Our Story
Who we are
The Country Universities Centre (CUC) is a place-based initiative changing education to better fit the future of regional Australia. We support regional communities across Australia to establish and operate a locally owned Centre in their community that provides equitable access to higher education and vocational opportunities and support for students to succeed.
The CUC Network
The CUC is an affiliated network of 22 community owned centres operating in 35 communities across regional NSW, QLD and Victoria. Each Centre is locally governed and driven by its community through an independent Board of Directors and is affiliated with CUC. The affiliated network of CUC Centres is supported by CUC Central, which provides expertise, systems and support that is not practical or achievable for an individual Centre to resource alone. It draws on the benefits of our network model and allows local staff to focus purely on students and community – the key driver of our collective impact.
Why we are here
Regional people are less than half as likely to gain a bachelor qualification compared to their metropolitan counterparts. Existing initiatives to improve higher education access have failed to increase the participation rates of regional Australians. These initiatives are often prescribed to regional communities by either government or universities, rather than being community owned, operated, and supported.
What we do
The CUC takes ownership of education into each community and provides the resources for them to create their own place-based approach to education. The CUC model is designed and developed by regional people for regional people and their communities to provide equitable access to higher education through student support and outreach activities.
Who we are here for
The CUC operates in communities where universities cannot or will not go, from the coast to the outback, with the common goal of developing equitable access to higher education.
CUC communities have the following characteristics:
- Strong local community support to establish a Centre
- Commitment to providing educational opportunities
- Regional development goals
- Significant distance from existing university infrastructure
- Low higher education participation and bachelor attainment rates in the region
- Small to medium-sized regional towns
We continue to look towards providing access to higher education for rural and regional Australia. If your community is interested in finding out more about the benefits a local CUC could bring to your area, please contact us.