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HSC Physics · Year 12

HSC Physics: what actually gets examined

Every question from 5 official NESA papers, coded by module, topic and marks — so you can decide what to revise from evidence rather than a feeling.

5 NESA papers, 2021–2025 · 219 questions · 500 marks

14 of the 16 topics in HSC Physics were examined in every paper on file, and the 4 modules carry almost identical weight. There is nothing here you can safely skip — the question is what order you revise in.

Counted from 5 official NESA Physics papers (2021–2025). 219 questions, 500 marks. Nothing estimated.

14 of 16topics in every paper on file
61marks in the single biggest topic
20multiple choice marks, every paper
25%indicative weighting per module, quoted

The key words that carry the paper

Share of written-response questions by NESA key word, matched against NESA's own Glossary of Key Words. Revising the content without revising the directive is how marks get lost. The lower / middle / higher grouping is ours — NESA publishes the list but does not band it. Based on the 32% of written responses that open with a listed key word; the rest open with wording outside it, such as a direct question.

Explain24% · 9qmiddle order
Calculate21% · 8qlower order
Describe16% · 6qlower order
Identify11% · 4qlower order
Analyse8% · 3qmiddle order
Outline8% · 3qlower order
Other8% · 3q
Compare5% · 2qmiddle order

Lower orderMiddle orderHigher order

Each tile is one key word; its size is that key word's share of written-response questions that open with one. The smallest 3 are grouped as Other: Account for 3% · 1q, Construct 3% · 1q, Evaluate 3% · 1q.

Where the marks sit

Each module with its topics underneath. The bar is that topic's share of its own module, and the chip says how many of the papers on file examined it.

Module 5: Advanced Mechanics

126 marks

25% indicative weighting, quoted from the syllabus

Motion in Gravitational Fields Every paper 61 marks

29 questions · 48% of this module · Practise →

Projectile Motion Every paper 34 marks

16 questions · 27% of this module · Practise →

Circular Motion Every paper 32 marks

16 questions · 25% of this module · Practise →

Concept pages in this module:

Study Module 5: Advanced Mechanics →

Module 6: Electromagnetism

123 marks

25% indicative weighting, quoted from the syllabus

Electromagnetic Induction Every paper 56 marks

22 questions · 46% of this module · Practise →

Charged Particles, Conductors and Electric and Magnetic Fields Every paper 27 marks

17 questions · 22% of this module · Practise →

Applications of the Motor Effect Every paper 24 marks

13 questions · 20% of this module · Practise →

The Motor Effect Every paper 17 marks

10 questions · 14% of this module · Practise →

Concept pages in this module:

Study Module 6: Electromagnetism →

Module 7: The Nature of Light

125 marks

25% indicative weighting, quoted from the syllabus

Light and Special Relativity Every paper 39 marks

17 questions · 31% of this module · Practise →

Light: Quantum Model Every paper 34 marks

18 questions · 27% of this module · Practise →

Electromagnetic Spectrum Every paper 29 marks

12 questions · 23% of this module · Practise →

Light: Wave Model Every paper 24 marks

12 questions · 19% of this module · Practise →

Concept pages in this module:

Study Module 7: The Nature of Light →

Module 8: From the Universe to the Atom

125 marks

25% indicative weighting, quoted from the syllabus

Quantum Mechanical Nature of the Atom Every paper 37 marks

13 questions · 30% of this module

Properties of the Nucleus Every paper 37 marks

17 questions · 30% of this module

Origins of the Elements Every paper 21 marks

11 questions · 17% of this module

Structure of the Atom Most papers 19 marks

7 questions · 15% of this module

Deep Inside the Atom Most papers 12 marks

6 questions · 10% of this module

Across 5 papers the modules carried 126, 123, 125, 125 marks — against a 25% indicative weighting each, quoted from the NESA Physics Stage 6 Syllabus (2017). The counted share and the published weighting are two different measures.

How each topic gets asked

The 6 biggest topics, by the shape of the questions actually set on them. Revising the content without revising the directive is how marks get lost — the key words below are NESA's own, counted from the papers.

Motion in Gravitational Fields

Module 5: Advanced Mechanics · 61 marks across 29 questions

Asked as Multiple choice ×13 · Short answer ×14 · Extended response ×2

NESA key words Explain ×2 · Calculate ×1 · Identify ×1 · Analyse ×1

Electromagnetic Induction

Module 6: Electromagnetism · 56 marks across 22 questions

Asked as Multiple choice ×8 · Short answer ×12 · Extended response ×2

NESA key words Explain ×2 · Calculate ×2

Light and Special Relativity

Module 7: The Nature of Light · 39 marks across 17 questions

Asked as Multiple choice ×7 · Short answer ×9 · Extended response ×1

NESA key words Analyse ×1 · Describe ×1 · Outline ×1

Quantum Mechanical Nature of the Atom

Module 8: From the Universe to the Atom · 37 marks across 13 questions

Asked as Multiple choice ×5 · Short answer ×5 · Extended response ×3

NESA key words Explain ×2 · Outline ×1

Properties of the Nucleus

Module 8: From the Universe to the Atom · 37 marks across 17 questions

Asked as Multiple choice ×9 · Short answer ×7 · Extended response ×1

NESA key words Calculate ×1

Projectile Motion

Module 5: Advanced Mechanics · 34 marks across 16 questions

Asked as Multiple choice ×8 · Short answer ×7 · Extended response ×1

NESA key words Account for ×1 · Calculate ×1

What the markers wanted

NSW Education Standards Authority publishes per-question marking feedback after each paper. This is our reading of the 2022–2025 feedback, in our words, grouped by module and cited to the year and question it was seen in. It describes what markers rewarded in papers already sat; it does not predict the next one. The originals are linked below.

Across the paper

  • Converting every quantity to SI units before substituting (centimetres and kilometres to metres, days to seconds, micro and nano prefixes), finishing with the right unit and a direction for vector results such as torque.
  • Showing the chosen formula, the substitution of each value and an unrounded result. Better responses did the algebra first and put numbers in last, so nothing was rounded part-way through a multi-step calculation.
  • Writing explanations as a chain of cause and effect. In electromagnetic induction that means naming what changes the flux, then the emf and current, then the opposing force, keeping Faraday's and Lenz's laws distinct.
  • Analysing the scenario actually set rather than a more familiar one, such as a projectile that lands below its launch height or a satellite's motion over the one stated stage of its journey.
  • Supporting answers with labelled diagrams: vector diagrams for velocity components, annotated free-body diagrams, and sketches of experimental set-ups or interference patterns with every relevant feature named.
  • Working from the graph itself: taking a gradient from two points on the line of best fit, converting axis units before substituting, and reading values such as half-life or threshold frequency directly off the plot.
  • Keeping look-alike quantities and terms apart, such as energy, electric field and voltage; brightness and luminosity; flux linkage and flux leakage; back emf and eddy currents; time dilation and length contraction.
  • In questions on models and evidence, naming specific experiments, stating what each one observed and linking those results to the particular change in understanding, rather than listing names or particle properties.
2025 NESA marking feedback →2024 NESA marking feedback →2023 NESA marking feedback →2022 NESA marking feedback →

How the paper is built

Marks by question format across the same 5 papers.

Multiple choice 10020 / 20 / 20 / 20 / 20 per paper
Short answer 29054 / 59 / 59 / 65 / 53 per paper
Extended response 11026 / 21 / 21 / 15 / 27 per paper

Multiple choice is exactly 20 marks in every paper. The rest moves around: short answer ran 54, 59, 59, 65, 53 marks and extended response ran 26, 21, 21, 15, 27 marks. 5 papers is not enough to call that a trend.

Every question, by topic

All 219 questions from the 5 papers, listed under the topic each was coded to — year, question number, marks as printed on the paper, key word and format — with NESA's own copy of the paper linked on every row. The questions themselves are read there, not here. Marks here are as printed and every question is listed once, so these totals sit a little apart from “Where the marks sit” above, by design: there, a question coded to more than one topic has its marks split evenly. Open a module to see its list.

Module 5: Advanced Mechanics59 questions · 137 marks · show

Motion in Gravitational Fields · 28 questions, 61 marks

Projectile Motion · 15 questions, 32 marks

Circular Motion · 16 questions, 44 marks

Practise Advanced Mechanics →

Module 6: Electromagnetism54 questions · 117 marks · show

Electromagnetic Induction · 21 questions, 54 marks

Charged Particles, Conductors and Electric and Magnetic Fields · 13 questions, 23 marks

Applications of the Motor Effect · 12 questions, 26 marks

The Motor Effect · 8 questions, 14 marks

Practise Electromagnetism →

Module 7: The Nature of Light56 questions · 128 marks · show

Light and Special Relativity · 17 questions, 39 marks

Light: Quantum Model · 15 questions, 28 marks

Electromagnetic Spectrum · 12 questions, 33 marks

Light: Wave Model · 12 questions, 28 marks

Practise The Nature of Light →

Module 8: From the Universe to the Atom50 questions · 118 marks · show

Quantum Mechanical Nature of the Atom · 11 questions, 31 marks

Properties of the Nucleus · 17 questions, 37 marks

Origins of the Elements · 10 questions, 20 marks

Structure of the Atom · 6 questions, 18 marks

Deep Inside the Atom · 6 questions, 12 marks

The papers this is counted from

NSW Education Standards Authority publishes every paper and its marking guidelines. These links go to NESA's own copies — read the questions there.

2021 NESA paper · 100 marks →2022 NESA paper · 100 marks →2023 NESA paper · 100 marks →2024 NESA paper · 100 marks →2025 NESA paper · 100 marks →

These are the external examination papers. They are not the whole subject: Physics is also assessed by school-based assessment set and marked by your school, which NESA does not publish — so nothing on this page covers that part of your result.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Which HSC Physics topics come up every year?

14 of the 16. Every topic marked "Every paper" above was examined in all 5 papers on file. That describes the papers analysed, not a prediction — examiners set each paper fresh.

Which HSC Physics module is worth the most marks?

Module 5: Advanced Mechanics 126, Module 7: The Nature of Light 125, Module 8: From the Universe to the Atom 125, Module 6: Electromagnetism 123 marks across the 5 papers analysed. The syllabus publishes an indicative weighting for each; the counted share and the published weighting are two different measures.

What is the biggest single topic in HSC Physics?

Motion in Gravitational Fields, with 61 of the 500 marks counted across 5 papers.

How was this analysed?

Every question in 5 official NESA HSC Physics papers (2021–2025) was counted against the NESA Physics Stage 6 Syllabus (2017): its mark value, its format and its key word, and the module and topic it assesses. Marks are reconciled against each paper's own stated total.

Are the exam questions reproduced here?

No. NSW Education Standards Authority owns the papers. This page publishes counts and links to NESA's own copy of each paper so you can read the questions at the source. The analysis is ours; the papers stay with NESA.

Does this predict what will be in my exam?

No, and it is not meant to. It describes what has been set. Examiners write each paper fresh and can weight a neglected topic heavily, which is why every topic is listed here, including the ones examined least.

Can I see which HSC Physics questions were set on each topic?

Yes. Every question from the 5 papers is listed above under the topic it was coded to, with its year, question number, marks and key word, and a link to NESA's copy of that paper. The question itself is read there, not here.

What did the NESA markers say about HSC Physics?

NSW Education Standards Authority publishes marker feedback after each paper. The "What the markers wanted" section above is our reading of it across 4 years, in our words, grouped by module and cited to the year and question it was seen in, with the originals linked.

Coded against the NESA Physics Stage 6 Syllabus (2017). Where a question is coded to more than one topic its marks are split evenly, so topic totals within a module can round a mark or two above the module total. A topic is marked "Every paper" when it appears in all 5, "Most papers" when it is missing from one, and "Comes and goes" when it is missing from more — the one-paper tolerance absorbs a single coding miss rather than publishing it. Last updated 2026-09-01 · Exam papers © NSW Education Standards Authority, linked at source.