Victorian Certificate of Education

The Victorian Certificate of Education (VCE) is the senior secondary qualification undertaken by most students in Years 11 and 12 in Victoria, Australia.

The VCE provides pathways to tertiary education, advanced certificate courses and employment.

Students who complete the VCE offshore are eligible for an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR), which can be used to apply for tertiary entrance.

VCE Offshore Program

The VCE is delivered internationally through a partnership model between Victorian education providers and selected schools offshore.

The partnership model promotes the establishment of strong relationships between teachers in Victoria and teachers offshore.

Teachers at the Victorian partner school mentor their counterparts and provide ongoing advice and support, including assistance with curriculum planning and school-based assessment.

Currently there are 30 programs being delivered across China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Timor Leste, Vietnam, Singapore and in Darwin (Australia).

In 2024, approximately 1,000 students enrolled to study the VCE offshore at Years 11 and 12. Each year, approximately 90 per cent of graduates continue their education at Australian universities, demonstrating the program’s high success rate for tertiary pathways to Australia.

For a snapshot of key information on the VCE offshore program, see VCE Offshore Infographic.

For detailed information on the VCE Offshore Program, see VCE Offshore Program brochure.

How it works

Offshore VCE providers appoint teaching staff of their choice who may be expatriate or local.

All VCE teachers offshore are required to participate in professional learning, as facilitated by their Victorian partner school, to ensure that they have the knowledge and skills to teach VCE. VCE providers in non-English speaking countries are required to provide a preparatory English language program for students.

VCE providers offshore may choose to deliver the VCE alongside the local curriculum. This enables students to continue to study for their local senior secondary qualification and the VCE at the same time.

For the successful planning, implementation and delivery of a VCE offshore program, the following frameworks need to be addressed:

• policy and vision
• curriculum and assessment
• student achievement and outcomes
• staffing and professional learning
• governance and accountability.

See VCE Offshore Organising Framework.

Program benefits

The school partnership model gives teachers the opportunity to develop their professional relationships, increase cultural capability and build their professional practice and expertise by working closely with our highly experienced local VCE teachers. Delivery of the VCE Offshore Program also contributes to your school’s international networks and understanding, and can be complemented through activities such as teacher and student exchange programs and online collaborative learning with Victorian VCE students.