Sydney Boys High School Entry for Years 8 to 11: Application, Tests and Interview

Years of entry

Years 8, 9, 10 and 11

First

A written application, assessed by the school

Then

Literacy and numeracy tests set by the school, for short-listed boys

Then, for some

An interview

Year 11 applicants

Also sit a general ability science test

2028 entry (exams in August 2027)

Forms from mid-June 2027, the school says

Last checked 1 October 2026, against Sydney Boys High School's enrolment information and the NSW Department of Education. Where the school publishes no detail, we draw on our own experience and say so.

What is the Sydney Boys High School entrance exam?

It is one stage of three. Year 7 entry to a NSW selective school goes through the Department of Education's statewide selective test. Entry in Years 8 to 11 works differently: the NSW Department of Education says each selective school manages its own vacancies, assessments and placement decisions.

Sydney Boys High School's enrolment policy sets out its order:

1. The written application. You send an application form, ideally the school's own, with a copy of your son's last two school reports. The school assesses each application at least twice and ranks them.
2. The tests, for short-listed boys. The school emails the applicants it short-lists and invites them to sit its tests: in its words, "a range of literacy and numeracy tasks set by the School". Year 11 applicants also sit a general ability science test.
3. The interview, for some. Some applicants may then be invited to an interview, where your son supports the claims in his application with evidence.

Not every applicant sits the tests, and not every boy who sits them is interviewed. The school's own enrolment information is the final word on who is invited to each stage.

The school takes applications for Years 8, 9, 10 and 11, and does not accept enrolments into Year 12. Your son applies the year before he would start: a boy in Year 8 applies for Year 9 entry. New to Year 8 to 11 entry? Our guide to selective school transfer explains how it works across NSW selective schools.

How Sydney Boys High School compares with other selective schools

Many selective schools use the EduTest, or the HAST, the Higher Ability Selection Test developed by ACER. Sydney Boys High School sets its own tests, and it is not on ACER's list of HAST schools or on Edutest's list of client schools, both read on 1 October 2026. Each school name below links to that school's own enrolment page.

As at 1 October 2026, from each school's own enrolment page.

For schools on your son's list that use the EduTest or the HAST, see our EduTest guide and HAST guide. If Normanhurst Boys High School is also on his list, our comparison of the two schools sets the two processes side by side.

The written application

At Sydney Boys High School the application decides whether your son sits the tests at all, so give it as much care as the tests.

What the school asks for. The school has its own expanded application form. Last cycle it was on the Sydney High Community site, which the school's enrolment page links to. Use it rather than the Department's general form: the school says a Family Placement claim cannot be made on the Department's form. Last cycle the school asked families to read page six of the form first, because it gives examples of information that may support an application. Attach a copy of each of your son's last two school reports. In the school's words, "Do not supply any other documents." Evidence comes later, if he is selected for interview.

What the school looks at. Its enrolment policy lists the criteria its assessors use, including the educational history of the student, his sporting interests and accomplishments, and his co-curricular interests and abilities. Sport matters here. The school says, "our strong expectation is that boys will participate in competitive team sports", and its homepage reads, "Nurturing scholar-sportsmen since 1883."

How we suggest writing it.

• Be specific. The commonest weakness we see is a generic line such as "academic excellence and personal growth", with nothing in it about this boy or this school.
• One achievement per line: what it was, the level, the year and the result.
• If the form asks why your son wants to attend, link the school's own values to his ambitions, then cover sport, academics and co-curricular activities, and name opportunities at the school he has actually researched.
• Keep it in your son's own words. We review drafts. We do not write them, and any sample we share is a structure to follow, not wording to copy.

For what other selective schools ask for, see our guide to writing a strong selective school application.

The tests

Sydney Boys High School describes its tests as "a range of literacy and numeracy tasks set by the School", sat by short-listed applicants. It does not publish their length, the number of questions, the question types or whether a calculator is allowed.

The table below comes from our experience preparing boys for these tests. Treat it as a guide, and follow the instructions the school sends you.

From Selective Success Academy's experience. Not published by the school.

Numeracy

Our Sydney Boys High School numeracy mock is 20 one-mark questions in 30 minutes, with no calculator, built to the length of the school's test as we know it from experience. It rewards fluency and clean arithmetic more than long, multi-step working. Across the numeracy tests at both Sydney Boys High School and Normanhurst Boys High School, we find algebra is the largest strand: index laws, surds, expanding and factorising, algebraic fractions and equations.

The Normanhurst Boys High School paper, in our experience, is longer, with more extended working, so the preparation differs. See our Normanhurst Boys High School entrance exam guide.

Literacy

From our experience, the literacy test has two parts: a written response analysing a supplied text, then a creative piece from a separate prompt. For the analysis we teach a method called IQTVE (Idea, Quote, Technique, Verb, Evaluation), scaled to the marks: a topic sentence and two IQTVEs for a 3-mark question, and three IQTVEs with a linking sentence for a 5-mark question. For the creative piece, we teach boys to stay with one narrow scene over a short stretch of time, rather than squeezing in a whole story.

Year 11: the general ability science test

Sydney Boys High School says Year 11 applicants also sit a general ability science test. The school publishes no format for it, and we do not have a reliable one. We prepare Year 11 boys in general scientific reasoning and in reading data, tables and graphs, and we do not guess beyond that.

The interview

Sydney Boys High School may invite some short-listed applicants to an interview after the tests. This is where your son supports the claims in his application with evidence, so keep his certificates, awards and records ready from the start.

The school does not publish how long the interview runs, who conducts it or what is asked. What helps is practice: speaking about his own record clearly, with specific examples, under a little pressure. A question bank cannot prepare a boy for that. We run mock interviews for boys who reach this stage, and our selective school interview guide covers the kinds of questions asked and how to prepare.

How the school decides, and what happens next

The school ranks applications on its assessors' scores, adds the test results of the boys it short-listed, and completes a final rank order after the interviews. Selective Success Academy does not publish cut-offs or score targets for any school.

Successful applicants are offered a place or told their position on the reserve list, and others are told the application was unsuccessful. The school's reserve list stays current until the next year's application process begins in June.

If an offer comes by phone, the NSW Department of Education says you must accept or decline within 24 hours. You can ask for a review within 7 days of receiving the result, but only on narrow grounds, such as the school not following its published process. A boy who misses out can apply again in a later round.

How to apply to Sydney Boys High School, and when

The school has not yet published its dates or forms for 2028 entry (exams in August 2027). Last cycle, for 2027 entry, it ran like this:

1. Get the school's own form. Applications opened on Friday 12 June 2026, with the forms on the Sydney High Community site linked from the school's enrolment page.
2. Read page six, then complete the form.
3. Attach a copy of each of your son's last two school reports. Nothing else.
4. Pay the application fee. It was $110, non-refundable, covering administration, processing and assessment.
5. Submit by mail or in person, during school hours and not in the school holidays. Applications closed at 3.00pm on Friday 24 July 2026, and nothing is accepted after the closing date and time.
6. Watch your email. Short-listed applicants are told by email. The tests were on Monday 10 August 2026 at 4.30pm, in the school's Great Hall.
7. Attend an interview if invited, ready to support your son's application with evidence.

Applying to more than one school. You can apply to up to three selective high schools. Send a separate application to each, and list the schools in the same order of preference on every form.

Two more things worth knowing. Your family must be living in NSW by the start of the school year of entry. If your son has a disability and needs adjustments, the Department asks you to contact the school early.

Last cycle's dates: 2027 entry (exams in August 2026)

These are the dates for 2027 entry. Applications for that round closed in July 2026. They show how the year runs. They are not the dates for 2028 entry.

Dates as at 1 October 2026, as published by each source in the table.

Schools do not all run on the Department's dates. Last cycle, Sydney Boys High School opened applications on Friday 12 June 2026. ACER and Edutest also leave the test date to each school, so a school outside these groups can test on a different day. Check the school's own enrolment page.

2028 entry (exams in August 2027)

No 2028-entry dates have been published yet. As at 1 October 2026, the NSW Department of Education lists only last cycle's dates, and no school we have checked has published a test date. Some schools have said when applications will open. Sydney Boys High School says its application forms for Years 8, 9, 10 and 11 in 2028 will be available from mid-June 2027. Penrith Selective High School says applications for Years 8 to 11 entry in 2028 open mid June 2027. The Department notes that dates can change, so check each school's own enrolment page regularly.

Preparing for Year 8, 9, 10 and 11 entry

At every year level your son needs a strong written application, fast and accurate numeracy, and controlled writing. What changes is the depth of the Maths, the standard of the writing, and how much his record can show. We tailor preparation to his entry year.

Year 8 entry: applying in Year 7

Your son applies while he is in Year 7. In our experience, the tests expect Maths beyond Year 7 classwork, done quickly, plus an analysis and a creative piece. Our Year 8 preparation bridges the gap between standard Year 7 content and the pace and depth these tests ask for.

Focus: foundation problem solving, number fluency, structured writing.

See the Year 7 classes, for Year 8 entry

How Year 8 selective entry works, school by school

Year 9 entry: applying in Year 8

Your son applies while he is in Year 8. He needs reasoning beyond the Year 8 syllabus, confident algebra and quick, accurate arithmetic, and both pieces of writing need to be controlled and specific. His application can now draw on more of high school: competitions, sport and co-curricular activities.

Focus: advanced problem solving, analytical and creative writing, full mock practice.

See the Year 8 classes, for Year 9 entry

How Year 9 selective entry works, school by school

Year 10 entry: applying in Year 9

Sydney Boys High School takes applications for Year 10 entry too. It suits a boy in Year 9 who wants to move before the senior years. Preparation focuses on mature mathematical reasoning at near Stage 5 syllabus depth, and writing at the standard expected of senior selective school students.

Focus: senior-level mathematics, sophisticated writing, exam composure.

See the Year 9 classes, for Year 10 entry

How Year 10 selective entry works, school by school

Year 11 entry: applying in Year 10

Year 11 is the last year Sydney Boys High School takes new students, because it does not accept enrolments into Year 12, and Year 11 applicants also sit a general ability science test. It suits a boy who wants the HSC cohort and academic environment of the school. Preparation emphasises HSC readiness in mathematics and English, plus scientific reasoning and reading data.

Focus: HSC readiness, mature analytical writing, scientific reasoning.

See the Year 10 classes, for Year 11 entry

How Year 11 selective entry works, school by school

How our tutoring prepares students for Sydney Boys High School

One course covers the Normanhurst Boys High School and Sydney Boys High School entrance exams: small-group tutoring and coaching, live on Microsoft Teams, tailored to your son's entry year, with no drive across Sydney. A term is 10 weekly lessons of two hours each. Lesson recordings mean a clash with sport or a sick day does not cost your son the content, and a full-length mock exam with a comprehensive review is part of every term. Everything a term includes is listed under the prices below.

To try the style of questions for free, use our Normanhurst Boys and Sydney Boys practice test: 9 maths questions checked on the spot, and a writing prompt.

What is specific to Sydney Boys High School:

• Maths and English weeks alternate across the term, because the school's tests cover literacy and numeracy.
• Every practice question is open response, with space to write. Our materials for this course contain no multiple choice.
• Numeracy at speed, without a calculator, to match our Sydney Boys High School mock.
• Help with the application and the interview. We review your son's application draft and run mock interviews.

What it costs

Prices as at 1 October 2026.

The live term course is 20 hours of teaching, so $900 works out at $45 an hour. It includes small group classes, lesson recordings, a full-length mock exam with a comprehensive review, marking feedback on weekly homework and the mock, lesson and homework booklets, and online messaging support.

A question bank gives your child practice. It does not contain any teaching hours, and it cannot tell you which school to apply to, what the school report needs to show, or when the application closes.

If both schools are on your son's list, our comparison of the two schools explains how the two processes differ. Full details are on courses and prices.

Results and reviews

Our students have received Year 8 to 11 offers to Sydney Boys High School, as at 23 September 2026.

Who teaches this

Ilia founded Selective Success Academy and is its head tutor. He has been through this himself: he missed out on selective school at first, then entered North Sydney Boys High School by lateral transfer. He became a North Sydney Boys High School Dux, finished school with a 99.90 ATAR and now studies Medicine at UNSW. His story was featured in The Sydney Morning Herald in April 2026.

What families say

Rated 5/5 from 90+ parent reviews

80+ selective school offers. See our students' results

Questions parents ask about Sydney Boys High School entry

Is the Sydney Boys High School entrance exam the EduTest or the HAST?

Neither. Sydney Boys High School sets its own literacy and numeracy tasks for the applicants it short-lists, and it is not on ACER's HAST list or Edutest's client list, both read on 1 October 2026. For other schools on your list, see our EduTest guide and HAST guide.

Which years can my son enter Sydney Boys High School?

Years 8, 9, 10 and 11. The school says its application forms for 2028 entry cover all four year levels, and it does not accept enrolments into Year 12. Year 11 applicants also sit a general ability science test.

Does every applicant sit the Sydney Boys High School tests?

No. The school assesses every written application first, then invites the applicants it short-lists to sit its tests. Some of them are then invited to an interview. The school's own enrolment information is the final word on who is invited to each stage.

What do we send with the application?

A copy of each of your son's last two school reports, and nothing else. The school says not to supply any other documents. If he is selected for interview, he will then need evidence for his claims, so keep his certificates and awards ready.

How many places are there?

Places vary by school and by year level. In the NSW Department of Education's words, "Vacancies depend on student departures and each school is different." Each school manages its own, and we do not quote a figure. Book a short call and we can talk through your son's options.

Are there past papers for the Sydney Boys High School tests?

We know of no official past paper. The school describes its tests only as a range of literacy and numeracy tasks set by the school. Our practice papers and mock exams are written by Selective Success Academy, drawing on our experience of the tests' format. They are practice material, not past papers.

Can my son sit a selective test in Year 9?

Yes. Sydney Boys High School takes applications for entry in Years 8 to 11, so a boy in Year 9 can apply for Year 10 entry, and a boy in Year 8 for Year 9 entry. He is invited to sit the school's tests if it short-lists his application.

When is the next Sydney Boys High School entrance exam?

No date for 2028 entry (exams in August 2027) has been published. The school says its application forms for Years 8, 9, 10 and 11 in 2028 will be available from mid-June 2027. Last cycle, for 2027 entry, the tests for short-listed applicants were on Monday 10 August 2026 at 4.30pm.

Is Sydney Boys High School harder to get into than Normanhurst Boys High School?

No official source compares them, and we would rather not guess. It depends on how many places open at your son's year level in a given year, and each school manages its own. The processes also differ: Sydney Boys High School assesses the written application before it invites any boy to sit its tests. Book a call and we can talk it through.

Can my son apply to Sydney Boys High School and Normanhurst Boys High School?

Yes. You can apply to up to three selective high schools, with a separate application to each. Last cycle the two tested on different days: Normanhurst Boys High School on Sunday 2 August 2026, and Sydney Boys High School on Monday 10 August 2026, for the boys it short-listed. See our comparison of the two schools.

Sources

Every official source on this page was read on 1 October 2026.

• Sydney Boys High School: enrolling
• Sydney Boys High School: enrolment information, on the Sydney High Community site
• Sydney Boys High School: homepage
• NSW Department of Education: Years 8 to 11 applications
• NSW Department of Education: selective high schools and opportunity classes procedures
• Normanhurst Boys High School: enrolment
• North Sydney Boys High School: enrolment
• James Ruse Agricultural High School: enrolment pathways
• Baulkham Hills High School: enrolment
• Girraween High School: enrolment
• Penrith Selective High School: enrolment
• ACER: HAST participating schools
• Edutest: client schools