HSC distinction courses

Distinction Courses are subjects available to a limited number of students studying for their Higher School Certificate in New South Wales, Australia. The three available courses are Comparative literature, Cosmology and Philosophy and are run by Distance education through the Board of Studies.

Only students of acceptably high academic standard and who have already completed at least one subject for their HSC a year ahead of their cohort are accepted into the courses. Each is run not through high schools but rather through universities. Charles Sturt University administers Comparative literature and Cosmology whilst the University of New England administers Philosophy.

Each course is worth two HSC units of credit (the standard HSC course size) and marks are applicable for calculation in the student's final UAI. However, these courses must be taken over and above of the minimum 10 units of credit. Generally a student is only allowed to undertake one distinction course at a time and some students who completed an HSC subject early on in high school have completed two or all three in consecutive years.

The standard of education and level of difficulty is very high compared to standard HSC courses and as such final marks "scale" well. Most work is completed independently and assignments are submitted by post. On top of this there are several "Residential Schools" throughout the year where all students in a course meet (usually at the campus of the administering university) for several days for intensive (!!) learning.

Successfully completed distinction courses earn students "advanced standing" in any degree programme offered by the administering university should the student take up a position there. Other universities offer lesser levels of recognition.

As a gifted education education programme the Distinction Courses are perennially under threat of being cut from the HSC curriculum by the Board of Education through funding cuts. The courses are continued on a year-by-year basis and have done so since their inception. The facts that the courses are extremely popular with students, lecturers, principals and parents and that there is no likely replacement is the likely reason for their continued existence.

See the Board of Studies information booklet for more information.