Last updated November 2026
Wellington College is a state, boys’ secondary school for Years 9 to 13 at Dufferin Street, Mount Victoria, Wellington. It opened in 1867 and had 1,933 students on its roll at 1 September 2026.
Its home zone includes 15 suburbs in full and parts of 6 more, among them Pipitea, Highbury, Te Aro, Kelburn, Mount Victoria and Northland; the zone map below shows the full boundary.
Year 10 and 11 students work towards the Wellington College Certificate, the school’s own award that recognises effort in class alongside co-curricular involvement, and the arts programme includes a Performing Arts Academy, music and drama groups and debating.
The school has a Māori students’ group, Tū Tamatoa, a kapa haka shared with Wellington Girls’ College, and an international programme that includes an international rugby programme.
At a glance
- Principal
- Glen Denham
- Address
- Dufferin Street, Mount Victoria, Wellington
- Phone
- 04 802 2520
Home zone
Suburbs in the zone: all of Aro Valley Wellington, Karori Wellington, Thorndon Wellington, Kelburn, Northland, Highbury, Mount Cook Wellington, Mount Victoria, Wadestown Wellington, Wellington Central, Te Aro, Wilton, Pipitea, Mākara Wellington and Brooklyn Wellington.
Parts of Oriental Bay, Ōwhiro Bay, Mākara Beach, Roseneath, Newtown and Kaiwharawhara Wellington: check your street.
Zone boundaries are set by the school’s enrolment scheme and can change. Confirm your address with the school before you rely on it.
NCEA results
School leavers with NCEA Level 2 or above, compared with all New Zealand school leavers.
This school New Zealand
School leavers are students who left school that year, whatever year level they left from.
Who goes here
Share of the 1,933 students who identify with each group. Students can name more than one, so these add up to more than 100%.
84 international students
MELAA: Middle Eastern, Latin American and African.
Stand-downs and suspensions
Cases per 1,000 students in 2025, adjusted for the ages of the school’s students, compared with all New Zealand schools.
These measure how a school responds to behaviour, and schools set their own thresholds, so they are not a measure of how students behave.
What ERO found
The Education Review Office’s latest report on the school is a School Evaluation Report from November 2024. ERO found that most students are engaged in learning, progress well and reach high levels of achievement, with almost all gaining NCEA Level 2 and 3 and University Entrance, and nearly half gaining endorsements at Merit or Excellence. A large majority of students attend regularly.
ERO also noted that the school has yet to close gaps for some Māori and Pacific students in how engaged they are, how well they achieve and how often they attend, although a range of support is in place.
Leadership was described as increasingly strategic and evidence-based, with iwi and whānau more involved in decisions and teachers beginning to bring te reo Māori, tikanga and mātauranga Māori into their teaching.
The agreed next steps are to keep strengthening literacy and numeracy in Years 9 and 10, especially for students at risk of falling behind, to bed in the Wellington College Certificate for Year 10 and 11 students while preparing them well for NCEA Level 2, and to grow culturally responsive practice so that Māori and Pacific students share fully in the school’s results. Leaders will review the school’s Māori and Pacific strategies and track attendance and achievement data for every year level.
Read the ERO reports for Wellington College
Enrolling
Students who live in the home zone have the right to enrol, and the school’s enrolment page notes that in-zone students are guaranteed a place. Out-of-zone places are offered under the enrolment scheme, by ballot when there are more applicants than places.
The school publishes its out-of-zone closing dates and ballot dates on its enrolment page each year, and families can check an address against the zone using the Ministry’s Education Counts tool linked from that page.
Applications are made online. Once an application is accepted, the school invites the student to meet a member of its senior leadership team to talk about the move to Wellington College, confirm a language option and discuss sport and cultural activities. International students apply through the school’s international section.
Schools nearby
In Mount Victoria
Wellington College is in Mount Victoria. Our suburb guide covers what it is like to live there, with parks, places and local businesses.
Questions parents ask
Is Wellington College zoned?
It has a home zone covering all of Aro Valley Wellington, Karori Wellington, Thorndon Wellington, Kelburn, Northland, Highbury, Mount Cook Wellington, Mount Victoria, Wadestown Wellington, Wellington Central, Te Aro, Wilton, Pipitea, Mākara Wellington and Brooklyn Wellington and parts of Oriental Bay, Ōwhiro Bay, Mākara Beach, Roseneath, Newtown and Kaiwharawhara Wellington.
What years does it teach?
Years 9 to 13.
How many students go there?
1,933 at 1 Sep 2026.
Does it ask for donations?
It may. It is not in the donation scheme, so it can ask families for donations.
What is its Equity Index?
383. The Ministry of Education’s Equity Index estimates the socio-economic barriers a school’s students face, from 344 (fewest) to 569 (most). It is used to share out funding, not as a measure of quality.
Is it a single-sex school?
Yes. It takes boys only.
How did its school leavers do in NCEA?
In 2025, 94.4% of its school leavers had NCEA Level 2 or above, compared with 77.8% of all New Zealand school leavers.
Updated automatically when the Ministry publishes new data.
Spotted something incorrect on this page? Let us know.
Sources and data notes 1
- School facts: School details and roll: Ministry of Education school directory, 28 Oct 2026 (CC BY 4.0). Home zone: Ministry of Education enrolment zones (CC BY 4.0). NCEA results, roll history and stand-downs: Education Counts, school leavers 2023 to 2025, stand-downs 2025, rolls 2021 to 2025 (CC BY 4.0).