St Mary Star Of The Sea College

What St Mary Star Of The Sea College does

St Mary Star of the Sea College is a Catholic independent girls' secondary school located at 15 Harbour Street, Wollongong, NSW, Australia. Founded in 1873 by the Sisters of the Good Samaritan under the guidance of Australia's first Archbishop John Bede Polding, it is the oldest girls' school in the Illawarra region and the fourth oldest Catholic independent girls' college in Australia. The institution operates as a non-profit educational body governed by a Board of Directors and led by Principal Tony Fitzgerald, serving female students across Years 7 to 12.

The College's product offering is exclusively educational: a learning framework, senior school programs, pastoral care, positive education initiatives, student services, digital learning under a BYOD model, a Polding Learning Centre, and a broad co-curricular program spanning music, creative arts, sport, and clubs. It does not offer technology products, software, or services. Revenue is generated through an annual subscription-style fee structure with per-student tuition (Years 7-10 at $8,382-$8,532; Years 11-12 at $10,803), plus per-family levies (Capital Levy $1,335, P&F Levy $140), resources, and a technology levy, billed annually with a payment schedule running through 30 November each year.

The College operates with approximately 65 employees and serves the Illawarra/Wollongong market geographically. Its marketing channels include a website, social media (Facebook, Twitter), newsletters, college tours, and a College Expo. Community engagement is maintained through an active Parents & Friends association, an alumnae network, a vertical House pastoral care system, and a strong Catholic identity rooted in the Good Samaritan tradition. Recent strategic activity includes a new direct bus service from Wilton/Appin launching in 2027, a 'Striving Stars' enrichment program for Years 5-6 to build a feeder pipeline, and active Year 7 enrolment for 2027 and 2028 cohorts.

Name

St Mary Star Of The Sea College

Legal name

St Mary Star of the Sea College

Website

https://stmarys.nsw.edu.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1873

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

St Mary Star of the Sea College is a Catholic independent girls' secondary school (Years 7-12) in Wollongong, NSW, founded in 1873 by the Sisters of the Good Samaritan, serving families in the Illawarra region with annual tuition-based fees and co-curricular programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Catholic Independent Girls' Secondary Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (6111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Faith-Based (Religious) K–12 Schools (EDAJABAC)

Keywords

• Catholic secondary education
• Girls secondary school
• HSC preparation programs
• Pastoral care services
• Single-gender education

Headquarters

HQ city

Wollongong

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

St Mary Star of the Sea College delivers Catholic secondary education (Year 7-12) to female students, comprising a structured learning framework, senior school programs (Years 11-12) leading to the HSC, pastoral care via a vertical House system, positive education wellbeing initiatives, careers guidance, and a co-curricular program spanning music, creative arts, sport, and clubs. It operates a single-gender learning environment grounded in the Good Samaritan tradition and supported by the Polding Learning Centre and a BYOD digital learning program.

Product overview

St Mary Star of the Sea College is a Catholic girls' secondary school (Year 7–12) located in Wollongong, NSW, Australia. Founded in 1873 by the Sisters of the Good Samaritan, the college provides educational services including a comprehensive learning framework, senior school programs, pastoral care, positive education initiatives, student services, digital learning, extra-curricular activities (music, creative arts, sport, clubs), careers guidance, and access to the Polding Learning Centre. The institution does not offer technology products or software services—its offerings are exclusively educational programs for secondary-aged female students.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• 116 Band 6/E4 HSC results achieved by Class of 2025
• +3 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Wenona School: Independent girls' school in Sydney (K–12) with strong academic outcomes; competes for the same family segment seeking premium single-sex education in NSW.
• SCEGGS Darlinghurst: Anglican independent girls' school in Sydney (Years 7–12); comparable faith-aligned single-sex secondary offering competing for similar NSW families.
• Loreto Kirribilli: Catholic independent girls' school in Sydney; directly comparable Catholic single-sex secondary school with a parallel fee-based model and academic outcomes focus.
• Pymble Ladies' College: Independent girls' school (Uniting Church heritage) in Sydney offering Years 7–12; comparable single-sex secondary offering with similar tuition-driven model and academic positioning.
• St Ursula's College Kingsgrove: Catholic independent girls' secondary school in Sydney; same faith-based, single-sex, Year 7–12 positioning targeting overlapping NSW Catholic family demographics.
• St Catherine's School Waverley: Anglican independent girls' school (K–12) in Sydney; comparable premium single-sex Catholic/faith-aligned girls' schooling competitor for NSW families.
• Brigidine College Randwick: Catholic independent girls' school in Sydney (Years 7–12) under a religious order; closely aligned faith-based girls'-only secondary model.

Regional players

• Holy Spirit College Bellambi: Catholic secondary school in the Illawarra region (Wollongong area); direct local competitor for the same regional Catholic family pool.
• Illawarra Grammar School: Independent coeducational K–12 school in Wollongong; regional competitor addressing the same Illawarra families evaluating independent secondary options.

Broad incumbents

• St Joseph's College Hunters Hill: Established Catholic boys' school in Sydney; broader Catholic independent secondary incumbent operating a parallel faith-based premium model within the same diocesan network.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/smcwollongong
• Facebookfacebook.com/St-Mary-Star-of-the-Sea-College-198721763481119
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/st-mary-star-of-the-sea-college

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about St Mary Star Of The Sea College