168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø

It is available on the QTAC website, but Samantha Bolton, our Dean of Pedagogy, has provided a summary in this week’s edition of the eNews and I would encourage you, whether you are in Years 7-9 or Primary, to read her section as part of building up your knowledge of the new senior assessment system in Queensland.

At an Independent Schools Queensland Forum I attended last week, I had the opportunity to listen to Angela Maiers, a US educator, who promotes the language of ‘mattering’ - that is, telling students that they ‘matter.’

Some schools and other organisations in the US have adopted the ‘you matter’ movement in varying degrees. Some just simply place ‘you matter’ and ‘I matter’ posters about classrooms and halls, while others have adopted the mattering language and send ‘mattergrams’ to students and workers.

I could not help but think how this movement reinforced the 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø’s Way which is focussed on what actions we can take to make certain all people want to feel good about coming to school. Being ‘somebody’s somebody’ at school by noticing someone else and making them feel valued is important. This is at the core of the 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø’s Way for parents, staff and students with its focus on two questions:

• How do I want to feel every day when I come to school?
• What am I doing to ensure others can feel this way?

Of course, the inevitable and appropriate question was asked: ‘how do you stop young people from thinking that ‘only I matter’?’ In this ego-centric world with many entitled people this might be an unintended consequence of the mattering movement. We do not want our students to think that they matter more than the next student. Everyone matters.

In the 2015 Gallop Poll, only 48% of young Australians said they had hope for the future. Therefore, it is critical that schools and society generally find ways to show all young people that they matter.

Preliminary results from research conducted by ‘you matters’ suggests the ‘you/I matter’ campaign with its emphasis on ‘you have something to say and share. You can and will add value to the world’ has already had some effect on reducing suicide. The aim of the ‘you matter’ movement is suicide eradication.

‘You matter’ is not about encouraging false praise or conceit. The language of ‘mattering’ requires consistent and genuine feedback using some of this language of mattering:

• What I like about you is….
• I really appreciated when you….
• The advice you shared….
• It made my day when…..
• I was impressed by your…..
• I highly valued……
• You made me feel so…..
• You are a blessing …..

By the way, everyone in this school community matters - students, staff and parents. We all have different gifts and talents and, if your child is feeling like she doesn’t matter, please alert her primary school form teacher and, in the secondary, her Head of Year, so that we can work in partnership with you to help your daughter.

Ros Curtis 

I am very happy to be an academic mentor to some Year 12 students this year. Our academic mentoring program is one where many staff connect with students to assist them clarify their progress. With the students I see, we started with articulating goals for the year and then I assist them with planning, identification of areas to develop, and any other issues that may arise.

I was reading an article on the weekend about Academic Lifeguards, a system in a US school that is designed to prevent students from drowning academically. The system works very similarly to our academic mentoring system, with the key difference being that it only targets students that are struggling with their schoolwork.

I like that our academic mentoring system is open to all students in Year 12, and feel that the conversations that as a mentor we are able to have with our students are rich and encouraging.

We are looking to expand this academic mentoring system in 2018, and will release details of this in Semester 2. However, I believe that all students can benefit from conversations and guidance about their academic progress in a variety of ways. They can connect with their peers, attend the supervised study sessions during the week, make sure they ask questions of their teachers when they are unsure, and they should be engaged with their learning both inside and outside of the classroom.

Karen Gorrie 

Term 3’s services will be held on Sunday 16 July and Sunday 6 August at 9am in the School Chapel.

We will look at a different theme each time with children’s activities incorporating the same. The Family Service is a Eucharist, and communion is experienced within an embracing environment. Do come along to one of these services if you can.

Confirmation 2017

On Wednesday 12 July at 6pm, Bishop Jeremy Greaves will be joining us for the 2017 Confirmation Service. Being Confirmed means that one has decided to declare the Christian faith for themselves and, in fact ‘confirms’ the promises that have often been made on their behalf at baptism.

Confirmation candidates for this year are: Grace Miers, Charlotte Hood, Yolanda Hunt, Charlotte Aralar, Sophie North and Charlotte Heather. Please keep them in your prayers and support them wherever you can.

Upcoming Services

Wednesday 12 July, 6pm, Boarders’ Eucharist and Confirmation Service

Sunday 16 July, 9am, Young Families’ Eucharist

Friday 21 July, 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø’s Day Service, 12pm, Philip Harris Sports Centre

Sunday 23 July, 9:30am, Old Girls’ Annual Service

Sunday 6 August, 9am, All Ages, Young Families’ Eucharist Service

Reflection

The news keeps coming. The media keeps following. We cannot seem to look away. How much do we allow our children to see?

This week I went to find a suitable prayer for meeting the needs of those crying out for prayer. I often find words are simply not enough. So, I offer to you these simple ideas for your prayers this week;

God,

We see pain. We know there is hurting.

Open our hearts to love - one for another.

Send us your peace.

Amen.

With every blessing on you all this week ahead,

The Reverend Nicki Colledge

Holidays are indeed fast approaching and we encourage the girls to uphold the School’s uniform expectations right up to the very last day. Delivering and collecting their laundry on time, brushing their hair and tying it in a ponytail with a white ribbon, wearing all three of their badges, not forgetting their panama, wearing the appropriate school socks and shoes and not mixing their sports and school uniform together, keeps everyone around them happy.

Our interactions with the girls are best when uniform infringements aren’t the central topic of conversation. For some boarders, it’s a mission to keep on top of all their personal responsibilities day in day out and even with their House Mothers on hand, it remains a struggle. Credit goes to the girls for executing independence throughout the term. We hope, through our well established routines in boarding, all girls continue to build upon their personal systems and strategies to help them in all aspects of their school life.

Dimity Harris 

The key changes occurring because of this change and important for schools, relate to quality assurance and comparability, newly developed highly prescriptive syllabus documents which contain instrument specific marking guides and preparing students for external assessment.

The ATAR

The ATAR is used throughout the nation to determine tertiary entrance and indicates, as the OP does, a student’s position in relation to other students. By moving to an ATAR Queensland is becoming aligned with other states, although there are differences in the way an ATAR is calculated from state to state. While the OP is a number between 1 and 25 where 1 is the highest, an ATAR is much more finely tuned, being reported on a 2000-point scale from 99.95 (highest) down to 0, in increments of 0.05.

In Queensland, ATARs will be calculated by QTAC (the Queensland Tertiary Admissions Centre). This week a publication from this organisation was released regarding the ATAR and its calculation. It indicates that, “the ATAR will be calculated by combining a student’s best five subject scaled scores. Scaled scores will be derived from a student’s subject results as reported to QTAC by the Queensland Curriculum and Assessment Authority (QCAA), using a process of inter-subject scaling” (Queensland ATAR, June,2017). Fundamentally to achieve an ATAR, students need to meet several requirements:

• They are required to pass an English subject, although this is only included in the ATAR calculation if it is one of their best five subjects.

• They must have five sources of input to attain an ATAR. This could be
  • five general (currently authority or OP subjects) subjects OR
  • four general subjects and one applied (currently subject area syllabuses) subject OR
  • four general subjects and a vocational qualification (at Certificate III level or higher).

• The subjects must be completed within a five-year period

As mentioned earlier, subjects will be scaled so that 75% in one subject will not necessarily equate with 75% in another subject. This scaling will be based on an analysis of the achievement of all students in all subjects across the State. This will not occur in the first instance until 2020, which is the first year of the ATAR in Queensland. After three or four years, schools will have trend data available to them regarding this scaling, but in the first instance information pertaining to how subjects will scale will not be available. It has been indicated that a vocational qualification will be awarded a single scaled score regardless of the area it is in. It is expected that a higher qualification such as a Diploma, will attain a higher scaling score than a Certificate course. There is no information about how vocational qualifications will scale compared to school subjects.

The rules for selecting subjects remain as they have been in this system. A student should choose the subjects they enjoy, keeping in mind their demonstrated capacity and career options. Often students do not know what career path they wish to explore at the time they are choosing senior subjects. In this case, it is important for students to keep their options open and be aware of pre-requisites for tertiary study.

Subject Selection for 2018

The subject selection process for 2018 will begin with the distribution of Curriculum Handbooks at the end of this term. At the beginning of Term 3 students in Years 8, 9 and 10 will have a series of presentations about the subjects on offer for study next year. These presentations, along with the Curriculum Handbooks provide the foundation for the subject selection which occurs later in the term. Every girl will have an interview with a senior member of staff as part of the selection process. The actual procedure for selecting subjects will be outlined in an email sent by Ms Gorrie prior to the Subject Selection Evening being held on 7 August. Details of this evening will be distributed via email and through this newsletter in the coming weeks. It will include presentations for parents, the opportunity to visit stalls showcasing the subjects available and a Careers Display.

Samantha Bolton 

Next term, Supervised Study will recommence on Monday 17 July with bookings for the term opening on Wednesday 12 July. With some session becoming close to full it is important that all bookings are made via Flexischools as places are limited to 25.

Round 2 Parent Teacher Interviews - Reminder

The second session of Parent/Teacher Interviews for 2017 will be held on Monday 10 July from 10:00am-6:00pm. These interviews are scheduled at this time to allow you to meet with teachers following the Semester One Report.

A reminder that the booking system will be open to parents at 9:00am on Monday 12 June and close at 9:00am on Wednesday 5 July. Bookings for Parent/Teacher interviews will be facilitated in Parent Lounge.

If you have any issues with booking in for interviews, please email lbeeney@stmargarets.qld.edu.au. Please note, if your questions are in relation to your login for Parent Lounge please contact School Support by emailing: schoolsupport@stmargarets.qld.edu.au.

Nicole Devlin 

• 93% of teens ages 12-17 go online
• 73% of teens are on a social network
• 37% send messages to friends every day

• 55% of teens have given out personal info to someone they don’t know, including photos and physical descriptions
• 29% of teens have posted mean information, embarrassing photos or spread rumours about someone
• 29% have been stalked or contacted by a stranger or someone they don’t know
• 24% have had private or embarrassing info made public without their permission
• 22% have been cyber pranked

The good news is there is evidence to suggest there is much we can do to protect our young women from harm and engaging in risky behaviours. Carr-Gregg, et al (2003) found that girls who have an attachment to an adult carer are far less likely to fall victim to risky behaviours. Likewise, those young women who make a connection with their school teachers and have a positive educational experience minimise their risk. Having aspirations, good health and a degree of independence are also factors known to assist in teens making healthy choices.

The School will be hosting a number of presentations and workshops for students, staff and parents on cyber safety next term in August.

Nikki Townsend 

The Years 5 and 6 students recently participated in their camps. As I shared last week, the Year 6 students travelled to Canberra to experience the curriculum in context and democracy in action. Of course, there was a lot of personal growth as is evident from the following statement: 

“Something that I learnt about myself would be that I gained confidence to go up to someone else and carry out a good conversation with them. From this I have made some new friends and have come closer to the friends I already have now.”

The main focus of Year 5 camp was leadership development. The girls were presented with both physical and psychological challenges. They were challenged to think about their leadership and what that looks like in terms of their relationships with each other. The girls were each physically challenged with long runs, including uphill and the re-enactment of the Kokoda trail. The teachers reported the girls’ commitment and determination were impressive.

“On day 2 we did a marble challenge that required the whole team to work together and boy, did they! The best thing about this challenge was that nobody cared who won, we just had fun.”

“The Kokoda trek was a massive step up for me as I am terrified of heights, but I got to the end with the help of my platoon, because they encouraged and comforted me”

As a School, we encourage the girls to take a different path and experience the unknown, to have a go and not fear failure.

Thank you to Miss Richards for her organisation of the Year 5 Camp and to Mr Chia, Mrs Emmett, Mrs Edwards and Mrs Cruttenden for the support of the girls on camp.

“You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do.”

Under 8’s Day
Last week, the Pre Prep to Year 2 students celebrated Under 8’s week. Under 8’s is a week which promotes the importance of the early childhood years and highlights the needs of young children. This week has been celebrated and dedicated to children in this age group for many years. This year’s theme of “Children are Playing Country to Coast” provided an opportunity for children to learn through other ways. A Year 2 student shared the following:

On Under 8s Day we first went to the nicely set up creative place.
We all had to quickly create a push and pull toy.
I excitedly made my toy and everyone magnificently made their toys.
If our cool push and pull toy did not work then at least we could scientifically explain them.
I made a wonderful toy car that had a person in it and it worked!
Next we had some morning tea.
I ate some yummy oranges, tomatoes and a cupcake.
Then we went to do some pretend fun lifesaving!
We did an obstacle first, then we did it in a real lifesaving costume.
After that we had some delicious lunch.
I had two ham rolls, a poppa and a mini cheese sandwich that my mum made.
Finally we watched a play.
The book the three people acted out was "I'm Australian too".
And on the day before everything started Mrs Drysdale announced "Have a wonderful day everyone!" I loved all of the activities equally. (When we did the lifesaving Mrs Bryant called the Churchill Lawn Beach.)

Thank you also to Ms Lucht, Mrs Butler, Mrs Andrews-Close and Mrs Bryant for all the fabulous activities they organised for the Under 8’s week.

Grandparents Day
A reminder that our Grandparents, Godparents and Guardians morning is on Thursday 15 June 8:30am-11:30am. As this day is about sharing visitors, we would love the girls to share morning tea with their visitor rather than children sitting separately and not sharing morning tea with their grandparents. This year, we would like each girl to bring a plate of food along to share. Please note, all food must be free of nuts. It would be even more special if your daughter is involved in the creation or planning of the morning tea so their special visitor knows it is sprinkled with love. The morning begins with a tea or coffee in the Atrium while you browse the Book Fair. The Interhouse Verse Speaking Competition will entertain you at 9:00am. Morning tea, provided by the students, will follow in the Atrium and Churchill Lawn. All visitors are invited to visit the classrooms to engage in activities with the children until 11:30am.

Upcoming Events

Angela Drysdale

Continuous Reporting
The following assessment results and feedback will be available after 3:30pm on Friday this week:
Year 6 English Writing Assessment

Trudi Edwards
Assistant Head of Primary 

For example, students were able to see ‘grandpa’s beard’ in the word for grandfather / Ò¯Ò¯ and a ‘pregnant lady’ in the word for mother / ÂèÂè. In fact, reading a character based language is more like looking at pictures, which makes the study of Chinese much easier for visual learners.

The Year 2 students have taken on the study of Chinese with aplomb this year. In Term 1, our focus was on learning numbers and their use in months, dates, birthdays and age. The students particularly enjoyed singing the numbers rap to help them memorise the numbers from 1-10. We also celebrated many birthdays over the semester with birthday girls earning the honour of wearing the ‘birthday crown’ for the lesson and singing Happy Birthday in Chinese. In Term 2 we learnt about the ancient Chinese hero, Mulan. Songs and games were used to help the students learn the words for family, parts of the body and nationality. The students all demonstrated an excellent capacity to understand the language and confirmed this in their ‘star interview’.

The study of Chinese is becoming increasingly important in our society given our close economic ties to Asia and the opportunities that exist in the region. The Year 2 students may only be on the first part of their journey to becoming proficient Chinese speakers, but, I’m confident that the skills they are learning will help them to eventually be members of a global village where Chinese speaking communities will play a prominent role. These Year 2 students are potential Chinese speaking lawyers, international business women, journalists, engineers, hospitality managers, doctors and more.

The end of this term will wrap up a very industrious semester of Chinese study for the Year 2 students. I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching the Year 2 students this term and, while reluctant to move on, I look forward to giving the Year 1 and Prep students their first taste of Chinese studies next semester.

Alison Robinson

Subject Coordinator - Chinese 

The students were guided by a team of eminent conductors from Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University and rehearsed and performed a wide variety of repertoire in a range of string, band and choral ensembles. The girls involved have all reported back on how much they enjoyed improving musically, as well as making lots of new musical friends.

Well done to the following girls who participated:

Monique Dodd (Double Bass), Ella Woods (Violin), Yinghong (Holly) Xu (Violin), Piper Rutherford (Violin), Zoe Wildman (Violin), Sophia Henebery (Tenor Saxophone), Elena Kearns (Tuba), Victoria Burns (Flute), Miyan Chia (Percussion), Holly Marchant (Baritone Saxophone), Paige Bastian (Soprano) and Eva Young (Soprano).

Strings Concert

The annual Strings Concert, “Strings Celebration” is fast approaching. The concert features all of 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø’s string ensembles, with a program of exciting music performed by Chamber Strings, Stradivari Strings, Amati Strings, Tutti Strings, Sculthorpe String Quartet, Beath String Quartet and Year 3 Strings. The evening will also feature Music Extension students and conclude with a fun performance of Can’t Stop The Feeling, in which all ensembles and members of the 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø’s community will perform together. The concert will be held on Tuesday 13 June in the Arts Centre Foyer, starting at 6:30pm. Please be sure to mark the event into your diaries!

Student Congratulations

Congratulations to Naomi Colledge (Year 6) who recently competed at the Redlands Eisteddfod. Naomi achieved some wonderful results including 1st place in the Musical Theatre section (10 Yr/U), 1st place in the Classical section (10 Yr/U), 1st place in the Folk Song (10 Yr/U) and 3rd place in the Contemporary/Pop (10 Yr/U). Naomi was also awarded first overall for the 12 Years and Under aggregate. These results are outstanding. Congratulations Naomi!

Music Support Group

The next MSG meeting will be on Tuesday 11 July at 5.00pm in the Primary Music Room (second floor of Chaseley). Parents from both the Primary and Secondary Schools are welcome to attend.

Brad King 

Teams were announced last Friday for the upcoming Winter Sport Season. This is a time in our students’ lives that could be filled with jubilation as hard work has paid off to achieve a goal, through to utter disappointment for not making the team of preference. A report commissioned by the Australian Sports Commission focussing on the Future of Sport Participation in Australia and the impact that role models may have on participation, identifies that parents are a pivotal influence on their children in playing sport. Despite setbacks students may have from not making a team, not being in the starting line up or receiving negative feedback, it comes down to the support and encouragement of parents that influences their continuation and participation.

Thank you in advance for waking your daughters for the early morning cold winter training sessions and encouraging them to attend. If your daughter has missed out on the team of choice or even the sport of choice please encourage her to continue to represent the school this season, as there is a place across our program for everyone.

This week, we have had girls representing 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø’s at various Met North Sports; Victoria Franklin in Soccer, Kate Bloomfield was named Captain of the 12 Years Met North Basketball team, Chloe Fenwicke and Lara Crouch first, Ciana Jamieson 2nd and Bella Donaldson 4th at Cross Country. Congratulations to all the girls.

Interhouse Athletics

The Interhouse Athletics Carnival will be held on Wednesday 14 June at Windsor Park for the Secondary School. Girls are to attend school dressed in their House colours and HPE uniform. Each house has chosen a theme and I encourage all girls to participate in this as it makes for wonderful spirit on the day. Girls will be transported to Windsor Park after Form time in the morning and will return for the end of the school day.

The Philanthropy Group will be hosting the annual burger bar and have arranged several food vans for the carnival. Please bring some money to support them.

The first event is the 1500m at 8am. Day girls are asked to meet at Windsor Park, while boarders are to catch the athletics training bus. Transport has been arranged for any girls attending rowing training that morning from the boatshed.

Program (times are approximate)
8:00am - 1500m
9:15am - Students arrive, March-on and War Cries
Field events will be spread throughout the day
9:45am - 100m Sprints
10:45am - 400m
11:45am - 200m
12:30pm - 800m
1:15pm - 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø’s Gift
1:45pm - Relays
2:30pm - Presentations and Students Depart

Nicky Barrie 

Please note the winter uniform requirements for Term 3:
Optional with Middy uniform (Primary and Secondary)
School jumper and/or blazer (sports tracksuit top must not be worn with Middy)
School tights, scarf and gloves

Optional with sports uniform
Pre Prep - Year 2 - School fleecy tracksuit or jumper
Year 2 (Andrews Cup participants), Years 3 to 12 - Tracksuit jacket and pants, must be worn as a set
Jumper can be worn with sports uniform but not with tracksuit pants

Terisa Arnold 

Remember that you don't have to be a student at 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø's to take part in smART Holidays - your daughter is welcome to bring her friends from other schools.

Register via Flexischools today. Please direct queries to me on jlishman@stmargarets.qld.edu.au.

Jenny Lishman 

P&F Event Dates 2017

Our next Event is the Fathers’ Dinner. This annual event is a wonderful opportunity for all fathers and male role models to meet and enjoy a sumptuous two course dinner and drinks.

Date: Friday 28 July 2017

Time: 6:30pm pre-dinner drinks in Eton Courtyard, 7:00pm Dinner

Venue: Eton Hall

Cost: $95.00 per person, includes two course dinner and drinks (book online via Flexischools)

RSVP: Wednesday 26 July 2017

In the event the online ticket sales reach room capacity prior to this date, the opportunity to purchase tickets will cease and the event will be considered SOLD OUT.

Please select and book your ticket today.

OLD GIRLS’ ASSOCIATION

OGA Annual Brunch - Sunday 11 June 2017

The Annual Old Girls' Association Brunch will be held this Sunday 11 June. This is a wonderful time to reflect and enjoy the company of friends and other past students with presentations from guest speakers who have stories and insights to share from their journeys since graduation. We look forward to seeing you there.

Our guest speakers are:

Jacqui Wilson (’90) who is the Global Innovation Manager for McCormick and Company and Chair, Co-founder of Food and Agribusiness Network and the winner of Queensland Rural Women’s Award for 2017. Jacqui’s insightful and energetic approach inspires others to embrace innovative thinking, to challenge internal business practices and refine and revise how, what and when we communicate - by looking through the lens of our customer.

Bronwyn Ninai (’16) was the 2016 OGA Speech Night Prize recipient, a boarder, prefect and sacristan in her final year of school. Bronwyn is undertaking a Bachelor of Economics at University of Queensland. Bronwyn will share her recent school experiences and how she is hoping to use the start 168¿ª½±¹ÙÍø’s has given her to succeed in all she does.

Upcoming Events

The Annual Old Girls' Association Brunch - Sunday 11 June.

10 Year Reunion - Class of 2007 - Friday 21 July 2017

20 Year Reunion - Class of 1997 - Saturday 22 July 2017

30 Year Reunion - Class of 1987 - Friday 21 July 2017

40 Year Reunion - Class of 1977 - Saturday 22 July 2017

50 Year Reunion - Class of 1967 - Saturday 22 July 2017

60 Year Reunion - Class of 1957 - Saturday 22 July 2017

Chapel Service and Morning Tea - Sunday 23 July 2017

1938-1956 (60+) Year Reunion - Monday 24 July 2017

AGM - Tuesday 28 November 2017

Luanne Wishart 

This requirement applies for the 2018 tertiary admissions period onwards. Details may be found at: .

James Cook University (JCU)
JCU is excited to announce a new offering at the TSXPO for 2017. Running concurrently with the expo, we will be offering personalised one-on-one consultations at Rydges Fortitude Valley. Students can meet us at the expo to gather information, or pre-book a personalised consultation.

Some topics covered in the consultations include:

• Study at JCU
• Application based programs
• Accommodation
• Study pathways
• Scholarships; and/or
• Student Support Programs

Appointments are being offered on 15 and 16 July from 10:30am - 3:00pm. Appointments will be on the hour and half hour for the duration of the event. To book an appointment, students must utilise the following form:

Bond University:
You can apply direct to Bond University right now. Applying online to study at Bond University is free and easy. We encourage you to lodge your application as soon as you have decided what you would like to study. There’s no application fee - no obligation to accept a place if it is offered - it simply gives you another option when it comes to making a decision about your future.

Applying for a scholarship is as simple as completing an additional section of the general Bond application form. In other words, there's no need to submit multiple applications. Your application acts as both an application for a scholarship as well as an application to study at Bond University all in one form. Before you start an application, read our top scholarship application tips: 

University of New South Wales (UNSW) Registrations for the 2017 LAT are now open and must be completed online via the ACER website.
The Law Admission Test or LAT is a written test that is used to demonstrate your aptitude and suitability for studying undergraduate Law at UNSW. Your LAT score, in addition to your academic results (e.g. ATAR + additional points) will be used in our selection process to allow us to better differentiate between the many high achieving applicants to Law. The LAT was introduced in 2016 for entry to UNSW Law dual degree programs from 2017 onwards.

If you are interested in studying Law at UNSW in 2018 then you should sit the LAT in 2017. Visit: for more information.

The University of Queensland: Accommodation guarantee for new students
For students commencing study at UQ and looking for accommodation, UQ's accommodation services is providing guaranteed accommodation for eligible students before they arrive!

Students who will be studying as an international, regional or interstate student at the St Lucia or Herston campuses will receive guaranteed accommodation through the UQ Colleges and UQ's external partners.

Upon application, students will receive an offer within five days, allowing them to plan and prepare for their move to Brisbane.

For information, contact Andrea Strachan:
Phone: 07 3365 1720
Email: a.strachan@uq.edu.au
Web:

QUT For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students
QUT’s Oodgeroo Unit offers the entry pathway from mid-October for QTAC applicants who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and place QUT within their top three preferences. Applicants need to have their from a and as this process can take time, we recommend students and/or their parents start this process early.

QUT Additional entry requirements and scholarships in creative industries
For such as auditions, portfolios or interviews, students must apply online to QUT by 5pm on Friday 15 September as well as applying through QTAC. Students interested in creative industries can also access , ranging from $10,000 to $30,000, many of which are awarded based on creative ability.

QUT Open Day program now available - register your interest
Mark the date in your diary! Visit us on Sunday 30 July to find out everything you need to know about studying at QUT. to receive event updates and go into the draw for a MacBook.

Early Entry Schemes to University:
Several Tertiary Institutions offer early entry schemes that require you to apply directly to the University:

UNE:

• Apply directly to UNE through the Early Entry Scheme
• No application fees
• Know in early November
• ATAR or OP not required
• No UAC/QTAC applications
• Currently open and available to all Year 12s (OP and non OP)

USC:
The Early Offer Guarantee enables Year 12 students to be offered an early and guaranteed place at the University of the Sunshine Coast in November. These offers are made prior to the release of Year 12 results, rather than students having to wait until the main QTAC offer round in January. Early and guaranteed offers will be made to students based on the recommendations of their school Principal. Applications open 3 August.

ACU: Early Achievers' Program (EAP)

We believe students should be recognised for their contribution and leadership potential and this is why we grant them status as Early Achievers. One of the biggest benefits of the program is that successful applicants receive an offer well ahead of the usual tertiary admissions announcements.

You can apply if you are currently in Year 12. Both domestic and international students can apply if you hope to enrol in a course at ACU.

EAP applications to study in 2018
Opened - Wednesday 26 April 2017
Close - Monday 17 July 2017
Offers released by end of August 2017

Griffith University - Queensland Conservatorium of Music
Stand out from the pack at the tertiary music auditions with Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University's Tertiary Preparation Workshop (TPW) program.

TPW prepares students (in Years 10, 11, and 12) to approach the theoretical and practical aspects of their university audition process with confidence. Now in its fourteenth year, the workshop runs Monday 26 to Friday 30 June and provides prospective instrumental and vocal students with an opportunity to work closely with Queensland Conservatorium staff and music industry professionals in state-of-the-art facilities at South Bank in Brisbane, Queensland. For more information visit:

When: 26 June - 30 June 2017 - Enrol Now for 2017
Where: Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University, South Bank
Cost: $495

UMAT Preparation
MedEntry: If you are interested in studying Medicine or a career in health that requires sitting the UMAT Test, visit the MedEntry website for assistance in your preparation: . MedEntry is the only government accredited training organisation for UMAT preparation.

MedStart: is an organisation that assists students to prepare for UMAT. Courses are available in Brisbane. Check the MedStart website: for more details.

NIE: UMAT Workshops Australia

Students in Years 10, 11 and 12 interested in medicine or dentistry will probably need to sit the UMAT (examination). During the next school holidays, on 28 June 2017, The National Institute of Education (NIE) will be conducting a full day UMAT preparation workshop. Places are strictly limited. All details are available via: .

KEY DATES:

JUNE
Saturday 17 June: 10am - 1:30pm: Endeavour College Of Natural Health Open Day

Saturday 17 June: 10am - 12 pm: New York Film Academy Open Day

JULY
Saturday 15/Sunday 16 July: 10am - 4pm: Tertiary Studies Expo TSXPO, Brisbane Showgrounds, Bowen Hills

Saturday 22 July: 9am - 2pm: Australian Catholic University (ACU), Banyo

Saturday 22 July: 2pm - 6pm: Bond University Gold Coast

Sunday 23 July: Griffith University, Nathan, Gold Coast, Southbank

Sunday 23 July: 10am - 2pm (TBC): Sunshine Coast University, Sippy Downs

Sunday 30 July: 9am - 3pm: Queensland University of Technology (QUT), Gardens Point

Elizabeth Johnston