Visit JCU
We invite high schools and their students to visit a JCU campus and experience university life. Students gain new insights and skills at events that are tailored to suit the needs and aspirations of students in their respective year level.
UniX Senior - June & July
We invite schools to bring their Year 10, 11 and 12 students to check out a JCU campus.
Students will be immersed into the university environment and gain insight into the different courses and career opportunities that are available. Students will have the chance to talk to student ambassadors about what it’s like to study at JCU as well as subject matter experts in our academic staff. They’ll also be able to learn all about all the social aspect of uni life and all the support services that are available to them.
Dates
JCU Cairns, Nguma-bada, Smithfield campus – 20 & 21 June 2023
JCU Townsville, Bebegu Yumba, Douglas campus – 11 & 12 July 2023
A residential program will also be available for schools who need to travel to attend the event.
Please register your schools attendance here
For more information please contact the Future Students team.
UniX Year 8 - November
Schools are invited to bring their Year 8 students to JCU Cairns or JCU Townsville for a day of excitement, fun and discovery. The Year 8 UniX experience provides students with an opportunity to sample what it’s like to study different subjects broadly covering science, engineering, medicine, nursing, education, social sciences, business, law and the creative arts. We aim to provide students with various career tasters to help identify and shape their future ambitions, assist with student subject choices in senior schooling years, and to promote positive post-school pathways to tertiary education.
Dates
- JCU Cairns, Nguma-bada campus, Smithfield – 20 to 24 November 2023
- JCU Townsville, Bebegu Yumba campus, Douglas – 20 to 24 November 2023
A residential program is also available for schools in regional or remote areas that need to travel and overnight to attend the event.
Townsville residential available only
- JCU Townsville, Bebegu Yumba campus, Douglas – 20 November 2023
Contact Us
For more information please contact (07) 4232 1562 or email outreach@jcu.edu.au
The Science and Engineering Challenge is a nationwide STEM outreach program presented by the University of Newcastle in partnership with JCU. Through the Challenge, students experience aspects of science and engineering which they would not usually see in their school environment.
Year 10 students from across the region battled it out for a place at the State Super Challenge by building bridges, wiring cities, building a bionic hand, constructing earthquake proof towers and designing hovercrafts.
The challenge encourages students to think outside the box and come together as a team to achieve a mutual goal, check out some photos from the Science and Engineering Challenge 2022 on the JCU Facebook page.
School Registrations will be sent to identified schools. Please contact your school relationship manager for further details at hello@jcu.edu.au.
Schools that register in the event will receive confirmation of inclusion, please identify students you wish to participate and request they complete the online student registration.
Heroes in Health
Get a sneak peek of what it’s really like to be in a healthcare career at Heroes in Health. This two-day program is a joint collaboration between JCU, the Mater Hospital, North West Hospital and Health Service Mt Isa and Cairns and Hinterland Hospital and Health Service that offers a unique opportunity to explore Medical, Nursing, and Allied Health Careers.
What to expect?
Successful Year 11 and 12 students will go behind the scenes, with opportunities to speak directly with health professionals and have all your questions answered. To help with your career goals, JCU Advisors will be on hand to provide information about JCU health courses.
- Cairns: 5 - 6 June 2023
Applications are now closed - Mackay: 6 - 7 June 2023
Applications are now closed - Mt Isa: 12 - 13 October 2023
Apply here - Townsville: 25 - 26 October 2023
Apply here here
Heroes in Science - June
JCU is giving high school students with a passion and desire to develop a career in science the chance to learn from industry experts and experience how scientific knowledge can improve the quality of life at many different levels.
What to expect?
From this full-day program, you’ll gain unique insights into a career in science. You’ll go from the lab to in-field where you'll experience how science informs decisions on conservation, climate change, urban growth and many other areas that affect not only global issues, but our everyday lives. To help with your career goals, JCU Advisors will be on hand to provide information about JCU science courses.
Please visit our online page to register your interest for the 2024 program.
Heroes in Sport - August
JCU, in partnership with the North Queensland Cowboys, is giving Year 11 and 12 students with a passion and desire to develop a career in physiotherapy and sports and exercise science the chance to learn from industry experts and train like a Cowboy.
What to expect?
From this full-day program you’ll gain unique insights into a career in sport. You’ll go behind the scenes at the Cowboys Community, Training and High Performance Centre, and learn from industry experts in physiotherapy and sports and exercise science before hitting the field for a high performance training session. To help with your career goals, JCU Advisors will be on hand to provide information about JCU courses.
Please visit our online page to register your interest for the 2024 program.
Heroes in Business - September
Fuel your passion for a career in business, law or finance at Heroes in Business. JCU, in partnership with Queensland Country Bank, is giving local high school students the chance to learn from industry experts.
What to expect?
From this full-day program you’ll gain unique insights into a career in business. You’ll go behind the scenes at Queensland Country Bank, and learn from Entrepreneur Dr Marcus Powe, awarded Australia’s Best Entrepreneurial Educator from JCU as he guides you through creating, exploring and pitching a business opportunity. To help with your career goals, JCU Advisors will also be on hand to provide information about courses and university life.
Please visit our online page to register your interest for the 2024 program.
For more information please contact the Future Students team.
Experience university, but not as you know it
TeacherX is an immersive, on-campus program for educators. Extend your professional development and explore
the opportunities available to your students by joining us for an engaging and unique on-campus experience.
What you will experience:
- Hands-on, interactive sessions whilst finding out more about JCU
- Engage with JCU’s state of the art campus facilities
- Delve into study and career options for your students
- Experience student life in our on-campus accommodation
Register your interest for TeacherX 2024
Engineering Futures residential camp - July
The inaugural James Cook University (JCU) Engineering Futures is a residential camp program offering students in Year 10, 11 and 12 the chance to experience university life during the school holidays, is entirely immersive and fully funded. It provides students with a distinctive experience of tertiary education in science, engineering and technology-related fields, while they are still studying in high school. The camp aims to provide encouragement to students to pursue STEM as a career, raise achievement level and preparedness to tertiary education. JCU seeks to break down the barrier student’s face to tertiary education by:
- Providing students with the opportunity to experience STEM subjects in a tertiary context
- Promoting the cultivation of relationships between JCU, industry and diverse student groups to support future diversity in the workplace
- Equipping students with knowledge of different courses and pathways to inform a career path aligned to their future aspirations
- Strengthening inter-regional and inter-cultural ties within Australia
- Providing students with the tools and support they need to pursue their goals and maximise their potential
Camp details
Over five days, students live on campus and take part in academic lectures, personal development and team-building activities in an interactive program that provides opportunities to meet University staff, JCU students and form bonds with other likeminded students in the program.
Dates
Monday 3 July – Saturday 8 July 2023, including travelling onto JCU campus.
Location
JCU Townsville, Bebegu Yumba campus, Douglas.
Staying on campus
Accommodation is in the residential colleges on JCU campus with catering provided for all participants while on campus.
Costs
JCU will coordinate and provide all travel, accommodation and meals for students.
The College of Arts, Society and Education is excited to bring back its annual Young Language Ambassador (YLA) program on Thursday 20 July in Cairns and Friday 21 July in Townsville. The YLA was an initiative that started in 2014 to support international mindedness across our communities and encourage the study of all languages in schools and beyond. Over the years, the YLA has had the pleasure of welcoming thousands of enthusiastic language leaders on the JCU campus in Cairns and Townsville.
This year the YLA will invite language ambassadors and their language teachers to participate in an inspirational and fun conference. This is a free educational event and places are limited. To participate in the event, schools must select a maximum of 6 language ambassadors. Selected ambassadors can be in Year 5 to 12. If your school offers more than one language and has a large amount of passionate language students, please contact florence.boulard@jcu.edu.au to discuss the maximum number of participants.
Students are invited to submit a short presentation (LED Talk) for the conference. It is not compulsory for students to present but we do value our young people’s voices. Click here for more information.
Why AI and Social Sciences are Everywhere
Artificial Intelligence is everywhere – we talk about it in classrooms, on the news, on social media, and it’s fast becoming part of our everyday lives. But what does AI mean for people and for society? What are the ethical issues involved? Spend a day exploring these questions at JCU.
September 4 to 10 is Social Sciences Week in Australia. The theme for 2023 is Social Sciences are Everywhere. On Friday, 8 September, the Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences (HASS) group at JCU is inviting Year 9 students to come to campus for a day of discussion, activities, and scenario-based learning with social scientists and current social science students from a range of disciplines.
The day will include short ‘lightning talks’ from experts in a range of social science disciplines, interactive ‘beat the bot’ sessions to apply a critical lens to AI, and small group activities to facilitate inquiry skills, ethical thinking, and futures thinking about the impacts of AI on society and our environment.