HSC Results 2025

Tim Watson, Principal

From the Principal

Today is a day of celebration.

Results are out, efforts are rewarded, doors are opened, and the final chapter of school life comes to a full stop.

We are often measured using numbers. How tall we are, how much we weigh, how much we can lift, how fast we can run. If we watch sport, it’s about the score, the winners and the losers, player ratings. There are metrics for everything: heatmaps, statistics, and workloads, but it is safe to say that the numbers never quite capture the full picture.

The HSC feels a bit like this. Each student receives a mark for each subject, thereby reducing study to one single mark for the past year’s work and a school lifetime of development. The ATAR, even more so. It is the ultimate attempt at a player index, which seeks to put all aspects of performance into one simple measure, comparing each student to their whole cohort across the state and across the country.

The HSC results and the ATAR, released today, provide us with part of the picture. And while it measures a combination of ability, aptitude, effort and application, it isn’t the whole picture.

Snapshot of results

19%

Students who achieved an ATAR of 90 or over

98.20

Highest student ATAR

21

Nominations for HSC Showcases across 5 subjects

93

Band 6/E4 results achieved by 53 students across all HSC courses in a cohort of 146

152

NBCS rank in The Sydney Morning Herald Schools HSC Ranking in NSW

12.27%

Percentage of Band 6 / E4 results across all HSC courses at NBCS

NBCS High Achievers by ATAR

Highest ATAR

Max Humphries achieved the highest ATAR result, and scored in the highest band across five courses.

Max Humphries
ATAR 98.20

Engineering Studies
English Advanced
Mathematics Advanced
Mathematics Extension 1
Physics

Maya Koch

97.65

Ramey Smit

96.55

Toby Simpson

96.25

Abigail Macmillan

96.10

Sophia Murrell

95.40

Erin Bovington

95.30

Liam Downs

95.10

Matthew Southey

94.65

HSC Showcase Selection

Congratulations to students who were selected for HSC Showcases and the TexStyle exhibition.

Julia Pearce

YOUNG WRITERS SHOWCASE

English Extension 2
Creative non-fiction

Arque Dang

ENCORE

Music 2
Musicology Essay

Brianna Laforest

TEXSTYLE

Textiles and Design
Major work

Our HSC Results publication includes the full complement of NBCS HSC achievements for 2025, as well as student stories and images of our Showcase nominees and their major works.

Download Results Book

Meet our Dux

In 2025 Maya Koch was named as Dux of the School.

What did you study for your HSC, and what are you planning for 2026?

I did English Advanced, Maths Extension 1, Chemistry, Biology and PDHPE. I think I will study undergraduate physiotherapy, and from there sit my GAMSAT and do medicine. I want to help people and I feel like that’s a way I could do it because I really enjoy learning about it. I do like anatomy and the study of the human body. It’s fascinating.

What were highlights from NBCS school camps?

I loved Urban Challenge and the freedom teachers gave you in Year 10. It was heaps of fun. The relationships you develop with your teachers on camps was also a highlight. Year 12 study camp was actually fun as well. We got a lot of free time and still felt productive.

How has your mentor group been?

In the earlier years it’s a bit harder, but in the past two years it’s been really nice. I feel like the Year 11 and 12 mentor groups are what they strive to be from the very start, if that makes sense. I feel like you only really get that closeness in Year 11. People put their differences aside and they’re just mature.

How did you balance your workload?

I optimised my time as much as I could by making the most of the smaller moments. I’m not much of a procrastinator. I just get stuck in, which is definitely an advantage. I like to mentally organise myself, and write out a schedule with priorities to get done. I use my notes app on my phone.

Shout-out for your favourite teachers?

Definitely Ms Penna and Mrs Meakes. Ms Penna has helped me through a lot of Maths. She was always there for me and I always went to her for advice. She told me what I needed to hear.

What piece of advice would you give your Year 11 self?

Just do things one step at a time. In Year 11, I was very stressed and was always thinking ahead. I was like, ‘if I’m so stressed now, I’m going to be so much more stressed in Year 12’. But it’s best not to think about the bigger picture. Just think about the here and now. Everything passes and you’re capable of doing it and getting it done.

What do you define as success?

If you feel proud of yourself, if the effort meets the reward, if you feel fulfilled. I try really hard to not only make myself proud, but make my family proud. I work for them. I want to be successful, so I’m able to help them, whether it’s financially or emotionally. I can see the sacrifice they make for me, so I want to be able to make that back one day.

Any other advice for younger students?

Don’t sacrifice who you are for your friendships. And although people say ‘put friends first’, sometimes if you need to get things done at school, you’ve got to sacrifice that lunch that you could spend with them and just work. Be authentic, be yourself. I’ve been very blessed because I’ve had my best friend with me since Kindy and we’ve just gone through school together. But the friends that you have now might not be forever. You’ve still got so many years ahead of you to meet new people.

Meet more of our graduates

Ben

“In 2026 I’ll start a Renewable Energy Engineering degree at UNSW, probably part-time while I focus on building my business, Watergate Labs, a renewable energy company built around a device I developed that turns water into electricity. The idea began in Year 10, and I’ve since had many opportunities to move forward.”

Lucy

“The musicals have been one of the biggest parts of my high school life. Without the musical, I wouldn’t be the person I am. It’s given me confidence and a sense of belonging. At NBCS I’ve learned how to set goals and do the best I can to achieve them, and to be authentically myself in every situation.”

Lachlan

“I won the Under 18 Australian Championship in singles and doubles in 2024, and I played in the Australian Open juniors and the Davis Cup for juniors in 2025. I train 25 hours a week and did a lot of tournaments. For me, school provided balance, and the teachers were supportive.”

Emily

“I moved to Australia at the beginning of Year 9. I’ve been very happy with the decision to come to NBCS. I made friends immediately and there are so many opportunities including global opportunities and Student Opportunity Week. Last year I helped run World’s Greatest Shave, raising over $10,000.”

Jasper

“I’ve been involved in the NBCS rock bands, performing at R&B Live lunchtime events. It’s been awesome to have a rehearsal each week and work towards performance goals. Most memorable events at NBCS were the surfing camps on the Gold Coast. It’s an insane thing the school offers!”

Sophia

“I want to study science, probably at the University of NSW. In Year 10, I did a great work experience organised by our careers teacher. I went to the University of Western Sydney and worked in the research institute at their Hawkesbury campus. I was able to do lab work and I loved it.”

Brianna

“My Textiles and Design major work is a bodice with boning, and seams, made out of satin and georgette. All the women in my family have done textiles – my grandma, mum and sister. It’s a bit of a lost art. What I’ve learned at NBCS is to carry yourself well, because people respect that, and take every opportunity that you’re given.”

HSC Showcase Major Works

Discover the major works and performances by students in Textiles, Design & Technology, Industrial Technology, Drama, Music, Extension Science, Society and Culture and Visual Art.