New Colombo Plan mobility grants to support Australian students to study in Papua New Guinea

Australia has announced New Colombo Plan mobility grants to support 46 Australian undergraduate students to live, study and undertake work placements in Papua New Guinea next year.

The students will study a broad range of subjects including History, at the Pacific Adventist University; Anthropology, at the University of Papua New Guinea and at Kunguma Haus Poroman; Health at the Kavieng Hospital; and Medical studies at the Namatanai District Hospital, Port Moresby General Hospital, Wewak Hospital, and Alotau Provincial Hospital.

The students will also gain experience of Papua New Guinea workplaces through internships or mentorships and will return to Australia with new insights and understanding about Papua New Guinea and new friendships that will last a lifetime.

The participating Australian institutions are the Deakin University, James Cook University and the University of Wollongong.

“These exciting new mobility projects demonstrate the opportunities for Australian students to deepen their academic and life experiences through study and work placements in Papua New Guinea,” Acting Australian High Commissioner to Papua New Guinea, Ms Bronte Moules, said.

“The New Colombo Plan is a signature initiative of the Australian Government to lift knowledge of the Indo-Pacific by supporting Australian undergraduate students to study and undertake internships in the region in 38 host locations across the Indo-Pacific region.”

In June, Papua New Guinea received the first seven students under the New Colombo Plan for a four week professional teaching practicum in Oro Province. The students from Federation University in Australia worked alongside local teachers in the Kokoda Elementary School and the Kokoda Skills Training Centre with several of the students participating in a 10-day leadership development trek across the historic Kokoda Track.

Mobility projects are open to Australian students from any discipline, and range from short-term study tours to semester-based study and internships. The New Colombo Plan also includes a scholarship program, which will support around 100 students in 2016.

The Australian Government has committed $100 million in new funding over five years to implement the New Colombo Plan.

For more information on the New Colombo Plan, visit www.dfat.gov.au/new-colombo-plan or follow @NewColomboPlan