What is the HAST exam?
The Higher Ability Selection Test (HAST) is created and assessed by ACER, the Australian Council for Educational Research. It is the exam students sit when applying to transfer into a selective high school in Years 8 to 11.
The exam has four sections: Reading Comprehension, Mathematical Reasoning, Written Expression, and Abstract Reasoning. Each section tests a different type of academic ability, and none of them map directly to what students cover in a standard school curriculum — particularly Abstract Reasoning, which most students have never encountered before.
For a full breakdown of what each section involves and how to prepare for it specifically, see our HAST exam preparation page.
The three levels of HAST
The HAST is not a single exam. There are three separate levels depending on which year of entry a student is applying for. The difficulty scales with year group, and schools differ in which year groups they accept transfer students into.
Junior Secondary
Year 8 entry
For students currently in Year 7.
Middle Secondary
Year 9–10 entry
For students in Years 8 or 9.
Senior Secondary
Year 11–12 entry
For students in Years 10 or 11.
Which schools require the HAST exam?
There are currently 12 selective high schools in NSW that require a HAST exam as part of the transfer application process, two of which are partially selective. Schools do change their requirements from year to year. Always confirm directly with each school before applying.
| School | Type |
|---|---|
| Blacktown Girls High School | Partially selective |
| Macquarie Fields High School | Partially selective |
| Caringbah High School | Fully selective |
| Fort Street High School | Fully selective |
| Girraween High School | Fully selective |
| Gosford High School | Fully selective |
| Hornsby Girls High School | Fully selective |
| Hurlstone Agricultural High School | Fully selective |
| Northern Beaches Secondary College, Manly Campus | Fully selective |
| Penrith Selective High School | Fully selective |
| St George Girls High School | Fully selective |
| Sydney Technical High School | Fully selective |
Not every school has additional spots available in every year group, and some years will have very few or no vacancies at all. Fort Street High School accepts transfer applications for Years 8 to 11, but the HAST there is used specifically for Year 11 entry, where they run an additional intake. The number of available spots is the single biggest factor in how competitive the process is for a given school in a given year.
Why the HAST pathway matters
Fully selective high schools do not have a local area intake. Unlike a local public school where enrolment is largely determined by where a family lives, selective schools accept students purely on academic merit from anywhere in NSW. A student's postcode is not a barrier.
The HAST pathway attracts two main groups. The first is students currently in partially selective high schools who want to leave before the end of Year 10. In most partially selective schools, the selective stream only runs through to Year 10, after which selective and mainstream students are combined for Years 11 and 12. Students who want to remain in a fully selective environment for their HSC years need to transfer before that happens.
The second group is high-performing students in local public schools who want access to the academic environment and peer cohort that a fully selective school provides. Selective high schools are free to attend, and being in a high-performing school environment has a measurable effect on HSC outcomes.
It is also worth understanding that being in a selective school already does not make the transfer process easier. A student already enrolled at one selective school who wants to move to another still has to go through the full application process from scratch. There is no automatic pathway between selective schools.
How competitive is it?
The HAST is not the hardest exam in terms of content. In John's experience, having sat it multiple times, the Year 6 Selective exam from Cambridge Assessment is harder in terms of question depth. But the HAST is among the most competitive exams a student can sit in NSW for one reason: the number of available spots is very small.
Spots only open when a student leaves a school or when a school creates additional places in a particular year group. Girraween High School opens an additional class for Year 10 entry each year, for students currently in Year 9. Fort Street High School is similar, running an additional intake at Year 11 entry: their Year 11 and 12 cohort sits at 160 to 170 students compared to a maximum of 150 per year group in Years 7 to 10. When additional spots open up, more students apply for them, so competition largely keeps pace with availability.
There is also a strategic element. A student whose performance is borderline is making a different decision applying to a top-ranked school versus one where spots are more regularly available. A tutor with real HAST experience can help families think through which schools are realistic targets.
How results are reported
Results are not given as a raw score. Each student receives a banded column graph for each section: Reading Comprehension, Mathematical Reasoning, Written Expression and Abstract Reasoning, plus a Total column. The graph shows five bands: the top 10%, the next 15%, the middle 50%, the next 15%, and the bottom 10%. An arrow marks where the student placed in each section.
The bands represent performance relative to all other students who sat the same level of HAST across all schools that year, not just students applying to one particular school. This is a self-selected cohort of above-average students, which is worth keeping in mind when reading the results. ACER notes on the report itself that to achieve at any level in the HAST indicates a good standard of achievement, because the candidate population is not the general student population.
What this means practically is that a student can get only a few questions wrong and still place in the lower band, if most other students got those questions right. Results are entirely relative. The school also has access to the raw score but this is not shared with students or families.
The sample report below shows what an actual HAST Individual Report looks like, with student details removed.
A recreation of a Sample HAST Individual Report, built to highlight the key sections. The real report from ACER will look a little different.
If a student is not successful on their first attempt, the results report shows which sections need the most work. The arrow position in each column gives a clear enough picture to know where to focus for a future attempt.
The application process
Students can apply to up to three schools. A separate application form must be submitted for each school and the schools must be listed in the same order of preference across all applications.
Where a student pays for and sits the HAST depends on which school they nominate as their first preference. Each school sets its own application fee for first preference applicants. This fee covers the ACER test setting, marking and supervision. If a school is listed as a second or third preference and shares results with the first preference school, the fee for those additional applications is lower. Schools that do not share results may charge their own separate fee regardless of preference order.
Applications typically close in late July each year. The HAST exam is typically held in August. Exact dates change year to year. Check each school's website as early as possible. All application fees are non-refundable regardless of outcome.
Submission methods vary by school. Check each one individually.
As of 2026, Northern Beaches Secondary College Manly Campus and Hurlstone Agricultural High School do not accept email applications and require physical submission in person or by mail. Penrith Selective runs its own online form. Because some schools do not accept email, scan all supporting documents early and allow enough time if posting.
Supporting documentation: the part most families underestimate
"If your child is considering applying in two or three years, the reports they are generating right now are already part of the application."
The HAST result is the primary selection factor. Supporting documentation is not just a formality. It gives the school a picture of who the student is beyond a single exam score, and for students whose HAST results are close to the threshold, documentation can be the deciding factor.
Most schools require the following:
School reports.
Many schools, including Penrith and Girraween, now ask for three years of reports rather than two. This has a significant implication: a student cannot simply perform well in the year of application. They need to demonstrate consistent high performance over a longer period. If your child is considering applying in two or three years, the reports they are generating right now are already part of the application.
NAPLAN results.
Most schools request the last two NAPLAN reports.
Academic achievements.
Competition results, awards, or formal recognition of academic performance from the past two years. Achievements older than two years are generally considered outdated.
Extra-curricular participation.
Sport, music, arts, community involvement, leadership roles: anything meaningful and recent.
Proof of residency.
A utility bill, lease agreement, or similar document showing the family's current address.
Proof of citizenship or permanent residency.
A birth certificate, passport, or citizenship documentation.
Some schools also require a student interview or a personal reflection statement at a later stage. This is not universal but worth checking for each school. Preparation for an interview is very different from preparation for a written exam, and families who find out about it late are often caught without enough time to prepare.
Preparation: what actually works
"Writing is the section where preparation makes the most consistent difference. The assessment criteria are stable year to year."
Work with someone who knows the exam format
The HAST is more predictable than the Year 6 Selective exam. Question types are fairly consistent year to year and there are fewer of them to prepare for. A tutor familiar with the exam can identify which types are most likely to appear and build preparation around those specifically. Group tutoring is generally not a good fit. The exam is too specific for generic coverage to be efficient. 1-on-1 preparation lets a tutor adapt directly to where a student is currently struggling.
Learn the concepts before doing practice papers
The most common mistake is giving a student practice papers before they understand the underlying concepts. If a student does not understand how to approach a question type, working through papers just reinforces wrong habits. Understand the concept first, then use practice papers to build speed and confidence.
Take time management seriously
Most students who underperform do so because they spend too long on individual questions and run out of time. Practising under actual exam time conditions is one of the most important habits a student can build. If a question is taking too long, the right move is to mark it and come back.
Writing is the most predictable section
Writing is the section where preparation makes the most consistent difference. The assessment criteria are stable year to year. A tutor can work with a student on planning, structure and editing under time pressure in a way that directly translates into better marks.
Abstract reasoning takes the most time to develop
Most students have never encountered abstract reasoning questions in a classroom setting — there is no equivalent in the standard school curriculum. Starting abstract reasoning preparation early gives students the best chance of becoming comfortable with the format before exam day.
A note on timing
The HAST can be sat across multiple year groups, which means students who are not successful in one attempt can try again in a later year. Each attempt provides more information about where a student stands and which sections need the most work. A student's result in one year does not predict the outcome in the next.
The relationship between a student's score and the number of available spots in a given year is what ultimately determines whether an application is successful. The score alone is not enough.
How does your child's application actually look right now?
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Preparing with Bing's Academy
John sat the HAST exam three times before transferring to Girraween High School in Year 10 for Year 11 entry. At the time, there were almost no resources available for HAST preparation and no tutors who had been through the process themselves. He relied on older students who had done it to understand what to expect.
That experience is why Bing's Academy prepares students for the HAST the way it does. We know what the exam actually tests, where students lose marks, what the supporting documentation needs to look like, and what separates students who transfer from those who do not. Every student we work with for HAST preparation gets that knowledge applied directly to their sessions.
If you are considering HAST preparation for your child, get in touch and we will talk through where they are currently and what realistic preparation looks like for them.
View HAST exam preparation
John 'Bing' Huang
Founder, Bing's Academy