St Mary’s College Twins Celebrate Incredible ATAR Success

There were tears of happiness around the Shah family breakfast table on Saturday morning after Dhairy Shah checked his Australian Tertiary Admissions Rank.

He’d received a 99.9, placing the St Mary’s College Toowoomba student in the top 60 students in the state.

“I didn’t really know what to think of it at first, it was a surprise to me to be honest,” Dhairy said.

“My parents, I think they were also a bit speechless at that moment and they were really happy.

“There were some tears going around and everything and it was really surreal for them.”

Next, Dhairy’s mum Nancy went to grab his twin, Dhyey.

The two brothers are both 18 and were schooled at St Mary’s.

They’ve always challenged each other to do better – and it appears to have paid off.

“So Mum came up and she was like, no, get up,” Dhyey said.

“So it was a bit of an early wake-up I guess but when you open your computer and see a good result, it’s always a happy feeling knowing your hard work at school over the years, what you’ve aimed for and what you’ve achieved.”

Dhyey also performed exceptionally on his ATAR, receiving a 98.4.

“I guess it’s starting to sink in but it’s still very surprising, but also exciting,” he said.

Dhairy said it was good to see his brother get a “really good result as well”.

“It’s a double proud feeling for my parents because we both tried our best and for us to get that achievement, it’s spectacular,” he said.

To celebrate both their achievements, the family went out to lunch before having some family friends over for a party on Saturday night.

Dhairy is hoping to pursue a career in medicine – though he’s not sure which university yet.

Dhyey would also like to get into medicine, and is hoping to study at University of Queensland.

“There’s always competition about who’s getting the better grades through school and who gets this or that question right,” Dhyey said.

“So there’s always that rivalry and trying to be the better twin, I guess, and that always brings the better out of both of us.”