When Joy Ho used her HSC marks in French and English to get into medicine 40 years ago, she had no idea her interest in languages and literature would help advance the treatment of blood diseases across the world.

“The HSC is only the beginning of another stage,” the former Loreto Convent Kirribilli music captain said.

“There’s so many opportunities, so I would encourage young people to keep their eyes open and never be discouraged.”

Now she is the director of hematology at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital and has contributed to the field internationally, developing various tests and advancing immunotherapy techniques for blood diseases.

On Thursday, 67,000 students from the class of 2022 will receive their HSC results, joining a long list of those who came before them.

The Herald tracked down high-achieving students from 10, 20, 30 and 40 years ago to see where they are now and what advice they have for students about to embark on their journey after high school.

You can read all about it here.

As 65,000 students across the state prepare to open their HSC results today, the 126 highest-achieving were recognised for finishing first in their courses

A total of 83 schools claimed 135 first-place awards for HSC courses in 2022, with nine students claiming two subjects.

The Sydney Morning Herald sat down with 18 of these top-performing students to hear their thoughts on the HSC and their plans for the future.

William Cassell from Barrenjoey High School was one of those students, equalling topping the state in Music 1.

He told the Herald that he started playing the flute at an early age, and credited his teacher as one of the biggest factors in helping him get one of the top scores in the subject.

“I definitely had a good teacher, she was very passionate, she completely changed the way I thought about music,” he said.

“She was an absolute inspiration, I have been playing since I was eight years old, it was my first passion.”