HSC English Studies (NSW)

The examination is optional. Students who intend to undertake the optional HSC examination must also be enrolled in 15126 English Studies (2 units – Year 12), in addition to the Year 12 course number 15125. Students who do not sit the examination still complete the course and its school-based assessment.

The HSC Common Content consists of one module, Texts and Human Experiences, which is also common to HSC Standard and HSC Advanced, where students analyse and explore texts and apply skills in synthesis. Students then study two to four additional syllabus modules, selected based on their needs and interests, and may also study an optional teacher-developed module.

For the English Studies Year 11 course students complete 120 indicative hours, and for the Year 12 course students complete 120 indicative hours. The Year 11 course must begin with the mandatory module Achieving through English, and the Year 12 course must begin with Texts and Human Experiences as the first unit of work.

In both years students read, view, listen to and compose a wide range of texts including print and multimodal texts, study at least one substantial print text such as a novel, biography or drama, and study at least one substantial multimodal text such as a film or television series. In Year 12 students also study one text from the prescribed text list and one related text for the Common Module.

Prerequisites, corequisites and eligibility are all listed as nil, and study via self-tuition is not available. However, English Studies is excluded with English Advanced, English EAL/D, English Extension, English Standard and English Life Skills, so students cannot count it alongside those courses.

Students must be involved in planning, research and presentation activities as part of one individual and/or collaborative project, develop a portfolio of texts they have planned, drafted, edited and presented in written, graphic and/or electronic forms across all modules undertaken during the year, and engage with the community through avenues such as visits, surveys, interviews, work experience, guest speakers or excursions.

Work through the mandatory module first, because the syllabus requires it as the opening unit in each year. Keep your portfolio current after every module rather than assembling it at the end, and build community engagement evidence as you go, since these requirements span all modules and are easy to leave too late.

The final HSC exam for this syllabus is in 2026, and schools must not teach this syllabus after Term 3, 2026. The syllabus and associated support materials, except for HSC exam packs, will be removed in December 2026. A new English Studies 11–12 Syllabus (2024) and HSC English prescriptions 2027–2030 are available on the NSW Curriculum website.

The syllabus page links to HSC exam papers and HSC standards materials, along with performance band descriptions and achievement level descriptions for English Studies. Sample scope and sequences, sample work and sample assessment tasks are also published there, though sample assessment schedules and tasks are being updated to align with new ACE Rules.