Throughout 2024, UNSW College has marked the 35th anniversary of the delivery of its Foundation Studies program, the first pathways program in Australia.
UNSW College has marked the 35th anniversary of its Foundation Studies program with a series of events for alumni, agents and partners, culminating in a reunion celebration with the program’s founding staff last month.
Current students and staff joined long-term partners and agents to celebrate the program’s 50,000 alumni, the strong pipeline this has provided to UNSW, and expansion of delivery with partner institutions at more than 25 transnational education (TNE) campuses across the globe.
Reflecting on this wide-ranging success, one of the program’s most influential founders, Jon Ireland, remarked that the vision and commitment of his fellow pioneers was to foster a supportive learning environment to prepare students for undergraduate study in Australia, which remains very alive today.
“Our role was to create the teaching program in each subject area, and the resources needed for delivery. We were asked to develop programs that would give international students the necessary background skills and knowledge to be successful at university in Australia.
“I don’t think that any of us at that stage could have imagined the subsequent growth of international education in Australia, and indeed the outstanding success of the Foundation Studies program today.”
Evolving since 1989
As the program’s inaugural commerce teacher in 1989 through to senior roles including Foundation Studies Academic Director (1999–2007) and Principal and Group Executive (2007–2013), Jon Ireland said he was continually amazed at the impact that Foundation Studies has had on students.
Reflecting on the program’s success in spite of many ructions in the international education landscape over his tenure, from the fallout of Tiananmen Square to the Asian financial crisis, Jon credited his colleagues’ focus on enriching the student experience. He also highlighted the connections made between educators and students as critical in preparing students holistically to thrive in their academic careers at UNSW and beyond.
“The success of our students has proved the value of the program. When they start their degrees, they already have the experience of being on campus, being a little more independent, and they're a settled and committed group.
“When I think about the tens of thousands of ex-Foundation Studies students out there now, graduates of UNSW… These students are hugely successful in their careers in commerce, in industry and in public service in their own communities.
“I have heard it said many times that our students think that Foundation Studies was the very best time of their university stay in Australia.”
In preparing his keynote address for the reunion celebration, Jon contacted some of his students from his 1989 commerce class with whom he is still in regular contact, catching up for dinners on visits to Hong Kong over decades.
Foundation Studies alumna Sanny Wong said that a dozen of her 1989 Foundation Studies classmates arranged a boat trip with their spouses in March. They are planning a further celebration next month to mark 35 years since their graduation from the program.
“I also met my best friends at Foundation Studies, and we are living so close together now, just like sisters. FS is life-changing and helped bridge the course to UNSW. This was my first solo trip abroad, and those experiences were some of the most unforgettable memories of my life, which I now share with my 17-year-old daughter.
“Over the years I have introduced my two nieces and my brother-in- law’s families, a total of four have graduated from Foundation Studies and UNSW.”
The evolution of the Foundation Studies program over three and a half decades has embedded pathways education within the University’s international offerings.
UNSW College looks forward to the program’s continued evolution and expansion, to educate with heart and provide more opportunities for learning at UNSW to more people than ever before.
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