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Media Guide for the
2006 Higher School Certificate and School Certificate

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Contents

1. Important Dates
2. 2006 HSC Facts at a Glance
3. 2006 HSC and SC Enrolment Statistics by Region
4. 2006 HSC Enrolment Statistics by Course
5. The HSC Advice Line
6. Release of HSC Results to Students
7. HSC Examination Inquiry Centre
8. Careers Advisory Service
9. Maps of Board of Studies Regions
10. Media Inquiries and Guidelines for Contacting Students

 

1 - Important Dates

9 October	HSC Advice Line opens on 13 11 12.
19 October	Higher School Certificate written examinations begin.
13-17 November	School Certificate tests.
9 November	HSC Advice Line closes.
15 November	Higher School Certificate written examinations finish.
4 December	DesignTECH - a selection of the best HSC major works from 2006 Design and Technology students - launched at Powerhouse Museum, Sydney.
14 December	School Certificate award documents arrive in schools.
18 December	First-in-course awards ceremony and media conference re HSC Results Release at Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
19 December	HSC results available to students by internet/SMS message/telephone Media conference releasing HSC results to media, venue TBC. HSC Examination Inquiry Centre opens on 13 11 12.
20 December	University Admissions Centre releases UAI rankings online for students (for information, see www.uac.edu.au). Newspapers print embargoed HSC merit lists.
21 December	HSC Student Results Summary delivered by mail. Students receive written advice of UAI rankings.
16 January	Formal HSC student credentials delivered by mail.

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2 – 2006 HSC Facts at a Glance

The Big Picture

• 66 185 students will sit an average of six exam papers each in about 750 exam centres including schools in Hong Kong, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.
• There are 110 different examinations for courses ranging from English to Latin, Physics to Drama, and Software Design and Development to Primary Industries.
• Students will read from 13 million printed pages of questions and submit answers in 1.75 million writing booklets.
• A team of more than 30 people took nearly six weeks to pack all written examination papers for each exam centre, creating more than 50 000 parcels for distribution.
• After each exam, exam supervisors ensure students' answers are sent to marking centres wrapped in secure parcels. They annually use 42 000 sheets of brown paper, 51 kilometres of masking tape and 2000 kilograms (two tonnes) of twine.
• The Board employs more than 5000 exam supervisors and more than 7000 markers.
• Marking takes place at venues across NSW, including Sydney, Bathurst, Coffs Harbour, Gosford, Newcastle, Tamworth, Wagga Wagga and Wollongong.
• Schools have submitted their locally assessed marks for each student; this means 50% of the total HSC marks are already held on the Board's secure system.
• Several million individual marks are processed to produce students' examination marks in each course. The exam mark and the school mark are combined to produce the HSC mark.
• Students' performance is measured against consistent academic standards to create a fair and easily understood result for each student.

Top 10 subjects by enrolment 2006

Subject	Total
1. English	61 593
2. Mathematics	51 233
3. Business Studies	16 287
4. Biology	14 235
5. Studies of Religion	12 458
6. Personal Development, Health and PE	12 061
7. Ancient History	11 396
8. Chemistry	10 359
9. Modern History	9 656
10. Physics	9 254

Enrolment trends

Six years into the new HSC, enrolment trends have steadied with no substantial changes from 2005.

Enrolments in individual courses fluctuate for many reasons from year to year and care should be taken to avoid claiming a 'trend' from a single year's figures. This is particularly problematic with the smaller course, which can show large percentage increases and decreases from a slight shift in enrolment numbers.

Some subject areas that may be of interest in 2006 are:

Science

• Enrolments in Science courses have remained fairly stable. Biology has continued its growth since 2001 with a 13% increase to 14 235 candidates in 2006. Biology is now the 4th largest HSC course.
• Chemistry has also grown 13% since 2001 and is now the 8th largest course (10 359 students).
• Physics enrolments remain higher than 2001. It is now the 10th largest course (9254 students).
• Almost half of all HSC students are studying at least one Science course.

English

• The number of students taking English (Advanced) grew again this year to 27 860 students. There are now 38% more students choosing the most challenging of the mandatory English courses than in 2001.
• English is the only mandatory subject in the HSC.
• The Extension 1 and Extension 2 English courses have experienced dramatic increases in the past five years, although this year the numbers are levelling out. Enrolments in the English Extension 1 course is 63% higher than 2001, while Extension 2 is still 77% higher than 2001 levels.

Mathematics

• While Mathematics is not compulsory, more than 51 000 candidates are sitting Mathematics exams this year. General Mathematics enrolments have increased from 28 917 to 29 564.
• The Extension 1 and Extension 2 Mathematics courses have experienced major increases since 2001 and although numbers are lower this year, enrolments remain higher than in 2001.

History

• Almost 30% of all HSC candidates are enrolled in a History course.
• This year Ancient History enrolments retained the lead that the course gained on Modern History for the first time in 2004.
• Of all the HSC courses, Ancient History now has the 7th largest enrolment, up from 8th in 2005. It has attracted more students every year since 2001 and grew a further 10% in 2006. Modern History remains the 9th largest course.
• There are 1991 students studying both Ancient and Modern History this year.
• 2006 is the first year that the revised (2004) syllabuses for Ancient and Modern History will be examined. This includes the new mandatory section on Pompeii and Herculaneum in Ancient History, and the chance to draw on Australian experiences on the World War I Western Front in Modern History.

Vocational Education and Training

• There are 20 250 students in year 12 doing one or more VET courses. This represents almost 31% of the candidature who will gain nationally recognised employment qualifications along with their HSC this year.
• A high percentage of Vocational Education and Training (VET) students have opted to take examinations as part of their assessment, making their course eligible for inclusion in a UAI ranking. For example 90% of Entertainment Industry students and 87% of Hospitality students have chosen to sit the written HSC exam.
• Hospitality remains the largest VET course.
• In 2006 the NSW HSC Hospitality course has 7610 students, 5247 female and 2363 male.
• This is a 19% increase over the total Hospitality enrolments in the first year of the new HSC in 2001, when there were 6381 students in the Hospitality course, 4717 female and 1664 male.
• Figures show that while female students are still a majority in the HSC Hospitality course, more male students are studying Hospitality and the ratio is increasing from about one in four in 2001 to almost one in three in 2006.
• Some of the fastest growing VET courses from 2005 to 2006 are Primary Industries (15%) and Metal and Engineering (13%).

Languages

• This year's top three languages are French (1491 students), Japanese (1439 students) and Chinese (1268 students).
• French has reclaimed its top ranking after being overtaken by Chinese in 2004 and 2005.
• There was a 32% increase in French Beginners enrolments in 2006. The French Beginners course rose from 467 in 2005 to 618 in 2006.
• The 10 most popular language subjects include five European languages (French, Italian, German, Spanish and Modern Greek) and three Asian languages (Japanese, Chinese and Indonesian), while one is Middle-Eastern (Arabic) and one is classical (Latin).

Top 10 languages by enrolment:

Subject	Total
1. French	1 491
2. Japanese	1 439
3. Chinese	1 268
4. Italian	748
5. German	530
6. Spanish	351
7. Arabic	230
8. Indonesian	215
9. Latin	183
10. Modern Greek	150

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3 – HSC and SC Enrolment Statistics by Region

See the maps in Section 9 of this guide for Board of Studies regions. Students doing the HSC overseas are included in 'Other categories'.

2006 HSC candidates by geographical region

Note: Changes have been made to the boundary between Metropolitan North and Metropolitan North West locations. The boundary has been moved westward, with the new boundary starting at the Parramatta River and following Wharf Road, Marsden Road, Pennant Hills Road, Castle Hill Road and Old Northern Road to the north.

Canberra Grammar School has been moved from the South Coast category to be reported under 'Other categories'.

Location	Female	Male	Total	Percentage
Metropolitan
Metropolitan East	5393	5368	10761	16.26%
Metropolitan North	5035	5334	10369	15.67%
Metropolitan North West	4382	3939	8321	12.57%
Metropolitan South West	5172	4698	9870	14.91%
Total	19982	19339	39321	59.41%
Country
Hunter	3594	3178	6772	10.23%
North Coast	2721	2357	5078	7.67%
North West	1101	896	1997	3.02%
Riverina	1663	1413	3076	4.65%
South Coast	3546	2973	6519	9.85%
Western	1664	1439	3103	4.69%
Total	14289	12256	26545	40.11%
Other categories	162	157	319	0.48%
Total of all categories	34433	31752	66185	100.00%
Candidates by institution type
School students	64569	97.56%
TAFE students	1599	2.42%
Self-tuition students	17	0.03%
Total	66185	100.00%

2006 School Certificate candidates by geographical location

Location	Female	Male	Total	Percentage
Metropolitan
Metropolitan East	5171	5484	10655	12.24%
Metropolitan North	5400	5600	11000	12.64%
Metropolitan North West	5613	5776	11389	13.08%
Metropolitan South West	6231	6594	12825	14.73%
Total	22415	23454	45869	52.69%
Country
Hunter	5465	5715	11180	12.84%
North Coast	3720	3928	7648	8.79%
North West	1641	1623	3264	3.75%
Riverina	2338	2349	4687	5.38%
South Coast	4545	4849	9394	10.79%
Western	2333	2501	4834	5.55%
Total	20042	20965	41007	47.10%
Other categories	92	88	180	0.21%
Total of all categories	42549	44507	87056	100.00%

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4 – HSC Enrolment Statistics by Course

2006 HSC student enrolments by subject, course and gender.

Course Name	Units	Female	Male	Total
HSC Courses
Aboriginal Studies	2	194	76	270
Agriculture	2	644	783	1427
Ancient History	2	6803	4593	11396
Biology	2	8849	5386	14235
Business Studies	2	7860	8427	16287
Chemistry	2	4799	5560	10359
Community and Family Studies	2	4246	302	4548
Dance	2	722	32	754
Design and Technology	2	1617	2505	4122
Comparative Literature	2	4	4	8
Cosmology	2	7	21	28
Philosophy	2	18	30	48
Drama	2	3718	1553	5271
Earth and Environmental Science	2	499	649	1148
Economics	2	2082	3424	5506
Engineering Studies	2	58	1361	1419
English (Advanced)	2	16483	11377	27860
English (Standard)	2	14468	16411	30879
English as a Second Language	2	1404	1450	2854
English Extension 1	1	4072	2221	6293
English Extension 2	1	1717	881	2598
Food Technology	2	2378	720	3098
Geography	2	2099	2448	4547
History Extension	1	1472	991	2463
Industrial Technology	2	323	3090	3413
Information Processes and Technology	2	1492	3806	5298
Legal Studies	2	5267	3367	8634
General Mathematics	2	15096	14468	29564
Mathematics	2	8626	9845	18471
Mathematics Extension 1	1	3972	5284	9256
Mathematics Extension 2	2	1248	1950	3198
Modern History	2	5104	4552	9656
Music 1	2	2097	2337	4434
Music 2	2	366	259	625
Music Extension	1	234	159	393
Personal Development, Health and Physical Education	2	6449	5612	12061
Physics	2	2303	6951	9254
Senior Science	2	1798	2283	4081
Society and Culture	2	3125	673	3798
Software Design and Development	2	145	1759	1904
Studies of Religion I	1	4986	4408	9394
Studies of Religion II	2	2014	1050	3064
Textiles and Design	2	2033	35	2068
Visual Arts	2	6144	2686	8830
Languages
Arabic Beginners	2	4	1	5
Arabic Continuers	2	145	80	225
Arabic Extension	1	51	28	79
Armenian Continuers	2	17	9	26
Chinese Background Speakers	2	597	544	1141
Chinese Beginners	2	16	9	25
Chinese Continuers	2	48	54	102
Chinese Extension	1	15	20	35
Classical Greek Continuers	2	7	8	15
Classical Greek Extension	1	2	3	5
Classical Hebrew Continuers	2	25	26	51
Classical Hebrew Extension	1	17	19	36
Croatian Continuers	2	8	2	10
Dutch Continuers	2	4	1	5
Filipino Continuers	2	11	9	20
French Beginners	2	513	105	618
French Continuers	2	624	249	873
French Extension	1	133	62	195
German Beginners	2	101	43	144
German Continuers	2	255	131	386
German Extension	1	71	36	107
Hindi Continuers	2	10	12	22
Hungarian Continuers	2	5	1	6
Indonesian Background Speakers	2	41	34	75
Indonesian Beginners	2	28	10	38
Indonesian Continuers	2	85	17	102
Indonesian Extension	1	28	7	35
Italian Beginners	2	277	104	381
Italian Continuers	2	268	99	367
Italian Extension	1	58	18	76
Japanese Background Speakers	2	32	17	49
Japanese Beginners	2	374	220	594
Japanese Continuers	2	499	297	796
Japanese Extension	1	167	98	265
Khmer Continuers	2	5	4	9
Korean Background Speakers	2	70	57	127
Korean Beginners	2	1	0	1
Korean Continuers	2	7	4	11
Latin Continuers	2	79	104	183
Latin Extension	1	38	64	102
Macedonian Continuers	2	8	11	19
Maltese Continuers	2	4	2	6
Modern Greek Beginners	2	21	10	31
Modern Greek Continuers	2	72	47	119
Modern Greek Extension	1	38	17	55
Modern Hebrew Continuers	2	19	12	31
Persian Background Speakers	2	23	15	38
Polish Continuers	2	19	11	30
Portuguese Continuers	2	9	8	17
Russian Background Speakers	2	19	15	34
Serbian Continuers	2	24	19	43
Spanish Beginners	2	86	41	127
Spanish Continuers	2	134	90	224
Spanish Extension	1	49	24	73
Swedish Continuers	2	3	3	6
Tamil Continuers	2	10	10	20
Turkish Continuers	2	39	21	60
Ukrainian Continuers	2	1	1	2
Vietnamese Continuers	2	59	59	118
Life Skills Courses
Citizenship and Society Life Skills	2	212	284	496
Creative Arts Life Skills	2	243	316	559
English Life Skills	2	496	703	1199
Mathematics Life Skills	2	396	577	973
Personal Development, Health and PE Life Skills	2	253	397	650
Science Life Skills	2	143	215	358
Technology and Applied Studies Life Skills	2	247	400	647
Work and the Community Life Skills	2	303	436	739
Vocational Education and Training
Accounting	2	170	182	352
Business Services		1935	541	2476
Business Services Extension		9	0	9
Business Services Examination	2	1524	385	1909
Construction		39	2041	2080
Construction Specialist Studies		0	10	10
Construction Examination	2	21	1630	1651
Entertainment Industry		498	356	854
Entertainment Industry Examination	2	464	309	773
Hospitality		5247	2363	7610
Hospitality Extension		154	56	210
Hospitality Examination	2	4612	2031	6643
Information Technology		787	2238	3025
Information Technology Extension		3	73	76
Information Technology Examination	2	660	1938	2598
Metal and Engineering		14	738	752
Metal and Engineering Extension - Specialist Studies		1	28	29
Metal and Engineering Examination	2	10	539	549
Primary Industries		280	557	837
Primary Industries Extension		6	0	6
Primary Industries Specialisation Studies		2	2	4
Primary Industries Examination	2	229	396	625
Retail Operations		1510	710	2220
Retail Operations Examination	2	1180	553	1733
Tourism	2	406	52	458
Tourism Extension		8	0	8
Tourism Examination	2	270	23	293

Note: There are multiple courses available within each VET industry framework, allowing for flexible delivery throughout Stage 6. The courses have been combined to show entries in the base course, entries in any extension or specialisation courses and the entries in the optional examination. Due to the consolidation, no unit value can be shown for these courses.

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5 – The HSC Advice Line – 13 11 12

The Advice Line is a telephone information service for students preparing for the HSC examinations. It provides an after-hours and weekend service leading up to and during the examination period. The Advice Line has received more than 300 000 calls since it began in 1995.

The 2006 HSC Advice Line opened on Monday 9 October. It will close at 10 pm on Thursday 9 November 2006.

The service is open from:
Monday to Friday 4 pm to 10 pm
Saturday 10 am to 6 pm
Sunday 10 am to 10 pm

The HSC Advice Line telephone number is 13 11 12.

The cost is only 25 cents, no matter where a student is calling from in NSW or how long the call lasts. Calls to the Advice Line cannot be made from mobile phones.

Up to 80 lines are open at any one time for teachers to answer questions, no matter how simple or complex. Some of the questions students commonly ask are:

• What kinds of exam questions will be asked in this subject?
• How do I structure an essay or use quotes and reference material?
• Do I have the right answer to the question in the specimen exam paper?
• I need more information on this topic – help!
• What equipment do I need to take into the exam room?

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6 – Release of HSC Results to Students

The HSC results are available to students via the internet, SMS text message and automated telephone services from 6 am on Tuesday 19 December. Students will receive HSC results summaries in the mail on Thursday 21 December and their full credentials on Tuesday 16 January 2007.

The pre-Christmas release of HSC results gives students more time to take advantage of career counselling and other support services before making decisions about university, TAFE and employment offers or other plans.

The Internet Results Service

• Students can access their HSC results on three Board of Studies websites from 6 am on Tuesday 19 December by typing in their student number and PIN at:
  • www.boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au; or
  • www.hscresults.nsw.edu.au; or
  • www.hsc-results.nsw.edu.au
• There is no cost to students who use the website other than the charges applied by their internet service provider and/or the cost of the call.

Release of results by SMS text message – 1977 2346

• Students who want to automatically receive their HSC results by SMS can pre-register for the SMS service by text-messaging their student number and PIN to 1977 2346.
• A return text message to the student confirms that they have registered for the service and the results will be sent to their mobile phone at approximately 6 am on 19 December.
• Students who do not pre-register can still get their results by SMS by messaging their student number and PIN to the service after 6 am on 19 December.
• Students should check that their phone is in credit, that they have Premium rate access on their phone, and that there is room for messages in their phone's inbox.
• The SMS service charge is a flat rate of $1.10.

The Telephone Results Service – 1902 220 100

• Students can access their HSC results from 6 am on Tuesday 19 December by using the automated telephone service.
• Students call 1902 220 100 and follow the voice prompts. They will be given information about the cost of the call and asked to enter their student number and PIN.
• To cover costs there is a charge of $1.65 per minute (mobiles and payphones will incur additional costs). A call usually lasts two to three minutes.

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7 – HSC Examination Inquiry Centre - 13 11 12

The HSC Examination Inquiry Centre will operate from 9 am on Tuesday 19 December 2006 until the New Year. Students can talk to experienced Board of Studies and school staff about their Higher School Certificate results.

Inquiries relating to the UAI, university admissions, post-secondary education and work should be directed to the Universities Admissions Centre or the annual Careers Advisory Service for School Leavers.

8 – Careers Advisory Service – www.cas.det.nsw.edu.au

Each year the NSW Department of Education and Training offers a free Careers Advisory Service which provides students and their families or caregivers with up-to-date information about the range of relevant career and study options available following the release of the Higher School Certificate results.

Students can contact the Service by telephone, email and, during peak periods, in person at locations around the state.

For students from Sydney and the Central Coast call 1300 307 472 and all other areas call 1300 300 687, or email careers@det.nsw.edu.au.

More information and contact details are available at www.cas.det.nsw.edu.au.

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9 – Maps of Board of Studies Regions

click on a map for a larger view in a separate window.

 

10 – Media Inquiries and Guidelines for Contacting Students

Media Inquiries

Please direct all your HSC media inquiries to:

Rebecca Lloyd
Chief Media Officer
Office of the Board of Studies
Phone: (02) 9367 8250
Mobile: 0418 418 053
Fax: (02) 9367 8035
Email: rebeccalloyd@boardofstudies.nsw.edu.au

Guidelines for Contacting Students and Schools

It's important students are free to concentrate solely on their exams. For this reason media outlets should not attend schools before or during exams.

• Mock-up shots after the exam can be arranged to provide images of students concentrating on their exam papers. Call the Board of Studies to make arrangements.
• Journalists seeking access to a government school or telephone interviews with teachers should contact a Department of Education and Training media liaison officer on (02) 9561 8501, preferably 24 hours in advance.
• Journalists seeking access to a non-government school should contact the school principal directly.
• Be aware that in some cases parental permission must be obtained for students to be photographed or filmed or otherwise identified or interviewed. Check this with the principal.
• Always notify the school principal on your arrival at the school.

Please call the above media inquiries number at any time with questions or special requests.

Additional media information can be found on the Board of Studies website.