Choosing a university can be a daunting prospect, so the Country Education Foundation of Australia has helped some local students to make a more informed decision.
Ten year 11 students were given the opportunity to go on a fully subsidised trip to Swinburne University for its open day recently.
Among those were Emerald-Rose Haapakoski and Olivia Ferguson of Kerang Christian College, as well as Jessmarie Long, Ruby O’Brien and Abbey Hipworth of Kerang Technical High School.
The students were shown around the campus by Swinburne Student Equity Ambassadors, and took the opportunity to learn all about the university and the courses it offers.
They were able to check out the exercise and sport science labs and the TV studios, as well as learning about studying abroad, living on campus, and workplace learning, before enjoying an exclusive dinner on the Saturday night with CEF-supported students already studying at Swinburne.
CEF manager of partnerships Hilary Matchett, who organised the trip, said it was great to be able to give country students the chance to travel to Swinburne, as they may otherwise not have been able to go.
“As one of our valued education partners, we are extremely grateful to Swinburne University for giving us the opportunity to bring a group of regional students to their Open Day,” Ms Matchett said.
“For regional students, there can be great barriers to accessing university events, such as open days, including distance, cost and availability, so this type of trip allowed the students to learn more about Swinburne and to help make informed decisions about their future.”
CEF-supported student James Bould, who is studying at Swinburne this year and helped guide the students around the open day, said he would recommend all year 11 and 12 students attend at least one university open say to get an idea of what university is like.
“I has been incredibly lucky to attend both the Swinburne and Monash open days in the latter half of my senior year, and the value, especially rural students, gain from the experiences are crucial in both encouraging university attendance and tackling the anxieties that moving from regional to urban settings present,” he said.
CEF is a national for-purpose organisation that helps rural and regional young people aged between 16 and 25 access post-school education, training and employment through grants, scholarships, support services and other resources.
