Only 1,000 spots but thousands sit for Victoria's selective schools
Mac.Robertson Girls' High School accepts just 300 of thousands who sit its entry exam each year.
Victoria's four selective-entry high schools have only 1,000 spots between them each year. Thousands of students sit the entry exam hoping to secure a place at these schools.
Mac.Robertson Girls' High School is particularly popular and rivals the academic performance of many private schools. Last year, 34.7 per cent of Mac.Robertson students scored 40 or above in their VCE exams.
The state average was 30. The school's tight campus, hemmed in by Albert Park and apartment buildings, means it cannot expand.
This huge demand is fuelling an election-year debate: do Victoria's selective schools need rivals, or do they worsen social segregation by concentrating advantage among families who can afford tutoring to pass the entry test?
- 1,000 across four schools
- Total spots annually
- 34.7 per cent achieved 40+
- Mac.Robertson top scorers 2025
- 30 per cent scored 40+
- State VCE average
- Sue Harrap
- Principal
Why it mattersSelective schools shape which children get to the state's best universities and careers, and where families can afford to live, so their size and selection method matter to the state's equality.
AustraliaVictoria's state election in November will debate whether to create new selective schools to ease pressure on the existing four, a policy backed by the Liberals but opposed by equity campaigners.
Corroborated bytheage.com.au·watoday.com.au
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 3 h ago
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