Nossal vs Suzanne Cory Reviews — Which School to Choose?

Nossal High School (Berwick, south-east Melbourne) and Suzanne Cory High School (Werribee, western Melbourne) are Victoria’s two co-educational selective entry schools. They use the same entrance exam, take a similar number of Year 9 students and are both strong academic schools. For most families the deciding factor is simple: which one is closer to home.

This guide compares the two on the things that genuinely differ — location, commute and curriculum options — and explains how preferences work. If you are also weighing up the single-sex schools, see our Melbourne High vs Mac.Robertson comparison.

Quick Comparison Table

On paper the two schools are very similar. The differences that matter most are location and commute.

History and Background

For decades, Melbourne High School and Mac.Robertson Girls’ High School were Victoria’s only selective entry schools, both in the inner city. Families in the outer south-east and west faced long commutes if their child won a place. Nossal and Suzanne Cory were opened a year apart to bring selective education closer to those growth corridors.

Nossal High School

Nossal opened in 2010 as Victoria’s first co-educational selective entry government school. It sits on what is now Federation University’s Berwick campus. It is named after Sir Gustav Nossal, the immunologist who directed the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research and was Australian of the Year in 2000.

Suzanne Cory High School

Suzanne Cory opened in 2011 with an inaugural intake of 200 Year 9 students and is the only selective entry school in Melbourne’s west. It is named after Professor Suzanne Cory, the molecular biologist who directed the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute and later served as President of the Australian Academy of Science.

Location and Commute

Neither school is zoned — students from anywhere in Victoria can apply to either. In practice, most families choose the one closer to home.

Nossal — South-East Melbourne

Nossal is in Berwick, on the Pakenham train line. Its students come from across the south-east and Gippsland, including:

• Berwick, Narre Warren and Officer
• Cranbourne, Clyde and surrounding estates
• Pakenham and the wider Cardinia Shire
• Dandenong, Noble Park and Springvale

Suzanne Cory — Western Melbourne

Suzanne Cory is in Werribee, on the Werribee line side of the west. It mainly serves families from:

• Werribee, Hoppers Crossing and Wyndham Vale
• Point Cook and Williams Landing
• Tarneit, Truganina and surrounding estates
• The wider City of Wyndham

The two schools are on opposite sides of Melbourne, so a trip from the west to Nossal (or the south-east to Suzanne Cory) means crossing the city — typically well over an hour each way by public transport. Check real door-to-door times for your address on a journey planner before ranking preferences.

Academic Results

Both schools report strong VCE results, and both publish them on their websites each year. We don’t quote median study scores here because they move from year to year, and a one- or two-point gap between two selective schools says more about that year’s cohort than about teaching quality. Keep in mind:

• School medians describe the middle of a cohort, not what any individual student will achieve.
• Both schools send students on to a wide range of university courses. Universities select on ATAR and course prerequisites, not on which selective school a student attended.
• The student’s own effort, wellbeing and time (including time lost to commuting) will matter more than a small difference between school medians.

Culture and Curriculum

Both schools are co-educational, both are young institutions without a century of tradition behind them, and both are named after eminent scientists. In each, students are surrounded by motivated peers, which is the main thing selective schools offer.

The clearest verifiable difference is at senior level: Suzanne Cory offers an International Baccalaureate stream alongside the VCE (it also runs an Arts, Humanities and LOTE stream for Year 11 entry), while Nossal students take the VCE. If the IB matters to your family, that is a real reason to look at Suzanne Cory. Beyond that, the best way to judge culture is to attend each school’s information evening or open day and ask current families.

Co-Educational vs Single-Sex

Nossal and Suzanne Cory are co-ed; Melbourne High is boys-only and Mac.Rob is girls-only. Research on whether single-sex or co-ed schooling produces better academic results is mixed, and most educators agree that teaching quality, school culture and the student’s engagement matter more. Some practical points:

• If you have a son and a daughter who may both sit the exam, a co-ed school means they could attend the same school.
• Some students coming from co-ed primary and secondary schools find a co-ed selective school the more natural transition.
• Others prefer a single-sex environment. Melbourne High and Mac.Rob also have long histories and large alumni networks.

How to Choose

Why commute matters

Over Years 9 to 12 a student makes the school journey on roughly 750 school days. A 90-minute trip each way instead of 30 minutes costs two extra hours every day — time that would otherwise go to sleep, homework, sport, music or family. Late finishes for co-curricular activities are also much harder with a long trip home.

Decision guide by area

The Admission Process

Nossal and Suzanne Cory use the same centralised process as Melbourne High and Mac.Rob, run by ACER for the Victorian Department of Education. About 1,000 Year 9 places are available across the four schools.

• One exam: students sit the VIC selective entry exam in Year 8. Since the June 2026 exam it has three parts: Mathematics and Quantitative Reasoning (60 minutes), Reading and Verbal Reasoning (55 minutes) and Writing (two tasks, 40 minutes).
• Up to three preferences: ACER says up to three school preferences can be listed (you may list one or two). Because Melbourne High is boys-only and Mac.Rob girls-only, three is the most any student is eligible for. If a student qualifies for more than one school, they are offered their highest preference.
• How places are offered: 85% by rank from exam performance, up to 10% through the equity category, and up to 5% at the principal’s discretion. No cut-off scores are published.
• Only list schools you would accept. Put your genuine first choice first; ranking a school lower does not reduce your chance of getting into a school ranked higher.

Example preference orders

A student in the south-east who prefers co-ed might list Nossal first, then Melbourne High or Mac.Rob if the commute is manageable, then Suzanne Cory. A student in the west might list Suzanne Cory first, then Melbourne High or Mac.Rob, then Nossal. Only include the far-side school if your family would really make that trip every day.

Preparing for the Exam

Preparation is the same whichever school you prefer. What helps most is steady practice across both multiple-choice parts under timed conditions, careful review of every mistake, and some writing practice for the two 40-minute tasks. Our guide to preparing for the selective entry exam sets out a plan. To see the question style, you can try 5 VIC selective entry sample questions with no signup.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Nossal better than Suzanne Cory?

Neither is objectively better. Both are strong co-ed selective entry schools with a similar Year 9 intake. Choose on commute, and on the IB option if that matters to you.

Can my child list both Nossal and Suzanne Cory?

Yes. Up to three preferences can be listed, so a student can include both co-ed schools plus Melbourne High or Mac.Rob.

Are Nossal and Suzanne Cory easier to get into than Melbourne High and Mac.Rob?

No official cut-off scores are published for any of the four schools, so there is no reliable way to say. What is published is demand: Melbourne High says about 1,500 candidates list it as their first preference. Students at all four schools are academically strong.

Will my child miss out on the prestige of Melbourne High or Mac.Rob?

Melbourne High and Mac.Rob have longer histories and bigger alumni networks. That does not change university admission, which is based on ATAR and prerequisites, not on which selective school a student attended.

Conclusion

Nossal and Suzanne Cory were built for the same purpose and are more alike than different. If you live in the south-east, Nossal is almost certainly the practical choice; in the west, Suzanne Cory. If you are somewhere in between, compare real commute times, think about co-ed versus single-sex, and look at whether the IB matters to you. For an overview of all four schools, see our guide to selective entry schools in Melbourne.