All HSC exams to go ahead results before Australia Day

All written HSC exams will go ahead and results will be released shortly before Australia Day 2022 after the exam authority and universities struck a compromise deal to ensure there is enough time for marking and university offers.

The new timetable will be released on Friday, but a preliminary version accidentally uploaded on Thursday afternoon and quickly taken down shows exams running over 19 rather than 18 days, beginning with English and finishing with food technology on December 3.

The timing of results was still being finalised on Thursday night, but multiple sources familiar with the discussions told the Herald on the condition of anonymity that they were likely to be released at the end of the third week of January, around the 20th or 21st.

All HSC exams will go ahead, and results are due before Australia DayCredit:Dominic Lorrimer

The written exams, which have run since 1967 and are a massive logistical exercise costing about $100 million a year, were delayed until November 9 on health advice.

However, there have been questions over whether all exams would run or whether some would have to be cut to ensure papers could be marked and results processed in time for universities to begin offering places.

Exam authorities said they needed until January 28 to process all results, but universities wanted them by January 17. On Wednesday, Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the cancellation of some exams was still a possibility.

After days of negotiations, a compromise position was reached, the sources told the Herald. All agreed that to cancel some exams, and base results on school assessments, but hold others would be unfair to students.

Psychologists say the stress has been taking its toll on students, who are highly anxious but lack motivation to study for exams that might not go ahead.

The president of the Secondary Principals Council Craig Petersen said there would be a mixed response to the decision but the certainty was welcome. “Even if we don’t like the decision, people will be able to plan for it, which is a relief,” he said.

“I think in terms of equity, it’s actually a good thing [to hold all exams] because we don’t want just one or two subjects determining someone’s future, particularly for our non-English speaking students, our refugee students.

“The feedback I’m getting from some students is we’ve put everything into this, we want the finalisation, we want to get to that end point. Not everyone will be happy. But it doesn’t matter what the decision is, someone will be unhappy.”

Barker College principal Phillip Heath said the decision was “enormously welcome”.

“It’s of vital importance to the kids that the decision is made and that the decision honours the hard work they’ve already applied,” he said. “I like that they have the full exams and the length we prepared for.”

When a student showed him the leaked timetable, Mr Heath’s eyes went straight to the final exam - food technology on the morning of December 3 - so he could begin working out whether the school could run graduation events.

“That’s where my mind is going now, to examine ways in which we can make the best out of a difficult situation,” he said.

Under the road map to reopening, released on Thursday, hospitality venues will be able to reopen with one person per four square metres inside and one per 2 square metres outside from 70 per cent community vaccination, due in mid-October.

The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.

Share this post