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Wollongong · Council (LGA)

Education & Qualifications in Wollongong

How far people went at school, the qualifications they hold and what they studied.

More than 32,000 students are enrolled across 87 schools in Wollongong, making it one of the largest educational hubs in the region. While school completion rates are well below the national figure, the area has seen a strong upward trend, with Year 12 completion rising by 11 percentage points since 2011.

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📍 Wollongong, Council (LGA)

Where Wollongong sits — Adults with a bachelor degree or higher

24.5% ▲ +45.8%

All council (lga) areas, 2021. The marker is Wollongong — higher than 80% of areas.

Wollongong24.5%
Rest of NSW 17.8%
New South Wales 27.8%
Australia 26.3%

Schooling

Highest year of school completed.

About 53.7% of residents finished Year 12, which is much higher than most similar areas. However, this remains well below the New South Wales figure of 58.9%.

Completed Year 12

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53.7% ▲ +24.9%

Higher than 76% of council (lga) areas.

Share of people whose highest year of school is Year 12 or equivalent.

Highest year of school

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In Wollongong, Year 12 is the majority at 57%; Year 10 is next at 26%.

Year 12 53.7% Year 10 24.3% Year 9 or below 10.9% Year 11 5.5%

Qualifications

Post-school qualifications and degrees.

Adults with a bachelor degree or higher make up 24.5% of the population, a figure that has risen by 7.7 percentage points since 2011. This is much higher than most similar areas, though still a little below the Australian average.

Adults with a bachelor degree or higher

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24.5% ▲ +45.8%

Higher than 80% of council (lga) areas.

Share of people aged 15+ whose highest qualification is a bachelor degree or above (incl. graduate and postgraduate).

Highest qualification level

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In Wollongong, the largest group is Certificate III / IV at 35%, followed by Bachelor degree (29%) and Advanced diploma / diploma (17%).

Certificate III / IV 29.9% Bachelor degree 24.8% Advanced diploma / diploma 14.7% Postgraduate degree 10.3% Graduate diploma / certificate 3.6% Certificate I / II 2.0%

Field of study

What people studied.

The most common qualifications are in management and commerce at 17.7%, followed closely by engineering and related fields at 16.7%.

Schools

Schools in the area and how many children they serve (ACARA).

The area has a high average school advantage score and larger-than-usual schools. Most students attend government schools (72.4%), and primary schools are the most common type at 70.1%.

Average school ICSEA

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1,036

Higher than 79% of council (lga) areas.

Enrolment-weighted average ICSEA — an index of socio-educational advantage, centred near 1000 (context, not a quality ranking).

Schools in and around Wollongong — hover a marker for details. Open the full map →

Schools serving Wollongong

87 schools — 32,014 students, average ICSEA 1,036.

By sector: Government 63 · Catholic 12 · Independent 12

By type: Primary 61 · Secondary 18 · Combined 8
Holy Spirit College, Bellambi Catholic Secondary — 1,249 1,069
Wollongong High School of the Performing Arts, Fairy Meadow Government Secondary — 1,169 1,075
St Mary Star of the Sea College, Wollongong Independent Secondary — 1,128 1,104
Edmund Rice College, West Wollongong Independent Secondary — 1,054 1,083
Dapto High School, Dapto Government Secondary — 988 968
Bulli High School, Bulli Government Secondary — 979 1,058
The Illawarra Grammar School, Wollongong West Independent Combined — 970 1,159
Illawarra Sports High School, Berkeley Government Secondary — 926 937
Figtree High School, Figtree Government Secondary — 880 1,013
Illawarra Christian School, Cordeaux Heights Independent Combined — 800 1,091
Dapto Public School, Horsley Government Primary — 790 1,006
Woonona High School, Woonona Government Secondary — 767 1,030
Smiths Hill High School, Wollongong Government Secondary — 736 1,186
Keira High School, Fairy Meadow Government Secondary — 723 984
Cedars Christian College, Unanderra Independent Combined — 661 1,067
St John's Catholic Primary School, Dapto Catholic Primary — 623 1,038
Hayes Park Public School, Kanahooka Government Primary — 601 972
Warrawong High School, Warrawong Government Secondary — 591 905
Kanahooka High School, Kanahooka Government Secondary — 581 912
Wollongong Public School, Wollongong Government Primary — 579 1,084
Corrimal High School, Corrimal Government Secondary — 569 940
Woonona Public School, Woonona Government Primary — 519 1,070
Helensburgh Public School, Helensburgh Government Primary — 460 1,057
St Joseph's Catholic Primary School, Bulli Catholic Primary — 412 1,121
St Pius X Catholic Primary School, Unanderra Catholic Primary — 371 1,066
Lakelands Public School, Dapto Government Primary — 370 952
St Therese Catholic Primary School, Mangerton Catholic Primary — 368 1,090
Thirroul Public School, Thirroul Government Primary — 367 1,119
Mount St Thomas Public School, Wollongong Government Primary — 354 1,070
Unanderra Public School, Cordeaux Heights Government Primary — 348 992
Mount Brown Public School, Dapto Government Primary — 346 975
Fairy Meadow Public School, Fairy Meadow Government Primary — 342 1,002
St Columbkille's Catholic Primary School, Corrimal Catholic Primary — 339 1,073
Good Samaritan Catholic Primary School, Fairy Meadow Catholic Primary — 335 1,081
Lindsay Park Public School, Wollongong Government Primary — 334 1,068
Balgownie Public School, Balgownie Government Primary — 329 1,076
Bulli Public School, Bulli Government Primary — 318 1,069
Corrimal East Public School, Corrimal Government Primary — 297 1,046
Keiraville Public School, Keiraville Government Primary — 297 1,103
Five Islands Secondary College, Port Kembla Government Secondary — 293 983
Port Kembla Public School, Port Kembla Government Primary — 278 1,014
Warrawong Public School, Warrawong Government Primary — 276 891
Gwynneville Public School, Gwynneville Government Primary — 271 1,065
Figtree Public School, Figtree Government Primary — 264 1,028
Waniora Public School, Bulli Government Primary — 264 1,077
Russell Vale Public School, Russell Vale Government Primary — 262 1,040
Berkeley Public School, Berkeley Government Primary — 259 926
Wollongong West Public School, Wollongong Government Primary — 243 991
Pleasant Heights Public School, Mount Pleasant Government Primary — 241 1,126
Austinmer Public School, Austinmer Government Primary — 227 1,132
Corrimal Public School, Corrimal Government Primary — 227 1,013
Farmborough Road Public School, Unanderra Government Primary — 226 961
Nareena Hills Public School, Figtree Government Primary — 209 1,080
Windang Public School, Windang Government Primary — 203 988
Woonona East Public School, Woonona Government Primary — 200 1,037
Mount Ousley Public School, Fairy Meadow Government Primary — 193 1,079
Koonawarra Public School, Dapto Government Primary — 192 838
Elonera Montessori School, Mount Ousley Independent Combined — 187 1,108
Holy Cross Catholic Primary School, Helensburgh Catholic Primary — 184 1,071
St Michael's Catholic Primary School, Thirroul Catholic Primary — 183 1,130
Bellambi Public School, Bellambi Government Primary — 182 807
Coniston Public School, Coniston Government Primary — 181 990
Figtree Heights Public School, Figtree Government Primary — 181 1,061
St Patrick's Catholic Primary School, Port Kembla Catholic Primary — 177 1,058
St Brigid's Catholic Primary School, Gwynneville Catholic Primary — 175 1,083
Tarrawanna Public School, Tarrawanna Government Primary — 164 982
Cringila Public School, Cringila Government Primary — 163 936
Mount Kembla Public School, Mount Kembla Government Primary — 159 1,050
OneSchool Global NSW - Illawarra, Maddens Plains Independent Combined — 159 973
Berkeley West Public School, Berkeley Government Primary — 157 868
Kemblawarra Public School, Port Kembla Government Primary — 153 892
Stanwell Park Public School, Stanwell Park Government Primary — 150 1,112
St Francis of Assisi Catholic Primary School, Warrawong Catholic Primary — 149 1,013
Lake Heights Public School, Lake Heights Government Primary — 147 941
Coledale Public School, Coledale Government Primary — 135 1,118
Towradgi Public School, Fairy Meadow Government Primary — 134 1,031
Aspect South Coast School, Corrimal Independent Primary — 129 1,017
Para Meadows School, North Wollongong Government Combined — 113 945
Mount Keira Public School, Mount Keira Government Primary — 91 1,072
Primbee Public School, Primbee Government Primary — 88 943
Wollongong Flexible School, Towradgi Independent Secondary — 71 895
Scarborough Public School, Scarborough Government Primary — 54 1,080
Otford Public School, Otford Government Primary — 48 1,104
Craig Davis College, Cordeaux Heights Independent Secondary — 45 825
Novo Education Space, Wollongong Independent Secondary — 44 983
Cedars Christian College - Aspire, Unanderra Independent Combined — 13 1,094
Illawarra Hospital School, Wollongong Government Combined — — —

Sources

  • Census of Population and Housing — Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 (CC BY 4.0).
  • Australian Schools List — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), 2025 (CC BY 4.0).

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Cite this page

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Education & Qualifications in Wollongong [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/region/lga/LGA18450/wollongong/topic/education