Council enrolls in international students program

Townsville City Council and the Queensland Government are investing in Study Townsville, a program that will promote the city as an attractive destination for international students.

Study Townsville is co-funded with the support of the Queensland Government’s International Education and Training Partnership Fund.

The Fund is managed by Study Queensland within Trade and Investment Queensland.

Townsville Mayor Jenny Hill said Council is investing $75,000 to promote the city to international students.

“The international education and training sector supported more than 350 jobs in Townsville in 2017 – we will create more jobs if we can attract more students,” Cr Hill said.

“This is a great opportunity to attract more Chinese students to the city – Study Townsville will strengthen our relationship with international education agents.”

Study Townsville’s members include James Cook University, CQ University, TAFE, International Education Queensland Secondary Schools, Townsville Grammar School, The Cathedral School, St Patrick’s College and other education providers.

Deputy Mayor Les Walker said Townsville can attract more Chinese students.

“The city had almost 2,000 international students in 2017 – but less than 80 came from China,” Cr Walker said.

“There’s plenty of room for that figure to grow – Study Townsville is developing a marketing strategy for Chinese social media platforms.

“It will showcase Townsville as a unique studying experience in North Queensland.”