HSC Modern History exam 2026Exam: Fri 16 Oct · NESA timetable
Your HSC Modern History exam:
When and how long
- Modern History9.25 am to 12.30 pm3 h plus 5 min reading time
NESA: the exam start time shown on your timetable is when reading time begins, and you must arrive well before it. Finishing times marked approximate are shown as approx.
Source: 2026 HSC written exam timetable (NESA), checked Wednesday 23 September 2026. Where a start time, reading time or duration isn't shown, the timetable doesn't publish it: check your personal timetable and the front of your paper.
Paper format
Higher School Certificate Examination - Modern History: 100 marks, 3 h writing time plus 5 minutes reading time.
- Section I - Core: Power and Authority in the Modern World 1919-194625 marks
- Section II - National Studies (extended response)25 marks
- Section III - Peace and Conflict (extended response)25 marks
- Section IV - Change in the Modern World (question in parts)25 marks
NESA HSC exam specification (Modern History, 2017 syllabus): 3 hours plus 5 minutes reading time, 100 marks in four sections of 25 marks. Section I (Core: Power and Authority in the Modern World 1919-1946): three or four questions, one worth 10 to 15 marks. Sections II (National Studies) and III (Peace and Conflict): one extended response on your topic, about 1000 words. Section IV (Change in the Modern World): one question on your topic with three or four parts.
From the official specification: source.
Most-examined dot points
Dot points where we reproduce real past NESA exam questions. This shows where real questions have landed, not how often each topic is examined.
- Conduct of WWII and the post-war settlementReal HSC questions from 2020, 2023
- Mussolini's rise to power in ItalyReal HSC questions from 2022, 2023
- Hitler's rise to power 1919-1933Real HSC questions from 2022
- League of Nations and collective securityReal HSC questions from 2020, 2021
- The Nazi state 1933-1939Real HSC questions from 2023
- Treaty of Versailles and the peace settlementReal HSC questions from 2021
- Nazi consolidation of power 1933-1934Real HSC questions from 2020
- Nuremberg Laws and Nazi racial policyReal HSC questions from 2020
Night-before and exam-morning checklists
The night before
- Check your personalised timetable on Students Online: the start time shown is when reading time begins.[2]
- Confirm your venue and the start time.[1]
- Pack a clear bag: several black pens (no erasable ink), 2B pencils, sharpener, eraser and a ruler.[1]
- Pack an approved calculator (check NESA's list) and a compass or protractor if the exam needs them.[1]
- Fill a clear, label-free water bottle.[1]
- A plain watch only if you want one (no smart or programmable watch); it goes on the desk.[1]
- Stop revising around 7 to 8 pm, set two alarms and sleep.[1]
Exam morning
- Eat a real breakfast.[1]
- Arrive well before the start time to allow for seating and checks.[2]
- Leave your phone and other electronic devices outside the exam room.[1]
- Use the bathroom before you go in.[1]
- In reading time, read and plan only: no writing, marking or annotating.[1]
- You can't leave in the first hour or the last 15 minutes.[1]
Exam-week survival kit: The last 7 days · The night before and exam morning · What to bring, and what's banned · How to use reading time · If you're sick or something goes wrong · Handling exam-week stress.
Last-week revision
- Timed mock examHigher School Certificate Examination - Modern History
- 2025 past paperWalkthrough, with a link to the official NESA paper
- 2024 past paperWalkthrough, with a link to the official NESA paper
- 2023 past paperWalkthrough, with a link to the official NESA paper
- 2022 past paperWalkthrough, with a link to the official NESA paper
- FlashcardsSpaced-repetition cards from the syllabus pages
- QuizCold War 1945-1991 (Section IV peace and conflict)
- QuizPower and authority in the modern world (Section II core)
- Study guides5 guides
Syllabus by module
- Section III (Peace and Conflict): The Cold War 1945-199114 dot points
- Section III (Peace and Conflict): Conflict in the Gulf 1980-201116 dot points
- Core Study: Power and Authority in the Modern World 1919-194611 dot points
- Section III (Peace and Conflict): Conflict in Indochina 1954-197914 dot points
- Section II (National Study): China 1927-194913 dot points
- Former syllabus National Study: Germany 1918-19398 dot points
- Section II (National Study): Indonesia 1945-200513 dot points
- Section III (Peace and Conflict): Conflict in Europe 1935-19456 dot points
- Section III (Personalities): Albert Speer, Hitler's Architect and Minister of Armaments6 dot points
- Section III (Personalities): Leon Trotsky, Revolutionary and Theorist of Permanent Revolution13 dot points
- Section III (Personalities): Mao Zedong, Chairman of the Chinese Communist Party and the People's Republic of China14 dot points
- Section II (National Study): USA 1919-194115 dot points