In an effort to encourage regional students to consider higher education, Macquarie University is bringing its LEAP (Learning, Education, Aspiration, Participation) program to Gloucester High School.
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A team of uni representatives, including the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Programs and Pathways) Professor Sean Brawley, will visit Gloucester as part of a Hunter region roadshow giving regionally based students a taste of what tertiary education has to offer.
It's an initiative of Macquarie's LEAP program, which aims to raise aspirations, create possibilities and actively support students from disadvantaged backgrounds to consider a higher education as a post Higher School Certificate (HSC) option.
The team of 15 will host daytime taster session on Monday, November 25 between 10am and 2pm for Gloucester High School (GHS) students, which includes the university's planetarium with Dr Devika Kamath and her astronomy crew, cognitive science with Professor Mark Williams, economics with Dr Prashan Karunaratne and ancient history/archaeology with Gillian Smith.
Students will get to handle artefacts from the uni's Museum of Ancient Cultures, be transported to Dunmore Lang College via virtual reality goggles, speak to academics and current Macquarie students. Students will get to handle artefacts from Macquarie's amazing Museum of Ancient Cultures, be transported to Dunmore Lang College via virtual reality goggles, speak to academics and current Macquarie students, and much more.
Monday afternoon, the team will hold an after-hours parent and community forum at GHS from 5pm until 9pm.
Students, their families, and community members will have the opportunity to familiarise themselves with university life, possible study options, and additional offerings such as overseas exchange and work internships.
Professor Brawley said the roadshow has been designed to address a range of challenges facing regionally based students who have limited access to university campuses.
"We know that having contact with and visiting a university can influence a young person's decision to pursue further education," said Professor Brawley.
One important aspect that Professor Brawley is keen to share with students and parents are the many pathways to university study.
"It is particularly important that both parents and students understand that the ATAR is not the only pathway into university. At Macquarie we have 11 different admission pathways, so I especially encourage students who had previously not considered university as an option to visit us while we're in the Hunter Region and let us answer any questions they have."
