Ravenswood School for Girls（瑞文斯伍德女子学校育文武学院）Australia Study Guide: Programs, Entry Requirements, Costs and Student Life

If you are an international family weighing an Australian girls’ school, Ravenswood School for Girls（瑞文斯伍德女子学校育文武学院）on Sydney’s North Shore is likely on the comparison list. It is a Uniting Church day and boarding school running from Prep to Year 12 on one campus in Gordon, about 15 kilometres north of the Sydney CBD. This guide covers programs, entry requirements, costs and student life, using only the school’s official website as accessed on 5 August 2026.

Programs at Ravenswood School for Girls

Ravenswood School for Girls describes itself as a non-selective school, accepting girls of all talents, abilities, faiths and cultures. The junior years are organised in two stages: Prep blends the International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme (PYP) with the Reggio Emilia approach and the school’s Positive Education model, while Kindergarten to Year 6 keeps the inquiry-based PYP framework alongside the six learning areas required by the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA).

In the senior years, students in Years 11 and 12 choose between two credentials: the NSW Higher School Certificate (HSC) or the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma. The school states it is the only school on Sydney’s upper North Shore offering both tracks on one campus, which matters for families who want to keep Australian and overseas university options open. For 2025 the school reports 31 IB Diploma candidates and 138 HSC candidates, a median IB score of 38 (about ATAR 94.75) and a median HSC ATAR of 91.00; these are the school’s own published figures, not an independent ranking.

Entry Requirements for International Students

Ravenswood School for Girls is registered to accept a limited number of overseas students on a 500 Student Visa, from Kindergarten to Year 12. The school prefers overseas students to live with a parent or close relative; students in Years 7 to 12 may instead join the Ravenswood Residential College (RRC). There is no homestay option: overseas students not living with parents or approved relatives must reside in the Residential College to be eligible for enrolment.

Applicants submit a birth certificate, passport, visa details and evidence of English proficiency. Students whose first language is not English and who have studied in Australia for less than one year must sit the AEAS English assessment, and the school does not offer conditional places — the AEAS result must be submitted before a place can be offered. The required AEAS levels are: Years 4 to 6, Intermediate level above 46 percent; Years 7 to 9, Pre-Advanced level above 71 percent; Years 10 to 12, Advanced level above 80 percent. An application without an AEAS result can still be lodged; the student joins a waiting list until the level is reached, though a place is not guaranteed.

Welfare rules apply by age group. Junior school students on a 500 visa must live at all times with a parent or grandparent approved as nominated guardian by the Department of Home Affairs. Boarders in Years 7 to 12 need a guardian over 21, proficient in English and living in or near Sydney, able to step in during illness or when the boarding house closes for holidays.

Costs: 2026 Overseas Student Fees

Under the 2026-27 overseas fee schedule on the official website, Ravenswood School for Girls publishes a separate fee schedule for overseas students on a 500 visa, because the school receives no government subsidy for them. Three enrolment-stage fees apply and none is refundable: an application fee of 400 AUD when the form is submitted, an acceptance fee of 1,900 AUD when a provisional offer is accepted, and an enrolment fee of 2,500 AUD when a confirmed offer is accepted.

The 2026-27 annual schedule combines tuition and an activity fee, quoted in AUD. Annual totals are: Prep 36,960; Kindergarten 37,460; Years 1 and 2 at 37,560 and 37,760; Years 3 and 4 at 43,700 and 43,800; Years 5 and 6 at 47,940 and 48,140; Year 7 at 58,100 and Year 8 at 58,400; Years 9 and 10 at 61,120 each; Year 11 at 60,290 and Year 12 at 59,390. Boarding costs 38,730 AUD per year for all year groups, on top of tuition, and includes GST on the food component.

Under the 2026-27 schedule, payment plans run annually, quarterly (four instalments due in advance at the start of each term) or monthly across ten instalments, with a 500 AUD discount for full payment by 30 January. Credit card surcharges are 1.75 percent for domestic cards and 3.50 percent for international cards, and accounts unpaid for 30 days incur a 75 AUD administration fee. New boarders pay a boarding bond of 25 percent of the annual boarding fee, and 500-visa students pay a tuition bond equal to one term’s tuition plus one term in advance. Siblings each receive a 1,000 AUD tuition discount.

Application Steps and Timeline

The enrolment path at Ravenswood School for Girls runs in four steps: submit the online application with documents and the 400 AUD fee; accept a provisional offer within the time stated in the offer, with the 1,900 AUD acceptance fee; attend an interview up to two years before commencement (a Zoom interview can be arranged for families overseas); then accept a confirmed offer with the 2,500 AUD enrolment fee. These fees follow the school’s 2026-27 schedule. If no place is available in the requested year group, the student is placed on a waiting list and no acceptance fee is due until a provisional offer is made.

Once a confirmed place is accepted, students applying for a 500 Student Visa need a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE), and those not living with a parent or approved relative also need a Confirmation of Appropriate Accommodation and Welfare (CAAW). The school advises starting early because visa processing takes time. Two policy points are worth noting: changes to commencement dates may not be accommodated and a change fee may apply; withdrawing requires a full term’s written notice, otherwise 25 percent of the annual tuition fee plus GST is charged.

For 2026 the school year runs in four terms: Term 1 from 28 January (Kindergarten and Prep from 3 February) to 2 April, Term 2 from 21 April to 26 June, Term 3 from 21 July to 25 September, and Term 4 from 13 October to early December. For 2027, Term 1 starts on 28 January. Families planning a 2027 start can work backwards from these dates, remembering that AEAS scheduling and boarding places are the two steps most likely to need lead time.

Boarding and Student Life at Ravenswood

The Ravenswood Residential College at Ravenswood School for Girls is a boutique house of 50 students in Years 7 to 12, set in a heritage building the school describes as a home away from home. Boarders come from greater Sydney, regional NSW, interstate and overseas. Boarding applications are assessed separately from day enrolment, and places are limited, so families intending to board should raise this at the application stage rather than after an offer.

On campus, the school lists a Senior Learning Centre, the Mabel Fidler Building with its Learning Resources Centre, the Petre Innovation Science and Technology Centre, a Centenary Centre with a 362-seat auditorium, and a 25-metre heated indoor pool; a school health care unit staffed by registered nurses operates Monday to Friday. The campus is a five-minute walk from Gordon railway station and the bus interchange, with direct access to the Pacific Highway, and Hornsby is only five rail stops away.

A few budget notes for international families: overseas students are not eligible for rail or bus concession cards, so transport should be planned at full fares, and 500-visa students must arrange private medical insurance required under Australian government rules. All figures in this guide are from the official website as of 5 August 2026, and the school reviews its published schedules annually, so confirm current numbers before budgeting. If you would like help mapping your daughter’s situation — current year level, English level, boarding preference — against Ravenswood’s requirements, our advisers can talk through the options with you.