In association with the Victorian Education Department’s Student Excellence Unit, we offer a program of advanced study opportunities to our high-ability students.

Our Vision

The Student Excellence Program is delivering a range of initiatives to support Victorian government schools such as Monbulk College to provide a great learning environment and build teacher capability to support and extend their high-ability students.

Monbulk College now has access to a Victorian High-Ability Practice Leader, who will be coordinating students from to participate in the Victorian High-Ability Program (VHAP) and the Victorian Challenge and Enrichment Series.

Victorian High Ability Program

This program provides Monbulk College students in Years 7/8 the opportunity to participate in 10-week online extension and enrichment programs, in English and Mathematics. This program, delivered by Virtual School Victoria, will focus on extending and developing students’ Mathematic and English abilities. After completing the virtual program, students will participate in a face-to-face Masterclass with other high-ability students from schools in their local area.

Victorian Challenge & Enrichment Series

High-ability students from Yrs 7 – 12 will have the opportunity to be part of a series of high-quality, funded extension activities across all areas of the curriculum. Our college will be nominating students to participate in activities. This will be an amazing opportunity for our students.

High-Ability Teaching Toolbox

All teachers Monbulk College have access to a ‘one-stop-shop’ of online resources, including professional learning and a teaching toolkit. This will provide our teachers with practical, evidence-based resources and guidance to further support high-ability students at our college.

High Achievers Programs - Senior School

Centre For Higher Education Studies (Year 10 -12)

The Centre for Higher Education Studies (CHES) is a new centre of excellence designed to further improve educational outcomes for high-achieving and high-ability students across Victoria.  CHES provides accelerated programs for senior students from government secondary schools.

Monbulk College will support applications for high-achieving students and assist them in submitting an application to CHES for selection to participate in their chosen academic program.

Year 10 Electives:

CHES offers specialised electives for high-achieving Year 10 students. Each of these electives are one semester in length and are accessed via flexible study options. Students can study one elective each semester.

Students at Monbulk College can undertake a Year 10 CHES Elective in place of a school-based elective. If students are accepted into the CHES subject, they will be provided with a support teacher and dedicated study sessions to facilitate their involvement in the program.

In 2025, the CHES electives are:

• Research Matters - Foundations of VCE Extended Investigation
• Critical Thinking for Creative Minds - Foundations of VCE Extended Investigation
• Introduction to Algorithmics - Foundations of VCE Algorithmics
• LingoLab: Unveiling the Wonders of Real-world Language - Foundations of VCE English Language

VCE Subjects (Year 11 & 12):

Students can undertake a VCE study through CHES, while enrolled at Monbulk College, as a part of their overall VCE program.

The subjects offered are:

• VCE Algorithmics (Units 3 & 4)
• VCE Extended Investigation (Units 3 & 4)
• VCE English Language (Units 1 – 4)
• VCE Specialist Maths (Units 1 – 4)

All students who apply and are accepted to undertake a VCE Subject through CHES will have a dedicated support teacher at Monbulk College to facilitate their participation and progress through the program.  These programs are completed through a combination of in-person workshops and online learning.

Higher Education Studies (HES) – Year 12

Higher Education Studies (HES) are first-year university subjects designed to extend high-achieving students as part of a student’s VCE program.  

Through CHES, an extensive range of university subjects are offered by a Victorian universities. Participation in these subjects varies between universities.  Some subjects are in-person, others via online studies or a combination of the two. 

There are a range of benefits to a student successfully completing a university. subject.  If a student successfully completes the subject, this may add from 3 to 5 points to their ATAR from the successfully completed subject.

The HES Subjects available for 2025 include:

 Aboriginal Studies & Anthropology, Accounting, Biological Science, Climate Change, Construction Management, Disability, Diversity & Inclusion, Educating for the Future, Health Science, History, Human Biosciences, Information Technology, Introduction to Psychology, Law, Maths & Analysis, Mathematics, Physics, Philosophy & Economics, Psychology, Psychological Sciences, Public Relations, Space Industry, Sport Management, Sustainable Development & Innovation Ecosystems