Before James Ruse Agricultural High School took the crown, I think it was Sydney Grammar School that was on top until 1996. However, back then, the way the ranks were calculated were different to the way they are calculated today. I think before the new HSC in 2001, the ranks were calculated by the percentage of the school's students in the top 5000 list or something like that.
You must realise that the number of distinguished achievers achieved by the James Ruse Agricultural High School cohort every year is very high, because it is a combination of the current Year 12 distinguished achievers as well as the many distinguished achievers from accelerated students. The distinguished achievers percentage is very high for accelerated students because most of them are especially talented enough to score a band 6 in a course they wish to accelerate and are allowed the option to accelerate as many courses as they like to add the the school's already high number of distinguished achievers, provided that they have taken appropriate measures.
Also, as long as the school keeps its reputation at the top, more and more top students are willing to go there as a result.
If you want an idea of how well the school does and what you're up against, here's some statistics from 2004 and this is something that other schools may have to achieve to overtake the James Ruse Agricultural High School's throne:
HSC 2004:
- Median UAI: 99.50
- 8 students scored a UAI of 100.00
- 813 student results with marks of 90% or higher in a subject
- 73 students scored 90% in 10 or more units
- Students in 1st place in Biology, Mathematics Extension 2, Agriculture (achieved by a Year 11 student) and Cosmology Distinction Course (achieved by a Year 11 student)
- Percentage of Distinguished Achievers in main subjects (i.e. the percentage of the whole grade in the school who took that subject and scored band 6):
* English (Advanced) – 67%
* English Extension 1 – 58%
* English Extension 2 – 59%
* Mathematics – 81%
* Mathematics Extension 1 – 93%
* Mathematics Extension 2 – 89%
* Chemistry – 72%
* Physics – 80%
* Biology – 76%
* Agriculture – 65%
* Economics – 54%
* Ancient History – 41%
* Modern History – 59%
* Information Processes and Technology – 70%
* Software Design and Development – 42%
* PD/H/PE – 55%
* Geography – 44%
* Drama – 17%
* Visual Arts – 50%
* Japanese Beginners – 100%
* Japanese Continuers – 100%
* Japanese Extension – 100%
By the looks of the results above, the only way James Ruse Agricultural High School can be beaten is most likely by the downfall of the school itself and I think it is unlikely that it will come from a massive improvement from other schools.