The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is part of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) programme PISA measures 15-year-olds’ ability to use their reading, mathematics and science knowledge and skills. Data from PISA 2022 allows looking at Swedish students that are top performers in Reading, Mathematics and Science. The participants consist of a nationally representative sample of Swedish students (N= 6072). Besides the tests on Reading, Mathematics and Science, PISA collects information about the students’ attitudes and experiences, as well as on the characteristics of the school environment. It is possible to investigate trends over time concerning the students’ performances comparing with results from previous rounds. PISA collect backgrounds data which allows to investigate the prevalence of academically resilient students (ARS). ARS are academically successful, despite coming from socioeconomically less advantaged backgrounds, which typically are associated with poorer educational outcomes. Individual and contextual factors associated with academic resilience have been described by Erberber et al. (2015), Cheung et al. (2024), while Jacobs & Wolbers (2018) have looked at system factors and resilience. The research questions are: Which are the percent of Swedish students that are top performers students in Reading, Math andScience (level 5 and 6 in PISA)?  Are there changes compared to previous PISA data for these variables? Which is the proportion of students that are academically resilient inSwedish PISA 2022? Which are the characteristics of the learning environments of top performers in Sweden?

The percentage of top performers in Math and Reading was lower in 2022 compared to 2009. In Science the percentage is slightly higher. The percentage of all-rounders, who are top performers in all three subject is quite stable over time. It is worth to consider the group of all-rounder students even if it is a small group. They may have the potential to excel in more than one area of knowledge. The student counselling services may also play a role for these students in helping identify strengths and making career choices based on various considerations and deeper motivation. The knowledge on this group of learners seems limited in educational research. Another consideration is about the larger percentage of students that perform below level 2 in PISA 2022, which is a minimum level of knowledge. About one fourth of students across the subjects do not reach the minimum level, which is a substantial worsening. The percentage of the academically resilient students (ARS) who are top performers in PISA 2022 and have a Medium-Low socio-economical background measured with ESCS index, ranges between 5.3 and 6.3 and it can be considered rather low, compared to previous cross-national studies. This can be interpreted as an indication that the Swedish educational system could do more in term of compensating students for their less advantaged socio-economic background and developing their potentials. The equity of the educational system lays also in efforts in closing not only the achievement gap, but also the excellence gap.