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Study Abroad and Exchange FAQs

We look forward to welcoming our Study Abroad and Exchange students to JCU. This video will help you navigate the subject selection process before you apply.

Academic entry requirements include:

  • Undergraduate students must have completed six-months of full-time study at a recognised higher education institution and received a minimum cumulative GPA of (65-70%) 4.9 out of 7.0 (2.8/4.0).
  • Postgraduate students must have successfully completed a bachelor’s degree or equivalent from a recognised higher education institution.

Students whose native language is not English must demonstrate their proficiency by achieving a score in a test such as:

  • Academic IELTS: 6.0 (no component lower than 6.0)
  • TOEFL: 74 (no component lower than 18)
  • PEARSON PTE Academic: 52 (no component less than 52)
  • DAAD English Language test: Minimum of four stars in each section.
  • Other English language tests may be accepted as proof of English language proficiency.

Click here for more details on entry requirements.

All students must pay the Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF). Student Visa applicants must pay for Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) unless exempted.

Nomination is not required for the JCU Study Abroad program. Find out more information about:

Exchange partners must nominate students (inbound exchange to JCU) on the exchange nomination form:

Successful nominees will be invited to submit an application once the nomination has been accepted and approved by the JCU Global Experience Team. Applications for exchange semesters that have not come through the partner exchange nomination process will not be assessed.

To meet visa conditions, students must select subjects that run within a single study period or trimester*.

Visit our Select your subject page for more information.

View our Subject Selection Tutorial to help your students choose subjects.

Confused about some of the JCU words such as ‘subject’ and ‘study period’?

Find out what they mean in the ‘JCU terminology explained’ section below.

*Undergraduate and Postgraduate Business, Commerce, Tourism and Information Technology courses are in the Trimester Model. See the trimester FAQ for a list of subjects offered in trimesters.

Some of the terminology used at James Cook University may be different to what you're used to at your home university, so we have put together the below table to help explain some common JCU terminology.

JCU terminology

Explanation

Subject

The name of the classes you will take.
For example, BZ3740: Wildlife Ecology and Management.

You may refer to these as ‘courses’ in your home institution.

Use the JCU Subject Search Tool to find subjects.

Course

The name of your study area and degree. For example, Bachelor of Science.

More information is available at JCU Courses

Study Period

A semester.

Study Period 1 (SP1) runs from February-June.
Study Period 2 (SP2) runs from July-November.

More information is available at JCU Academic Calendars

Teaching Period

The timeframe that encompasses a whole study period as well as the intensive block subjects that take place before and after.
Teaching Period 1 is all subjects from January-June.
Teaching Period 2 is all subjects from July-December.

OSHC

Overseas Student Health Cover
Learn more

SSAF

Student Services and Amenities Fee
Learn more

Trimester 1
(Feb-May 2023)		Trimester 2
(May-Aug 2023)		Trimester 3
(Sept-Dec 2023)
Exchange nominations due21 November 20225 April18 July
Applications due21 January5 May18 August
International Orientation10 February26 May8 September
Semester begins13 February29 May11 September
Lecture recess20 - 26 March3-9 July16 - 22 October
Study break1 - 7 May14 - 20 August27 November - 3 December
Exam week and end of trimester8 - 13 May21 - 26 August4 - 9 December
Results published30 May12 September2 January 2024

For trimester academic calendar, please visit the JCU important dates page.

Semester 1*
(Feb-June 2023)		Semester 2*
(July-Nov 2023)
Exchange nominations due30 November30 May
Applications due30 January30 June
International Orientation10 February14 July
Trimester begins10 February24 July
Lecture recess10 - 14 April25 - 29 September
Study break29 May- 2 June30 October - 3 November
Exam week and end of trimester3 - 16 June4 - 17 November
Results published4 July5 December

*Semesters are called ‘Study Periods’ at JCU.

For Study Period academic calendars, please visit the JCU important dates page.

On-campus residence halls offer a convenient, fun and safe environment perfect for balancing your studies and social life. Learn more about JCU's on-campus accommodation.

For partner institutions only: Please complete the accommodation survey if you have not done so already.

Townsville, North Queensland

Bebegu Yumba campus is located in a 386-hectare natural bush and parkland setting in Douglas, 13 kilometres (8 miles) from the Townsville city centre. The campus houses around 1,400 students in halls of residence. About 13,000 students are part of the JCU Townsville community, including approximately 1,500 international students.

Learn more about Townsville campus.


Cairns, Far North Queensland
Nguma-bada campus is located 15 kilometres (9 miles) north of the Cairns city centre in Smithfield. The campus is surrounded on three sides by rainforest-covered mountains and is close to the popular beaches. Around 3,000 students study at JCU Cairns, including 300 international students.

Learn more about Cairns campus.

Contact information

Email [email protected]

Phone: +61 436 666 156

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Visit the study abroad and exchange website.