Performance bands were released about 6am by the NSW Education Standards Authority and ATARs were published by the University Admissions Centre almost eight hours later.

NVI caught up with St Mary's College's Bella Gallagher and Gunnedah High School's Cameron Gale and Lucy Moore in the afternoon to see how they were feeling now that the wait was over.

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Lucy said she "kept waking up" before the alarm she had set for 6am, and woke up her boyfriend Will when she checked her results.

"I cried this morning when I got my ag results - happy tears. It was my best subject," she said.

"I hit my goal but I didn't actually think I was going to get a high band 5 but I honestly thought I was going to just get a band four."

Lucy has a passion for agriculture and will pursue agronomy by distance through the University of New England (UNE) after deferring for a year to work full-time at Forsyths.

Fellow teen Bella said she was "honestly shocked" by her results, which included band 5s and 6s.

Community and family studies proved to be her strongest subject, followed closely by English. She was one mark away from a band 6 in extension English and was "quite happily shocked" by high marks in PDHPE.

"I was not expecting it but I also think I was talking myself down as well so I wouldn't be disappointed," Bella said.

Like Lucy, her marks do not determine her path because she has already deferred an early entry offer for a double degree in arts, and early childhood and primary education through Southern Cross University.

In January, she will start a traineeship at Li'l Achievers and a diploma in early childhood education and care through TAFE.

Cameron was unsure what to expect when he looked at his results but fared better than he'd anticipated, achieving band 5s in biology, PDHPE and visual arts.

"I feel like I did well. I was kind of surprised with some of the results, with the performance bands," he said.

Cameron was weighing up studying law, economics and business, or biomedical engineering at university in a year or two, and has decided to defer an early entry offer for business at UNE.

He is lining up work for the new year so he can save for the future.

The trio said they were thankful to their teachers and year advisors for their support during the HSC.