Today marks the start of Higher School Certificate exams for most of the region's students and, no doubt, they will approach their first English paper with a mix of both dread and excitement.

Each student will be hoping for something different out of the exams and it has been a different journey to this point for each of Orange's schools.

But the beauty of the Orange education system is that it offers something for everyone.

Each high school has been able to carve its own niche in the market, giving parents and students the widest possible choice.

Orange is also fortunate that education ranks as one of the largest and most important industry sectors in the city, employing hundreds of people and pouring millions of dollars into the economy every year.

While industries such as agriculture, mining and tourism are vital to our city's continued growth, the strength of the education sector is something we should all be very proud of.

And our reputation as an education city, with multiple schools for parents, carers and students to choose from, can only be a benefit in trying to attract new families to the region.

Regardless of what happens over the next few weeks, all students sitting the HSC deserve congratulations for coming through one of the most difficult years they have faced so far.

Despite the best intentions of parents and teachers, it is hard for any Year 12 student to appreciate that the HSC is not their one shot at success in life.

Those of us who are more than a few years past the HSC now know that it is just one milestone out of many that make a life, but it can seem far bigger than that when you're in the midst of it.

Learning does not end at the completion of high school - it is a life-long journey of personal growth.

Many students will go straight on from the HSC to university while many more will take a "gap" year - a notion unheard of just a couple of decades ago.

Others will start a working life that is likely to see them make their way through four or five careers before they finally move into retirement.

But whichever path they take, none will forget their school years.