Australia's oldest private schools (founded before 1880)

Australia's oldest Catholic school (est. 1824) · Sydney CBD adjacent St Mary's Cathedral · Strong choral tradition

Australia's oldest independent school · One of the largest GPS boarding schools (~430 boarders) · Strong rugby and cadet program tradition

Founded 1846 - one of Australia's oldest schools · Burbury House boarding for senior boys · Outdoor education at Southport campus

Mercy Sisters Catherine McAuley tradition · WA's oldest girls' Catholic school · Perth CBD campus

Kurrajong outdoor education centre at Mount Compass · One Degree extension program for senior students · City-edge campus on South Terrace

One of Australia's oldest boys' schools with strong rowing and rugby tradition · International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme · 8 Nobel Laureate alumni

Australia's oldest secondary school (est. 1851) · Elite APS sport across cricket, football and rowing · National boarding house of approximately 160 students

Compulsory Year 9 'Timbertop' wilderness boarding campus (Mansfield) · Founder of the Positive Education movement in Australia · Australia's most expensive school; one of Asia-Pacific's best-known boarding schools

Australia's oldest girls' school (est. 1856) · Eastern Sydney harbour-adjacent campus · Strong HSC outcomes + drama tradition

Consistently Sydney's top HSC academic results · Strong Classics, Latin and humanities tradition · GPS sport member with strong rowing and athletics

28-time Head of the River rowing champions · Internationally touring symphony orchestra · Strong VCE results, median ATAR consistently 90+

Oldest boys' school in WA (1858) · PSA sport (rugby, rowing, cricket) · Strong cadet + boarding tradition

Sisters of Charity Mary Aikenhead tradition · Day + small boarding house · Potts Point inner-city campus

Two-campus dual structure (Park ELC-Y4, Hill Y5-12) · Affiliated with Anglican Diocese of Newcastle · 10-instalment payment option with 2.5% annual prepayment discount

One of Victoria's largest Catholic secondary schools for girls (~1,420 students) · Sisters of Mercy heritage (founded 1860) · Edstart payment-plan partnership

Oldest secondary school in Brisbane · Strong academic + Mercy social-justice tradition · Very competitive fee for top-tier ICSEA

Heritage co-ed boarding option founded 1861 · Strong rowing tradition (Head of the River) · Year 12 fees billed over three terms only

GPS member with strong rugby and rowing · IB Diploma offered alongside HSC · Transitioning to co-education from 2026 (Year 5) and 2028 (Year 7-12)

VCE state-leading academic outcomes for years · Regional VIC Uniting Church school · Strong sport + music programs

Only Victorian school offering IB from early childhood through Year 12 · Year 9 Clunes residential learning campus · Yiramalay/Wesley Indigenous education partnership in the Kimberley

Strong sporting heritage in cricket and AFL · Da Vinci Decathlon and Round Square international program · Boarding from Year 5

One of Melbourne's oldest schools, founded in 1867 in Williamstown to serve the growing west; admitted girls in 1885 and is now fully co-educational across two campuses (Truganina main campus plus a Prep-Year 3/4 campus in Williamstown). · Positions itself as STEM-centric and future-focused, with purpose-built Middle Years and innovation facilities on the large Truganina campus serving 1,500-2,200 students. · Highest-fee school of these four (Year 12 at 27820) yet sits at ICSEA 1143, reflecting a strongly advantaged community in Melbourne's outer west; ~11:1 student-teacher ratio.

Top NAPLAN numeracy results in QLD · GPS sport powerhouse · Strong music + debating tradition

Administered by Presentation Sisters since 1868 · Adjacent to St Mary's Cathedral · Year 7 includes $450 ICT levy

Dual campus model: Coolock (Years 7-9, Junortoun) and St Mary's (Years 10-12) · iGen intergenerational program connecting students with aged care residents · Trade Training Centre with functioning farm and STEAM learning facilities

The oldest Edmund Rice (Christian Brothers) school in Australia, founded 1871; member of Edmund Rice Education Australia and the Associated Catholic Colleges · Hosts a Manchester City Football School academy (launched 2022) on FIFA-accredited pitches, plus 40+ VCE subjects and 20+ VET certificates as an RTO across Bundoora and Preston campuses · Alumni include Richmond captain Trent Cotchin, musician Gotye (Wally De Backer), comedian Peter Helliar and former Greens leader Richard Di Natale

Jesuit education tradition with Ignatian formation and community service focus · 30 APS football premierships and elite rowing (16 Olympic/World representatives) · Annual Maytime Fair raising $100,000+ for Jesuit Mission work

150+ year heritage; founded 1873 by Sisters of the Good Samaritan · Largest Catholic girls' college in the Illawarra · Strong VET, music and creative arts program

Central west NSW Anglican boarding · Strong agriculture program · Bathurst regional community focus

ICSEA 1137; one of the Mornington Peninsula's leading independent schools, founded 1874 (originally as a boys' school in the suburb of Toorak) · Only girls' boarding school on the Mornington Peninsula - full, weekly and short-stay boarding for Years 7-12 (2026 boarding fee $42,012) · Co-educational Early Learning Centre transitioning to an all-girls environment from Prep through Year 12 (Wardle House Junior School; senior school all-girls)