Childcare and schooling

Child Care

If you need childcare there are various options available to you. Child care in Australia can cost over AUD$100 per day per child. There can be long waiting lists for places in some childcare centres.

In Townsville, there are two professionally-staffed child care centres on campus, providing a total of 124 places for children aged from 0 to 5. Visit Uni Campus Kids and Unicare for more information.

There are a number of childcare centres located near the JCU Cairns campus and in the surrounding suburbs.

Many schools offer before and after school care programs (usually 7.30am-8.45am and 3.30pm-6.00pm). These programs may incur additional fees. Children who need these programs must be registered with the school.

For more information see childcare and schooling.

Schools

If you would like to bring your children to Australia with you, consider the following:

• It is a condition of your student visa that children five years or older must attend formal schooling while they are in Queensland
• You will need to provisionally enrol your child in a school before you leave your home country and you will have to pay the school fees one semester in advance. The school will issue an electronic Confirmation of Enrolment Form (eCoE) stating the program and its duration, so that you can obtain the appropriate visa for your child
• The Diplomatic Mission in your country can tell you which State schools are registered to take international students. Fees are payable by international students at all State schools unless you are in receipt of sponsorship or scholarships from the Australian Government (e.g. the Australian Awards Scholarship, IPRS), or hold a higher institution or approved non-government scholarship. These scholarships must be approved by the State government for the dependants to be exempt from school fees
• You will be responsible for school fees and other costs including school uniforms, books, excursions and stationery.
• When choosing the most appropriate school for your child, it is best to ask questions about the school’s curriculum, school size, extra-curricular activities and the size of individual classes
• Take into consideration the distance from the school to JCU, the suburb in which you intend to live and the method of transport you plan to use.
  
  For further information visit Education Queensland International.