 2022.
Participation and performance
The HSC is a world-class credential that helps young adults on the path to work, training and further education. Learn the key participation and performance statistics for the 2022 HSC cohort.
Fairness and integrity
NESA publishes fairness and integrity data for the 2022 HSC. Learn about the statistics for disability provisions, illness and misadventure, and breaking HSC rules.
Course and region data
More detailed data for courses (including VET and Life Skills) and enrolment by regions across NSW.
2022 course enrolments
NESA reports on student enrolment information for HSC courses each year. Learn the number of students enrolled in Board Developed HSC courses in 2022.
2022 region enrolments
Students are studying their HSC courses in schools throughout NSW, and even at some schools overseas. View the number of students at schools in each region for the 2022 HSC cohort.