Congratulations to the Mary MacKillop Catholic College Class of 2021 on climbing up the state’s academic leaderboard into the top 150! 

“The year 2021 marked 30 years since the foundation of Mary MacKillop Catholic College and we marked this significant milestone with our best ever HSC results,” Principal of Mary MacKillop Catholic College Wakeley, Gilda Pussich, said.

Sydney Catholic Schools achieved its best HSC results ever with 11 of its 33 schools ranked among the top 100 high schools in NSW and 18 in the top 150.

Mary MacKillop climbed an enormous 104 positions to 138th in the Daily Telegraph media rankings (calculated using the ratio of the number of Band 6 results to the number of exams sat by the school).

The school recorded 102 Distinguished Achievements and 2 All Rounders, while 13.3 percent of Mary MacKillop students achieved a Band 6. 

System-wide success

Sydney Catholic Schools’ unprecedented academic success saw its schools reach new heights with the number of distinguished achievers rising from 2486 in 2019 and 2511 in 2020 to 3115 in 2021.

“To the class of 2021, we extend our heartfelt congratulations and admiration,” Sydney Catholic Schools’ Executive Director, Tony Farley, said.

The results follow a series of ground-breaking HSC excellence initiatives that involved all 33 secondary schools meeting to share and analyse HSC performance data, identify key strategies for achieving academic success and find ways to share resources and opportunities across our 33 schools sitting the HSC. 

“Our system-wide approach to excellence means that every student and teacher has access to a huge range of resources and experiences that a large system like ours can provide,” Sydney Catholic Schools Director of Education and Research, Dr Kate O’Brien, said.

Here’s a recap of all our 2021 HSC highlights:

  • 99.35 Highest ATAR – Dux of the College
  • 13.3% – number of Mary MacKillop students who achieved Band 6 results
  • 2 All Rounders – number of students scoring above 90 in at least 10 units
  • 102 Distinguished Achievements – lists the students who achieved a result in the highest band (Band 6 or Band E4) for one or more courses, not including results for courses studied external to their school 
  • 1 Top Performer in the State – 5th Place in NSW for Community and Family Studies
  • 6 Top Performers in the Archdiocese of Sydney – First Place in Community and Family Studies, French Beginners, Food Technology, Arabic Continuers and Arabic Extension (x2)