Applications are open from 6 November 2025 to 20 February 2026

Selective high school Year 7 entry in 2027: Apply when your child is at the end of Year 5 or the beginning of Year 6.

Opportunity class Year 5 entry in 2027: Apply when your child is at the end of Year 3 or the beginning of Year 4.

Selective high schools and opportunity classes are some of the ways the NSW Department of Education supports high potential and gifted students.

What are their benefits?

Students learn alongside, and form friendships with, other high potential and gifted classmates. Special teaching methods allow students to learn at a quicker pace and in more detail.

Research shows that students benefit both academically and socially when learning with classmates who have similar abilities.

Selective high schools and opportunity classes are not zoned so you can apply to ones outside your local enrolment area. Within each co-educational opportunity class and selective high school there will be an equal number of places available for girls and boys.

Do you speak another language? Translated resources are available in 13 languages on our website: edu.nsw.link/shsoc_languages

Is a selective high school or opportunity class the right fit for my child?

A selective high school or opportunity class might be a great fit if your child:

learns quickly
asks complex questions
is highly motivated
has a good memory
is intensely focused in their area of interest

Where are selective high schools (Year 7-12) located?

There are 4 types of selective high schools:

fully selective high schools, where all students attending the school have high potential or are gifted
partially selective high schools, where there is a mix of students who have high potential or are gifted and local area students
4 agricultural selective high schools, including 3 boarding schools
Aurora College, which provides online selective classes for rural and remote students in their local host schools.

Search for a selective high school near you at Find a selective high school.

Where are opportunity classes (Year 5-6) located?

There are 2 types of opportunity classes:

full-time opportunity classes in selected primary schools
Aurora College, which provides online opportunity classes for rural and remote students in their local authorised host schools.

Search for an opportunity class near you at Find an opportunity class.

Students successfully placed attend the opportunity class full-time in Years 5 and 6. In most cases, students who have accepted a place in an opportunity class will leave their current school to attend the school with the opportunity class.

Discuss the opportunity with your child and look through the information together on the Selective high schools and opportunity classes website and in the student resource hub:

Applying for a selective high school: Student resource hub
Applying for an opportunity class: Student resource hub

Fair and equitable access

The Equity Placement Model helps make access fairer for more high potential students in our community.

We know that some students may be missing out because they experience educational disadvantage.

Under the model, up to 20% of places in each selective high school and opportunity class are held for:

students from low socio-educational advantage backgrounds
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander students
students from rural and remote locations
students with disability.

These students still receive offers based on their performance in the placement test.

Learn more at Fair access.

The application process

Complete the online application.

Applications close on 20 February 2026.

Once your application has been submitted and processed, your child will need to sit a computer-based placement test. Learn more at Application process.

Ready to apply?

Apply online at shsoc.education.nsw.gov.au

Further information

Visit Selective high schools and opportunity classes.

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