Dubbo’s lack of “university culture” may be corrected by a woman who declares herself a champion of the city and Charles Sturt University (CSU).
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Cathy Maginnis, raised in the city and newly-appointed head of campus at CSU in Dubbo, is adamant that it can make education dreams come true for “everybody”.
At a “welcome” event for prospective students on Wednesday, Ms Maginnis told of opportunities awaiting young and old through increasingly flexible options for study and 24/7 access to campus resources made possible by a $2.5 million infrastructure project set to be completed before the start of the 2017 academic year.
“We don’t have that university culture like Bathurst and Wagga Wagga where CSU has been for so long,” she said.
“I still get a lot of people saying they didn’t know there was a campus in Dubbo.
“We’d really like people to come and do the courses here.
“You can change what you do at any time in your life. You are never too old to start studying.”
Ms Maginnis said the courses offered to students studying on campus were complemented by an array of courses online.
She said online study did not have to be a solo and off-campus experience.
“I don’t think a lot of people realise that all CSU students can access campus facilities and support staff,” Ms Maginnis said.
The head of campus said flexible learning was evolving, giving the example of its nursing degree set to be offered online, on campus, part time and full time from 2017.
She thinks students undertaking both online and on-campus subjects “get the best of both worlds”.
Ms Maginnis said the campus was catering to a “bigger proportion of non-school leavers than school leavers”.
“We’d certainly like to see more of our school leavers take advantage of the campus because the cost of going away to university is substantial,” she said.
Ms Maginnis said her son had been accepted to study at CSU in Dubbo from 2017, the same year a daughter was set to graduate.
Current annual enrolment at the campus of about 650 students includes 250 students studying on campus and the rest online.
Ms Maginnis, a 20-year lecturer at the campus off Tony McGrane Place, will oversee a graduation ceremony for about 73 students at Dubbo Regional Theatre and Convention Centre on Friday.
