Photo by Janie Barrett
NESA takes a snapshot of HSC enrolments on 1 September every year. It covers:
- HSC students overview – where they are studying, learning area summary and the HSC courses and languages with the highest candidature
- Enrolments by region – regional areas, cities and Sydney suburbs
- HSC enrolments by course – general, VET, languages and Life Skills.
Making the HSC the most popular school credential in Australia in 2026.
Most of these students are not yet in Year 12.
Most HSC students enrol in at least one course with an HSC exam, and most of these students complete several HSC exams.
Around 250 students will sit HSC exams overseas.
There are 123 written exams totalling around 350 hours.
Each exam is reviewed at least 6 times before being printed.
95 exam committees and around 300 exam committee members develop the written exams.
Around 800 exam centres are managed by over 8,000 staff.
How many students are studying for the HSC in 2026?
The HSC is the most popular high school credential in Australia with 84,053 students studying one or more HSC courses in 2026. Of these students, 74,542 are on track to complete their HSC this year. The others are typically undertaking accelerated courses, in the first year of compressed curriculum delivery or studying part time. 79,675 students are completing at least one HSC exam this year.
Where are students studying their courses in 2026?
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 are overseas.
What courses are students studying in 2026?
Almost 150 Board developed HSC courses, covering a broad range of subjects, are available to meet students’ diverse needs.
These include:
- 102 examinable courses
- 12 Industry Curriculum Frameworks (with exams)
- 32 Life Skills courses for students with disabilities.
In addition, there are over 150 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.
enrolled in at least one English course, representing 90% of the total cohort.
enrolled in at least one Mathematics course, representing 76% of the total cohort.
enrolled in at least one Science course, representing 42% of the total cohort.
enrolled in at least one course with a performance or submitted work, representing 35% of the total cohort.
enrolled in at least one VET course, representing 28% of the total cohort.
enrolled in at least one Language course, representing 6% of the total cohort.
enrolled in at least one Life Skills course.
Performances and submitted works
Courses include: Dance, Design and Technology, Drama, English Extension 2, Industrial Technology, Music Extension, Music 1, Music 2, Society and Culture, Textiles and Design and Visual Arts.
The performance exams are held in August and the dates for submission of major works were in July. This means that these students have already completed some of the HSC exams.
Students studying English Extension 2 and Music Extension have completed these courses as there are no written exams.
Top 15 HSC Subjects for 2026
View historical data for the top 15 subjects for previous HSC cohorts.
Top 5 Languages for 2026
View historical data for the top 5 languages for previous HSC cohorts.
Top 5 VET Frameworks for 2026
View historical data for the top 5 VET frameworks for previous HSC cohorts.
Course and region enrolments
View more detailed data for courses (including VET and Life Skills) and enrolment by regions across NSW.
2026 HSC course enrolments
View the number of students enrolled in general education, VET, languages, and life skills courses in 2026.
2026 HSC region enrolments
Students are studying their HSC courses in schools across NSW and overseas; view the number of students in each region for the 2026 cohort.