VCE Scaling Report 2025: Every Subject, Explained

The 2025 VCE scaling report (VTAC, released 11 December 2025) showed the familiar pattern: Specialist Maths scaled up the most (a raw 30 became 43), Methods, Chemistry, English Language and Physics all scaled up, English and Psychology slipped slightly, and Foundation Maths scaled down the most (a 40 became 32). This page lists every subject’s 2025 scaling, answers the “does my subject scale?” question for the subjects everyone asks about, and explains when the next report lands. Scaling reflects cohort strength, not subject difficulty – the full mechanics are in our VCE scaling explainer. (Written by Haobo Zhang – 98 ATAR, University of Melbourne Biomedicine; founder of HZ Tutoring.)

The 2025 scaling table: every subject

What each raw study score became after scaling, from the official VTAC 2025 Scaling Report (scores rounded to the nearest whole number):

Subject	2025 scaled mean	Raw 30 →	Raw 40 →	Direction
Specialist Mathematics	41.5	43	51	Scales up strongly
Mathematical Methods	34.4	35	46	Scales up
Chemistry	33.6	34	44	Scales up
English Language	32.6	33	43	Scales up
Physics	31.7	32	42	Scales up
Economics	31.2	31	42	Slightly up
Literature	31.0	31	41	Slightly up
Biology	30.5	31	41	About even
Legal Studies	28.6	28	40	Slightly down
Psychology	28.4	28	39	Slightly down
English	28.2	28	39	Slightly down
General Mathematics	27.8	28	38	Scales down
English (EAL)	27.3	27	40	Slightly down
Business Management	27.2	27	38	Scales down
Health & Human Development	26.4	26	37	Scales down
Foundation Mathematics	21.6	20	32	Scales down strongly

(Source: VTAC 2025 Scaling Report, released 11 December 2025. Scaling is recalculated from scratch every year.)

Does my subject scale up or down? Quick answers

The subjects people ask about most, answered from the 2025 report. (Psychology, English Language, Biology, General Maths, Methods and Specialist are answered in detail in the scaling explainer’s FAQ.)

Does Physics scale up?

Yes. In 2025 a raw 30 in Physics became 32 and a raw 40 became 42 – a solid scale-up, just behind Chemistry among the sciences.

Does Economics scale up?

Slightly. A raw 30 held at 31 and a raw 40 became 42 in 2025 – one of the better-scaling humanities, reflecting a strong cohort. (Our Economics tutors would add: the marks are very winnable too.)

Does Literature scale up?

Slightly – a raw 40 became 41 in 2025. Literature usually sits just above neutral, and well above mainstream English.

Does Legal Studies scale down?

Slightly. A raw 30 became 28 in 2025, while a raw 40 held at 40 – strong Legal students lose little. (Details on studying it well: our Legal Studies page.)

Does EAL scale differently from English?

They track closely. In 2025 EAL’s raw 30 became 27 (English: 28), but a raw 40 in EAL became 40 (English: 39). At the top end EAL held value slightly better.

Does Business Management scale down?

Yes, moderately: 30 → 27 and 40 → 38 in 2025. It is one of VCE’s largest cohorts, and big broad cohorts tend to sit below neutral.

Does Health & Human Development scale down?

Yes: 30 → 26 and 40 → 37 in 2025 – among the larger scale-downs. If you are good at it, it still contributes strongly; just go in with accurate expectations.

How much do languages scale up?

By policy, every language’s scaled average gets about 5 added to encourage language study – so Latin, French, Spanish, Chinese and the rest reliably scale up, with exact amounts varying by language and year. Check your language in the official VTAC table.

Reading the report without fooling yourself

Two honest rules. First, scaling rewards cohorts, not bravery: Specialist scales up because its students also dominate every other subject they take, not because VTAC hands out bonus marks for suffering. Second, the classic mistake is chasing scaled points into a subject you will score 28 in: VTAC’s own advice: a “scaled down” score in a subject you did well in usually beats a “scaled up” score in one you did not. Pick subjects you are genuinely good at and engaged in, then check both scenarios in the calculator – the scaling looks after itself. The subjects that scale up hardest are also, not coincidentally, the hardest VCE subjects.

When is the next scaling report?

VTAC publishes the scaling report each year alongside VCE results in December. The 2026 report is expected in mid-December 2026, and we will update this page with the new table when it is released. Year-to-year movements are usually small – the 2025 pattern above is a reliable guide for subject decisions in 2026.

Tools and further reading

• VCE ATAR Calculator – applies scaling to your scores and estimates your ATAR.
• VCE scaling explained – how the mechanism actually works (and the myths).
• How the ATAR aggregate is calculated – where scaled scores go next.
• The hardest VCE subjects – difficulty vs scaling, honestly ranked.
• The official VTAC 2025 Scaling Report (PDF) – the primary source for every number on this page.

Frequently asked questions

When was the 2025 VCE scaling report released?

11 December 2025, published by VTAC alongside VCE results. The next report is expected in mid-December 2026.

Which subject scaled up the most in 2025?

Among mainstream subjects, Specialist Mathematics: a raw 30 became 43 and a raw 40 became 51. Some languages scale comparably because of the +5 language adjustment.

Do languages always scale up?

Reliably, yes – VTAC adds about 5 to every language’s scaled average as deliberate policy to encourage language study. The exact amount varies by language and year; check the official table for yours.

Where do I find the official scaling report?

On VTAC’s website – the 2025 edition is at vtac.edu.au (PDF linked above). VTAC also publishes the ATAR and Scaling Guide, which explains the method behind the numbers.

Should I choose subjects based on scaling?

Not primarily. Scaling adjusts for cohort strength, so it cannot rescue a low raw score in a subject that does not suit you. Choose subjects you are strong in and enjoy, then use scaling to break ties between genuine options.

The subjects that scale hardest are also the ones where a strong tutor pays off most. Get 1-on-1 help in Specialist Maths, Maths Methods, Chemistry or across VCE maths.