For many students, preparing for the HSC isn’t just about learning content - it’s about navigating a high-stakes academic system that increasingly favours those with the financial means to afford private education, tutoring, and specialised support. The cost of the HSC, both literal and figurative, is steep, and it’s not equally distributed.
This inequity becomes more visible when we consider the growing cost-of-living pressures on families. Many households across NSW are juggling housing stress, inflation, and childcare or eldercare costs, and the idea of spending thousands on academic extras becomes not just difficult but impossible. As a result, while some students benefit from private lessons, personalised guidance, and extensive exam preparation, others are left to manage with limited resources and overworked school systems.
In some cases, this gap results in additional pressure on students. When families invest heavily in tutoring or coaching, students can feel immense pressure to ‘make good’ on that financial sacrifice. The stakes feel even higher when large sums of money are at play, amplifying anxiety and burnout. Those who cannot afford the same support may feel a sense of helplessness or guilt, even if they are equally hardworking or talented.
Tutoring is no longer a luxury - it’s become a near-requirement for HSC success. In Sydney, private tutoring can easily cost $100 to $150 per hour for qualified, in-demand subjects like English Advanced, Chemistry, or Extension Maths. Some elite centres even charge upwards of $200 per hour or require commitment to multi-thousand dollar packages that span the school year. This is backed by reporting from the Sydney Morning Herald, which found families frequently allocate thousands of dollars per year per child toward tutoring in order to remain competitive (SMH, 2025).
While this may be feasible for affluent households, it creates enormous barriers for others. Talented students from lower socio-economic backgrounds are often priced out of the same opportunities, forced to rely solely on school-based instruction in a system where many others are supplementing with high-level external help.
Success in the HSC doesn’t end with your ATAR — many post-school pathways require expensive, high-pressure tests.
Scholarship and selective entry exams: Whether it’s for university pathways, enrichment programs, or accelerated learning streams, these often come with registration fees and the implicit pressure to undertake expensive prep courses.
The cumulative effect is clear: even pathways into public education are being commodified, with families essentially paying upfront for the chance to access competitive fields.
Selective schools, originally designed to uplift bright students regardless of background, have become dominated by high-income families who can afford years of test prep.
According to recent SMH investigations (SMH, 2025), coaching colleges have created a system where entry to selective schools is often predicated on years of expensive preparation. This results in:
Even public sector leaders are now calling for reform (SMH, 2025), noting that without intervention, “merit” will remain deeply tied to the size of a family’s wallet.
In this context, Notes2u is proud to offer a more equitable way forward. For just a fraction of what you’d pay for one hour of tutoring, you can access:
Instead of paying $150 per hour, why not pay $8–$25 for a complete bundle that you can reference and study from again and again? These resources give students the structure, language, and content guidance they need — without financial strain.
The HSC was never meant to be a pay-to-win game. But as inequality grows within the school system, it’s more important than ever to find ethical, accessible, and effective ways to level the playing field.
Notes2u helps bring fairness back into the equation — one download at a time.
Explore our affordable resources.