South Australia’s SACE program sees surge in global uptake

SACE International is a globally recognised pre-university program that delivers the South Australian Certificate of Education (SACE) to students across an expanding network of accredited international schools, being lauded for its significant growth and global reach.

Between 2017 and 2025, SACE International’s global reach has expanded from Malaysia, China and Vietnam to schools in Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Sri Lanka and Cambodia. Currently, the SACE is offered at 27 accredited international schools with over 1,200 students.

Students at SACE International schools study the same curriculum as their South Australian peers, and benefit from the flexibility offered by the availability of both northern and southern hemisphere intake and assessment cycles.

In a statement, the government of South Australia commended the growth of the program – an 84% increase in students since 2016, including an 18% growth in enrolments in 2024, and said the number is forecast to grow further over the next five years.

SACE board chief executive, Michaela Bensley, said the steady growth of SACE International is a “testament to its strong value proposition characterised by flexible pathways, a holistic assessment model, and focus on developing the skills and capabilities which will empower students to thrive in their post-school journeys”.

SACE International has recently seen increased demand from schools seeking to offer the SACE on a northern hemisphere teaching calendar and therefore being able to adapt the timetable to a local context. This includes the recent accreditation of Haileybury Senior School Tianjin in China, an international school operated by Victoria-based Haileybury International.

Joe Szakacs, South Australia’s minister for local government and minister for trade and investment, described education as a “key export” for South Australia.

“Beyond that, SACE International enables our brand and culture to become more recognised and trusted in overseas markets,” he continued.

“The growth that we’ve seen in SACE International is evidence of the coordinated efforts across government to deliver improvements to the state’s profile and prosperity through education.”

The growth that we’ve seen in SACE International is evidence of the coordinated efforts across government to deliver improvements to the state’s profile and prosperity through education.

Joe Szakacs, government of South Australia

According to Blair Boyer, minister for education, training and skills of South Australia, education is something the state does “extremely well” and described South Australia as a “leader in this space”.

“This includes our focus on vocational pathways, our STEM opportunities and strong foundations in literacy and numeracy,” he said.

Many graduates of the program then choose to study at South Australian universities, with data from the South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre (SATAC) showing that between 2018 and 2025, 1,120 SACE International graduates received offers to undergraduate courses at Flinders University, the University of Adelaide, and University of South Australia.

Matt Taverner, director of SACE International, will be speaking at The PIE High – a free, one-day event dedicated to the secondary schools sector. He’ll join a panel discussion exploring the growing global footprint of Australian qualifications and curricula. Don’t miss it – register your interest here.

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