By Jon Petruch · Official details checked 21 October 2026
The selective schools test is the NSW Selective High School Placement Test, which Year 6 students sit for a place in a selective high school in Year 7. It's a computer-based test with four sections (Reading, Mathematical Reasoning, Thinking Skills and Writing), and the writing task is the part most families underestimate. This guide covers each section, the timing, test day and how offers work, with every detail checked against the NSW Department of Education.
Who sits the selective test, and when do you apply?
Children sit the selective test in Year 6, for entry to Year 7 the following year. Parents apply when their child is at the end of Year 5 or the start of Year 6, and applications are open for about four months, from November to the following February.
You can apply from a public, non-government or interstate school, from overseas or from home study. From 2026 the test is only held in NSW, so students living outside NSW have to travel back to sit it.
What is in the selective test?
The selective test has four sections, each worth 25% of the result, and every answer is entered on a computer. These are the official section details:
| Section | Questions | Time | Answer type | Weighting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | 17 (3 have multiple parts, 38 answers in total) | 45 minutes | Multiple choice | 25% |
| Mathematical Reasoning | 35 | 40 minutes | Multiple choice, 5 options | 25% |
| Thinking Skills | 40 | 40 minutes | Multiple choice, 4 options | 25% |
| Writing | 1 topic | 30 minutes | Open response, typed | 25% |
The department says the questions draw on the NSW curriculum up to Year 6. No calculator or dictionary is allowed in any section, but children can plan and work out on paper.
Older guides and the department's own PDF practice tests come from the earlier paper-based test, so go by the figures above. The department notes the PDFs don't reflect the current format.
How long is the selective test?
The selective test runs for 155 minutes of test time: 45 minutes of Reading, 40 of Mathematical Reasoning, 40 of Thinking Skills and 30 of Writing. With check-in and breaks, the department's example timetable runs from 9:30 am to 1:55 pm.
There's a 20-minute snack break after Mathematical Reasoning and a 10-minute break before Writing. That means the writing task comes last, after more than two hours of concentrated work.
What is the selective writing test?
The writing test gives your child one set topic to write about in 30 minutes, typed on the computer. It's worth a quarter of the result, the same as each multiple-choice section, and it's marked on the creativity of the ideas, writing effectively for a purpose and audience, and the use of language for effect.
The department is blunt about one rule: writing that doesn't address the topic is marked lower, however fluent or creative it is. Structure, grammar, punctuation, style and vocabulary also count. Each response is marked by two examiners, according to the department's outcomes page.
From Jon: Many families think their child needs to be good at eight different types of writing. In my experience you only need real proficiency in two, essay and creative writing, because the rest are variations of those two. With the right training, it's much easier to prepare for and write two kinds of text well than to spread practice across eight.
Typing matters too. A child who plans well on paper but types slowly can run out of time on a 30-minute task. Our guides on generating story ideas for timed writing and how to mark your child's timed writing go into more detail.
What is in the Thinking Skills section?
Thinking Skills tests critical thinking and problem solving: 40 questions in 40 minutes, with four options each. The department says no previous knowledge is needed, so the challenge is the question style and the one-minute-per-question pace rather than content.
It's the same kind of section children meet in the OC test in Year 4, with more questions and more time. Children who sat the OC test will recognise the style, but students in the department's own video point out that how you went in the OC test has no bearing on the selective result.
How many selective high schools are there in NSW?
NSW has 17 fully selective high schools, 27 partially selective high schools that take selective students in Year 7, and 4 agricultural high schools, plus Aurora College's online classes for rural and remote students. Across them, the department lists 4,338 Year 7 places.
You can list up to 3 school preferences, including schools outside your local enrolment area. From 2027, co-educational selective schools have a set number of places for girls and boys.
How are selective test results used to offer places?
Places are offered on test performance and the order of your school choices. There's no published cut-off, because the department says the level needed at each school depends on how many students apply, how they perform, how many places there are and how many offers are declined.
You'll get one offer at most when outcomes are first released, from the highest-choice school your child qualified for, and you may also go on reserve lists. Up to 20% of places at each school are held under the Equity Placement Model. For 2027 entry, outcomes were expected on 19 August 2026.
You won't receive a test score or a rank. The performance report places your child in one of four bands for each section: top 10%, next 15%, next 25% or lowest 50% of candidates. So when parents ask "what is a good score for selective?", the honest answer is that no score is ever released.
Is it hard to get into a selective high school?
It's competitive: the department says about a quarter of students who sit the test get a selective high school place. There's no pass mark, and a result in the lowest 50% band doesn't mean a child failed that section.
For comparison, the department puts the OC success rate at about one in eight. Missing out on OC doesn't stop a child getting into a selective school later.
How should my child prepare for the selective test?
Start with the department's free online practice tests, because they use the real test software, including the typed writing task. The department says coaching is not necessary, warns that too much coaching can harm wellbeing, and asks that children keep attending school normally.
What practice can do is make the format and timing familiar, especially writing to a set topic in 30 minutes. No preparation product can guarantee a place, and we don't claim ours will. If you want more timed practice, our NSW Selective practice tests are independent, exam-style tests covering all four sections, with worked explanations, human-marked writing and a parent-friendly report.