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5 June 2026: Hundreds of school students descended on the University of Canberracampus this week for a taste of university life.
Explore UC welcomed over 1,800 students from 65 high schools across the ACT and Southern NSW regions – including the Riverina, the Central West, Snowy Monaro, and even as far as Eden on the Far South Coast.
The event allowed students, from Years 10 to 12, to spend a day on campus, where they could curate their own experiences according to their interests, choosing from more than 200 workshops – from learning radio broadcasting in the UCFM studio, to arguing a case in the moot court, or formulating sunscreen in the pharmacy lab.
University Vice-Chancellor and President, Professor The Honourable Bill Shorten, said Explore UC is “one of the best weeks of the year at the University”.
“I can see lightbulbs going off over their heads; maybe they can go to university, maybe there’s a course they hadn’t thought about doing – but now, because they’re here, something sparks their imagination,” he said.
Josh Bennett, who leads the Domestic Student Recruitment School Leavers team, which planned the week, said Explore UC is the University’s flagship recruitment event for school leavers.
“The freedom to pursue their own interests with a level of responsibility and autonomy gives these students an authentic taste of what life might be like if they decide to study at UC,” he said.
Charlie Colclough, a careers adviser from Bungendore High School brought 20 students from Year 10 and five from Year 11.
“We have got a lot of students who believe going to university is not for them, but we encourage them to come [to Explore UC] anyway – they don’t know what they don’t know, so that might change,” he said, noting there was huge value in getting exposure to university to make an informed decision for their future.
“There’d be probably 25 per cent on the fence about university, or who don’t have any idea,” Mr Colclough said. “They’re only young, they’re still learning.”
He said he had positive feedback after the morning sessions from some of his students who “loved” their robotics workshop, and noted the University offered great support to those who needed some extra help on the day, including neurodiverse students.
Mr Bennett said it was important for the event to be accessible and the University covered all transport costs and meals on the day to ensure there were no barriers.
“We don’t want any school or student to have to pay a single dollar to attend this event and we make sure that higher learning and accessing UC is for absolutely everyone, regardless of where you come from,” he said.
Professor Shorten implored all the students to consider university, and said Canberra was an attractive option for regional and rural kids as it lacked the “rat race” of Sydney and Melbourne.
“This is a good halfway house – you can get the big city experience and have things to do, and make a whole lot of new friends and networks,” he said.
“University is not just for people who come from Sydney or Melbourne or from some rich private school, it is for everyone: kids from the bush, kids from a country town and kids from the suburbs of Canberra, whocan get a world-class education on their doorstop.”
For many of the younger students, the Explore UC sessions helped guide their subject choices, and for those already in their senior years, it showed them ways to navigate a path to their chosen field, even if they aren’t studying the optimum subjects.
Merici College Year 12 student Jade Wilson attended a nutrition and dietetics workshop in the morning, built around a degree she is considering.
“I was interested in that, but [the lecturer] was talking about how there is chemistry in the degree – she gave us a breakdown of the courses and the prerequisites,” she said.
Having not studied chemistry, Ms Wilson was happy to learn of workarounds: “She talked about bridging courses, or even starting an open science degree and narrowing it down later.”
Ms Wilson and her classmates were all actively considering the University, as an option so close to home, and thought the social aspect of the campus gave it an edge over other local universities.
Professor Shorten said that factor was one of the two main reasons why students pick the University.
“One is that when you study here, you are very likely to secure a job once you graduate. The other thing is it’s friendly – your fellow students are your friends not your competition, you know that your teachers want to teach you, not just lecture you,” he said.
Now in its fourth year, Explore UC has more than doubled in size – from 800 students from 23 schools in 2023 – and builds relationships with careers advisers in the region as well as students.
Mr Bennett credited the teams from every faculty who worked on projects and presented sessions throughout the week.
“This event wouldn’t be possible without so many people agreeing to get involved and help inspire the next wave of future students at UC,” he said.
Photos by Tyler Cherry.
