Top 19 public high schools in Gold Coast (2025)
Government schools offering secondary years. Ranked by the Success Index from official ACARA data; 19 schools shown out of all eligible public high schools in Gold Coast.
- Primary Schools
- High Schools
- Public Schools
- Private Schools
- Catholic Schools
- Independent Schools
- Public Primary Schools
- Private Primary Schools
- Private High Schools
- Girls' Schools
- Boys' Schools
- K-12 Schools
- VCE Schools by Median Study Score
- Schools with Top ATAR Students (WA)
- VCE Schools by Study Scores of 40+
- Fastest-Growing Schools
- Schools With the Best Student–Teacher Ratio
- Largest Schools
- 184Queensland Academy for Health SciencesSouthport · Government SecondaryICSEA 1109 · 468 students
- 266Benowa State High SchoolBenowa · Government SecondaryICSEA 1064 · 2,129 students
- 361Robina State High SchoolRobina · Government SecondaryICSEA 1026 · 1,530 students
- 459Elanora State High SchoolElanora · Government SecondaryICSEA 1023 · 949 students
- 558Miami State High SchoolMiami · Government SecondaryICSEA 1032 · 1,542 students
- 658Merrimac State High SchoolMermaid Waters · Government SecondaryICSEA 1029 · 930 students
- 758Southport State High SchoolSouthport · Government SecondaryICSEA 1031 · 2,231 students
- 855Tamborine Mountain State High SchoolTamborine Mountain · Government SecondaryICSEA 1039 · 943 students
- 951Palm Beach-Currumbin State High SchoolPalm Beach · Government SecondaryICSEA 1022 · 2,819 students
- 1051Varsity CollegeVarsity Lakes · Government CombinedICSEA 1065 · 3,304 students
- 1150Pacific Pines State High SchoolPacific Pines · Government SecondaryICSEA 1009 · 2,193 students
- 1246Foxwell State Secondary CollegeCoomera · Government SecondaryICSEA 997 · 1,123 students
- 1344Helensvale State High SchoolHelensvale · Government SecondaryICSEA 1017 · 1,875 students
- 1440Ormeau Woods State High SchoolOrmeau · Government SecondaryICSEA 996 · 1,404 students
- 1537Keebra Park State High SchoolSouthport · Government SecondaryICSEA 968 · 1,001 students
- 1635Coombabah State High SchoolCoombabah · Government SecondaryICSEA 977 · 1,113 students
- 1735Nerang State High SchoolNerang · Government SecondaryICSEA 970 · 998 students
- 1830Pimpama State Secondary CollegePimpama · Government SecondaryICSEA 966 · 1,222 students
- 1927Upper Coomera State CollegeUpper Coomera · Government CombinedICSEA 964 · 1,682 students
| # | School | Sector | Success Index | ICSEA | Students | Students : teacher |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Queensland Academy for Health Sciences Southport · Secondary · 10-12 | Government | 83.6 Top 5% | 1109 | 468 | 10.4 |
| 2 | Benowa State High School Benowa · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 65.7 Top 50% | 1064 | 2,129 | 13.9 |
| 3 | Robina State High School Robina · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 60.7 Top 50% | 1026 | 1,530 | 11.7 |
| 4 | Elanora State High School Elanora · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 58.9 Top 50% | 1023 | 949 | 11.9 |
| 5 | Miami State High School Miami · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 58.1 Top 50% | 1032 | 1,542 | 13.4 |
| 6 | Merrimac State High School Mermaid Waters · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 57.6 Top 50% | 1029 | 930 | 11.7 |
| 7 | Southport State High School Southport · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 57.5 Top 50% | 1031 | 2,231 | 14.5 |
| 8 | Tamborine Mountain State High School Tamborine Mountain · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 54.7 Top 50% | 1039 | 943 | 13.3 |
| 9 | Palm Beach-Currumbin State High School Palm Beach · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 51.4 Top 50% | 1022 | 2,819 | 14.3 |
| 10 | Varsity College Varsity Lakes · Combined · Prep-12 | Government | 51.1 Top 50% | 1065 | 3,304 | 14.2 |
| 11 | Pacific Pines State High School Pacific Pines · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 50.2 Lower 50% | 1009 | 2,193 | 13.5 |
| 12 | Foxwell State Secondary College Coomera · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 46.0 Lower 50% | 997 | 1,123 | 12.9 |
| 13 | Helensvale State High School Helensvale · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 44.2 Lower 50% | 1017 | 1,875 | 12.9 |
| 14 | Ormeau Woods State High School Ormeau · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 39.6 Lower 50% | 996 | 1,404 | 12.6 |
| 15 | Keebra Park State High School Southport · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 36.7 Lower 50% | 968 | 1,001 | 12.2 |
| 16 | Coombabah State High School Coombabah · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 35.3 Lower 50% | 977 | 1,113 | 12.2 |
| 17 | Nerang State High School Nerang · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 35.0 Lower 50% | 970 | 998 | 12.1 |
| 18 | Pimpama State Secondary College Pimpama · Secondary · 7-12 | Government | 29.7 Lower 50% | 966 | 1,222 | 12.1 |
| 19 | Upper Coomera State College Upper Coomera · Combined · Prep-12 | Government | 27.4 Lower 50% | 964 | 1,682 | 12.9 |
There are 19 public high schools in Gold Coast eligible for this list; the top 19 are shown. Queensland Academy for Health Sciences in Southport is ranked first with a Success Index of 83.6 and an ICSEA of 1109. 19 of the top 19 are government schools and 0 are Catholic or independent; the median ICSEA across the list is 1022.
The top 10 public high schools in Gold Coast for 2025 are: 1. Queensland Academy for Health Sciences (Southport); 2. Benowa State High School (Benowa); 3. Robina State High School (Robina); 4. Elanora State High School (Elanora); 5. Miami State High School (Miami); 6. Merrimac State High School (Mermaid Waters); 7. Southport State High School (Southport); 8. Tamborine Mountain State High School (Tamborine Mountain); 9. Palm Beach-Currumbin State High School (Palm Beach); 10. Varsity College (Varsity Lakes).
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Frequently asked questions
What is the best public secondary school in Gold Coast?
Queensland Academy for Health Sciences in Southport ranks first among public high schools in Gold Coast with a Success Index of 83.6 out of 100 and an ICSEA of 1109.
How are public high schools in Gold Coast ranked?
Each school's Success Index combines five factors from ACARA's 2025 school profile data: ICSEA (50%), share of students in the top socio-educational quarter (15%), students per teacher (15%), five-year enrolment growth (10%) and five-year ICSEA trend (10%). Each factor is a percentile against schools of the same type nationally. Schools with fewer than 80 students are excluded.
How many public schools are in the top 100 public high schools in Gold Coast?
19 of the top 19 public high schools in Gold Coast are government schools; 0 are Catholic or independent.
Do these rankings include NAPLAN or ATAR results?
Not yet. ACARA does not publish school-level NAPLAN results in bulk, and ATAR results are released by state authorities in different formats. The Success Index uses the measures ACARA publishes for every school so that all schools are compared on identical data. Where a school publishes its own results we link to its website.