''How good would have it been to get 100?'' asked Timothy.

''It wouldn't have felt real to get 100, 99.95 feels better,'' Samantha said.

In changes to the ranking system this year, the two students have shared the ACT's top academic score for Year 12 rather than one getting 100.

The adoption of a new national university entrance mark this year the Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR) replaced the Universities Admissions Index in June means the ACT Board of Senior Secondary Studies (BSSS) no longer awards a mark of 100.

The ACT's 21 top college performers were honoured at an awards ceremony at the National Library yesterday, along with another 60 students considered outstanding in community service, vocational education, performing and visual arts, and top indigenous students.

From today, Canberra's 2695 students who studied for a tertiary package will be able to receive their ATAR through their schools with the BSSS also emailing ATARs to students at their school email addresses on Friday.

Across the ACT and NSW this year, 52,402 students were eligible for an ATAR with 48 students receiving the top rank of 99.95. Of the top scorers, 25 students were female and 23 were male and came from a mix of private and public schools.

Another 17.6 per cent received an ATAR of 90.00 or above, 34.6 per cent received an ATAR of at least 80.00, 50.4 per cent at least 70.00, and 64.4 per cent at least 60.00. The average ATAR was 70.25 this year.