Historical top candidature subjects

This historical data reports on the top HSC general education courses, languages and VET Industry Curriculum Frameworks for the 2020–2024 HSC cohorts.

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About the statistics

NESA takes a snapshot of HSC enrolments at 1 September every year. Discover the top courses for each respective year.

Top 15 HSC subjects

RankSubjectUnique students
1English69,372
2Mathematics58,316
3Biology19,036
4Business Studies18,325
5Personal Development, Health & Physical Education17,557
6Studies of Religion14,534
7Modern History11,151
8Legal Studies10,943
9Chemistry10,298
10Community and Family Studies9,172
11Visual Arts9,153
12Physics8,151
13Ancient History7,431
14Hospitality7,062
15Industrial Technology6,175
RankSubjectUnique students
1English69,446
2Mathematics59,310
3Biology19,178
4Business Studies18,137
5Personal Development, Health & Physical Education17,894
6Studies of Religion14,770
7Modern History11,284
8Legal Studies10,974
9Chemistry10,038
10Community and Family Studies9,415
11Visual Arts9,028
12Physics8,063
13Hospitality7,274
14Ancient History6,686
15Industrial Technology5,992
RankSubjectUnique students
1English68,158
2Mathematics59,000
3Biology19,304
4Business Studies18,413
5Personal Development, Health & Physical Education17,399
6Studies of Religion14,755
7Legal Studies10,510
8Modern History10,465
9Chemistry10,098
10Community and Family Studies9,472
11Visual Arts8,723
12Physics7,746
13Hospitality6,795
14Ancient History6,641
15Industrial Technology5,965
RankSubjectUnique students
1English69,589
2Mathematics60,093
3Biology19,808
4Business Studies19,087
5Personal Development, Health & Physical Education18,238
6Studies of Religion14,117
7Modern History10,742
8Legal Studies10,461
9Chemistry9,995
10Community and Family Studies9,535
11Visual Arts9,206
12Physics8,027
13Hospitality7,040
14Ancient History6,907
15Industrial Technology6,020
RankSubjectUnique students
1English72,297
2Mathematics61,963
3Business Studies20,008
4Biology19,444
5Personal Development, Health and Physical Education18,776
6Studies of Religion14,839
7Modern History10,873
8Legal Studies10,425
9Community and Family Studies10,293
10Chemistry9,851
11Visual Arts9,424
12Physics8,315
13Ancient History8,072
14Hospitality7,587
15Industrial Technology6,220

Top 5 languages

RankLanguageUnique students
1Japanese1,362
2French1,116
3Chinese879
4Italian526
5Spanish498
RankLanguageUnique students
1Japanese1,246
2French987
3Chinese786
4Italian526
5Spanish430
RankLanguageUnique students
1Japanese1,448
2French847
3Chinese760
4Italian472
5Spanish385
RankLanguageUnique students
1Japanese1,250
2French817
3Chinese625
4Italian405
5Spanish321
RankLanguageUnique students
1Japanese1,202
2French908
3Chinese708
4Italian469
5Spanish415

Top 5 VET Industry Curriculum Frameworks

RankIndustry Curriculum FrameworkUnique students
1Hospitality7,062
2Construction3,947
3Business Services2,391
4Retail Services1,713
5Entertainment Industry1,067
RankIndustry Curriculum FrameworkUnique students
1Hospitality7,274
2Construction3,663
3Business Services2,564
4Retail Services1,600
5Entertainment Industry1,206
RankIndustry Curriculum FrameworkUnique students
1Hospitality6,795
2Construction3,800
3Business Services2,446
4Retail Services1,503
5Entertainment Industry1,003
RankIndustry Curriculum FrameworkUnique students
1Hospitality7,040
2Construction3,521
3Business Services2,198
4Retail Services1,555
5Entertainment Industry975
RankIndustry Curriculum FrameworkUnique students
1Hospitality7,587
2Construction3,529
3Business Services2,401
4Retail Services1,615
5Entertainment Industry1,243

View 2025 top candidature subjects

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