My Ongoing Study Journey

Vella from Taiwan. Studying a Bachelor of Science-Zoology and Ecology with JCU (James Cook University), Townsville Campus

First of all, I never thought I was going to study again before I came to Australia.

After three years of working holidays all around Queensland, I started asking myself, “What do I want? How would I like to make my life different?” Then, I have my answer.

The last location of my working holiday was in Cairns just before finishing my working holiday visa. I searched a bunch of information about studying in Australia, then I found that JCU was the most suitable one for me.

The most important reason was that I didn’t want to leave this gorgeous place. I liked Cairns but I wanted to find somewhere that has more sunny days and less rain than Cairns. So, I heard Townsville was the place what I wanted to live: the weather, the Great Barrier Reef and the people here are nice.

However, at that moment my English was not of a high enough level to study at JCU, thus I needed to go to a language school to improve my English. Later I found a language school in Townsville which is Townsville International English School.

I studied at Townsville International English School (TIES) for six months just before Christmas 2022, and I passed my English course and now l’m able to study with JCU this year. I really appreciate the owners of the English school Kit and Yvette, and our teacher Kathy who treated us like their own kids. In TIES they not only teach us English but also all about Aussie culture. I feel like I have finally integrated into Aussie life since I started study with TIES. I mean, joining some local activities such as going to the stadium to watch a Cowboys football match or having barbies with whole class at The Strand.

Townsville is a great city, they have a cool Facebook page called “What’s on Townsville”. It is a page that tells you what’s happening in Townsville, as like what you can do during the weekend, where there is an event today, or even information on weather like cyclone updates.

This has all really helped me to integrate and not feel lonely while I have been studying in Townsville.

Thank you to Study Townsville also who has given me opportunities to explore Townsville and the region.

January 2023

Photo credit: Vella Wang