Hardest QCE subjects in 2026 (with QTAC cohort and scaling data)

There's no official "hardest subjects" list. This page uses what can be measured: how strong each subject's students are (QTAC's scaled results at the median of each cohort) and how each subject is assessed (QCAA). It doesn't claim to know how hard a subject will feel for you.

Cohort strength: QTAC's 2025 data

General subjects with more than 1,000 results, ranked by the scaled result at the cohort's median:

Smaller subjects with strong cohorts included French (608 results; median scaled 94.98), German (262; 91.49), English & Literature Extension (852; 90.57) and Philosophy & Reason (760; 84.53).

A high scaled result at the median means the subject's students tend to do well in all their subjects, so competition within it is strong.

Assessment design

• In Mathematics and Science General subjects, the external assessment is worth 50% of the subject result. In all other General subjects it's 25% (QCAA). A single exam carries more weight in Specialist Mathematics, Methods, Chemistry and Physics.
• General (Extension) subjects such as English & Literature Extension and Music Extension are assessed the same way, with three internal assessments and one external assessment.

Hard is not the same as good for your ATAR

QTAC's percentile data shows how much your position matters. In 2025:

• A 90th-percentile Biology result (raw 94) scaled to 90.97, above a median Chemistry result (90.36).
• A 90th-percentile English result (raw 91) scaled to 89.48, above a median Literature result (85.99).
• A 25th-percentile Mathematical Methods result (raw 64) scaled to 79.43, above a 90th-percentile General Mathematics result (76.72).

So a subject with a strong cohort can help if you'd finish reasonably well in it, but a subject you'd do well in can outperform one you'd struggle in.

For the full data, see highest scaling QCE subjects. For the ATAR rules, see how the QCE ATAR is calculated.