Okay, so recently (following UMAT results and for obvious reasons) I've recieved a somewhat shocking amount of PM's asking about JCU. A number of these questions I've answered before in replies to other people and a number of them are ridiculously stupid questions that I don't feel like answering ever (in my life). From now on, if I receive a PM asking me about JCU then I'll reply to it in this thread - it will be posted, with your name and identifying things removed, and replied to here.
This post is divided into sections: Non-standard and Standard entry(to be added); Written Application; Interview; Coursework; Lifestyle.
Lets begin.
Non-standard Entry
Question: I have been told the interview cut-off is 5.75 (last year) Is this a reliable value?
Answer: Okaaaaay. So, first of all - I can't give you much specific information about non-standard entry because I was a school leaver and I haven't really looked into it all that much. A 5.75 seems like a fairly legitimate value, though. SOMEONE FEEL FREE TO ADD IN
Question: If 5.75 is the interview cut-off for getting an interview, I hear the actual GPA to actually "get in" via non-standard, is much much higher ie. 6.5/6.75~7.0 - Is this a kind of GPA I need with a great interview?
Answer: You have to remember that they offer more interviews than they have spots (obviously) so there could be 20 spots and 20 people with GPA's of >6.5 and then another 20 people below with GPA's between 5.75 and 6.5. The ones with the lower GPA will obviously have to do much better in the interviews than those with the higher GPA's, so it's entirely possible that the top 20 applicants might have interviews just as good as the bottom 20 and thus the cut-off for the 'get in' GPA would be 6.5. I would imagine however that someone who got around a 6.0 and had a 'great' interview would have a pretty decent chance of getting in.
Written Component
Question: The written component is said to be important in even getting an interview. Can they decline people with GPA higher than 5.75 if their written application is a little shaky? Really, how important is the written component in getting an interview?
Answer: Yes it's very important and yes I would suspect that they could possibly decline you even if you had 5.75 if it was dodgy. Similarly, someone with a 98 could not be offered an interview when someone with an 96ATAR might be offered one because their written application was good. You have to look at it on the whole - someone with a good GPA and a bad written application might be equivalent to an average applicant - as the scores as summed.
Cliche Application Responses
Question: JCU is my one and only application in Australia for the unique course it offers. I've made it clear in my application that I want to do medicine for both the rural/indigenous community aspect but a lot more emphasis on humanitarian work overseas with MSF (doctors without borders) in the most neediest communities. I have been told that mentioning in your application about the cliche "helping people" is not the way to go. But for me it is actually a very genuine reason - would this possibly disadvantage me over others? I am aware one of JCU's main goals is to provide doctors for Australia's rural health deficits. Would anything outside "staying in australia to do rural" disadvantage me?
Answer: I've got one piece of advice for you - be honest. Though it's important to remember that cliches are cliche for a reason - a lot of people believe them/use them! - so make sure you've got something that sets you apart from everyone else. Don't just say that you like helping people, give them a reason WHY you like helping people, an anecdote, a past experience, anything. Once you make it personal and give something to show that you really are like that it's no longer cliche, it's just honest insight. I'm not entirely sure what your last sentence means, but if it's that you don't want to stay rural then I probably wouldn't say that.. if I was you I'd probably go out and do a bit of research on WHY JCU is trying to produce more rural doctors, on how the socioeconomic determinants of rural areas impact the communities and maybe have a look at what rural doctors actually get to do. The insight won't just help you with your interview or application it'll give you a bit of valuable insight.
Question: I feel like if i DO say to help others and improve their quality of life, and that its always been my passion, etc. that it'd sound too cliched. I know they want honesty in the answers, but im concerned that the cliche-ness will outwash the honesty, and hence the competitiveness of my application, any help would be fantastic!!
Answer: Saying you want to help people doesn't sound cliched if you back it up with something. If you just say "I want to be a doctor so I can save lives," then sure it sounds cliched and like you're pulling their leg but if you try fit it in as a piece of your whole overall scheme rather than making the responses fit around it then it doesn't come across that way.
That Last Question about Extracurricular Activities
Question: And in the last questionwhere it asks for any other relevant information, what do you suggest i add there? I'm thinking some extra-curricular activities and academic achievements..but just wonder if there's any other things i should add.
Answer: I didn't really have anything to add there other than school awards and volunteer work that I'd done. In hindsight, it would have been a good place to further my ideas that I'd put into the previous questions rather than just listing a bunch of stuff that I'd managed to do.. If you have anything else to add, put it in here (obviously)!
Letters of Support
Question: What kind of people would be most credible to get the letters of support from? would they have to be medicine-related professionals?
Answer: Letters of support should always be written by someone who knows you well, or (more realistically) someone that's going to paint you in a good light. A letter from your GP wouldn't carry as much weight (unless you've worked with them a LOT) as would one from, say, your Chemistry teacher who's spent the last two years watching and helping you fight through year 11 and 12 to get the marks you want/need... if you understand what I mean
I thought I'd cover my bases and get a good representation of work ethic, academic and social so I included my boss at the time (producer for BBC), my principal who is also a family friend and my Ancient History teacher. Just make sure you sit down and talk to the people you choose about how important it is, because the last thing you want is for them to take it on half-heartedly.
Work Experience
Question: I'm really worried because i have practically no work experience and i feel that this section will really let me down. May i ask if you had any work experience? and if such, at what kind of places? I'm thinking of getting some work experience within this month, but year 12 is quite hectic - do you think 1 day at a doctor's clinic will suffice? I also have taken part in an Oral health care program at my school...could i use that for medicine too, or is it only good for dent?
Answer:
Yes, Year 12 is quite hectic but honestly take the time out and do a couple shifts at a hospital. The benefit you'll get in an interview from doing more work experience far outweighs any difference it could/will make with your OP (unless you're doing the shifts the night before an exam).
I had work experience with my Dad researching up in Cape York, but at the time the application was submitted that was it. I pretty much just plugged the whole rural health thing there, and didn't actually get any work experience until about 2 weeks before my interview when I did a week at the Emergency Department at Cairns Base... which was amazing, I'm actually going back there at the end of the year for another two weeks I strongly recommend you try get somewhere other than a GP, or if you're going for a GP find a good, rural one because the sad truth is that metropolotian GP's do a shitload of boring work. The rural GP I did my placement with this year, in contrast, let me suture up a whole bunch of excisions, taught me a heap about paediatrics, neonatal care and immunology and a whole bunch of other stuff I don't think I'm allowed to talk about. A GP up in Malanda that my friend did her placement with also did a C-section and a bunch of other surgical procedures that I'd wager a metropolitan GP would never go near.
edited by season: remember that GPs/hospitals aren't the only place you can get work experience. Think outreach clinics, nursing homes, pharmacies etc. Any work experience in healthcare is looked upon favourably.
Gap Years and Volunteer Work
Question: I did the umat last year but ended up with a measly ____ percentile. So i decided i would take the year to work, prepare for umat and do a bit of volunteering/community service. What do you recommend getting involved in during the year to maximise my chances of getting in to JCU med? Would it be worth mentioning that i took the gap year? Was there anything specific you got involved?
Answer: Personally, I wish I had taken a gap year. It's not that I'm not loving the course so far, it's just that the benefits of it far outweigh the benefits of starting the course a year early - for that reason, I would definitely include the gap year in your interview/application... provided it actually has something of relevance!
That last point is important to do something about: if you're taking this gap year and have free time (trust me, even if you don't think you have much time now you'll have even less when you get into med) then use it to figure out what you want to do! Use it to make sure med is actually what you want to do, that you actually want to work with patients or in the health community, use it to find out about rural health and whether you want to go to a school that emphasises it (no one really does... but it's something to look into because you'll definitely get asked about it). Get involved in some kind of community service or health work, it doesn't really matter what and it doesn't really matter where (rural is better, but it's also harder to do..) but just make sure you're involved in something because if you bring up your gap year the interviewer could come back with, "so with all your free time, what did you do that shows your commitment to JCU/rural health/medicine as a profession?". Further from that, volunteer work is amazing; you meet tonnes of new people, you do things that you can look back on later and be happy about, you get a broader view of the world and in a slightly less altruistic manner it's good for your application.
Applying for Medicine and Dentistry
Question: If i wanted to apply for both medicine and dentistry, would i need to do the written response twice? (once for each course) or am i to condense my desire for either course into the one written response?
Answer:
I've heard mixed things over the written application and applying to both dent and med - some people say condense it into one, others say write two... I know people that have done both methods and have gotten in, so both obviously work. Personally however, I think writing two different applications is a good idea, as your reasons behind wanting to be a doctor or a dentist will/may be different. There's hardly enough space there to answer for one profession, let alone to condense it into both. If you want to be sure though, I suggest calling up the admissions office and talking to someone there yourself.
Interview
Question: Did you find the interview process stressful? (That is the part of the application process that I am dreading the most!)
Answer: The interview process wasn't stressful at all. Out of all the interviews I did it was the most casual and relaxed. It's semi-structured in that they have a set of questions they want to ask you but will happily deviate from those questions to further probe your answers. On top of that they usually have 2 scenario questions and a debating topic.
Coursework
Can actually find a pretty good set of blurbs on each year at this link:
http://www.jcumsa.org.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=20&Itemid=149
Also covers Second, Third and Fourth year if you go to Academics -> Course Overviews
Lifestyle
Question: Is it better to live on or off campus/which college on campus? I think I would enjoy living on campus, but there is the issue of only one kitchen between like 10 people!
How are you finding the transition from grade 12 to first year?
Was leaving home difficult? (not knowing anyone etc.)
Answer: First of all, you'll only have to share kitchens if you go to Rotary which I don't advise you do. Every other college at JCU is catered, so you don't have to cook your own food - you just walk on down to the dining hall at breakfast, lunch and dinner and eat away. The leaving home thing is something that personally, I didn't have any trouble with at all... mostly because I was on college. If I wasn't on college, I have the feeling that these last few months would have been a lot harder. On college, however, you're met from day one of O-Week with hundreds of other fresher's from your and other colleges who don't know anyone and are in the exact same position as you are. You make friends pretty darn quick on college is what I'm saying. Plus there's always a heap of med kids at all the colleges which means you know people in your course even before day one. College is pretty much the best part of my life, and I'm really not even kidding there. Everyone basically becomes family after the first few weeks. If you can afford it, get a spot on college. I just wrote a pretty detailed summary of the colleges for another PM that I'll send through after this message (if I forget, remind me.) Just make sure you apply SOON as they fill up awful quick.
The transition between year 12 and first year is one that you're going to have to live through to understand. Right now year 12 might seem like the most stressful and hardest thing you've ever done in your life, I know it did for me. First year is a lot different from that, but at the same time pretty similar; there's comparatively a lot less stress involved because all you're aiming for is to pass rather than to ace everything so there's a lot more room for error, but there's also comparatively a heck of a lot more to learn. For example, JCU medicine covered what I knew from year 12 chemistry and biology in two 50 minute lectures, and from then on out it was entirely new material. The way of learning is also shockingly different (there is no 'practice time' for concepts: they tell you the concept and you understand it, then they move onto another concept), but you get used to it pretty quickly - it's starting to feel a lot better and more natural now. Don't stress about it now, it'll feel natural when it happens and you'll deal with it just like everyone else does.
Working
Question: Money is an issue at the moment. What do you do after hours (as in after school hours) on campus?
Answer: It's very possible to work while studying first year - you're usually at class from about 9-4 every day (average 5 hours a day of class) but you're free in the afternoons. I currently work about 10-15 hours a week.
Choosing a College
Question: Which college is the best?
Answer: You can find my opinions on colleges here: http://www.medstudentsonline.com.au/showthread.php/21858-James-Cook-on-campus-residences
Edit: No, you can't anymore. Sorry guys, as per the thread update feel free to ask me and I'll give you my opinion but too much of it was being taken as outright fact for me to leave this up as it was.
Airconditioning/Heat
Question: My accommodation doesn't have airconditioning, is it really such a big deal/should I try and re-apply for the other colleges?
Answer: This is something that a lot of people are worried about.. I've lived in the tropics all my life so I'm sort of used to it and couldn't tell you from personal experience how hard it is to acclimatise. I do know however that the American students we get through in first semester struggled for about the first week and then got used to it. It's about wearing the right clothes most of the time - shorts and singlets are about the most you'll see anyone wear in summer. A lot of the time it's also raining which makes it much more bearable, on top of that the rooms at Uni Hall have what can be described as a door-window - so on the other side of your room leading onto your balcony is a set of three windows that slide up and down and basically give you an open door onto the balcony. The amount that helps depends on which side of the building you're on (there's Sunny and Shady side) and whether your neighbour across the hall has their windows and door open for air flow.
Yeah, it's get pretty hot in Townsville around summer time but it's definitely bearable and by the time any serious study needs to be done (mid year exams) it's not that bad/the dining hall is airconditioned and open for study till late (12? I think?). I can't comment on what it's going to be like for end of year exams because I haven't been through it yet.
Something important to note is that the almost the entirety of 'real' summer (1st Dec - 28th Feb) you're on holidays and not even in Townsville. That's when it'll be the worst and that's when you'll be back home in Victoria.
As for re-applying, you can if you want but odds are that GR didn't give you a spot because they didn't have one to give you, not because you weren't a good applicant. The chance that they'll have more spots open up in the next few months is there if people decide they aren't coming back next year, but it's a small one.
This post is divided into sections: Non-standard and Standard entry(to be added); Written Application; Interview; Coursework; Lifestyle.
Lets begin.
Non-standard Entry
Question: I have been told the interview cut-off is 5.75 (last year) Is this a reliable value?
Answer: Okaaaaay. So, first of all - I can't give you much specific information about non-standard entry because I was a school leaver and I haven't really looked into it all that much. A 5.75 seems like a fairly legitimate value, though. SOMEONE FEEL FREE TO ADD IN
Question: If 5.75 is the interview cut-off for getting an interview, I hear the actual GPA to actually "get in" via non-standard, is much much higher ie. 6.5/6.75~7.0 - Is this a kind of GPA I need with a great interview?
Answer: You have to remember that they offer more interviews than they have spots (obviously) so there could be 20 spots and 20 people with GPA's of >6.5 and then another 20 people below with GPA's between 5.75 and 6.5. The ones with the lower GPA will obviously have to do much better in the interviews than those with the higher GPA's, so it's entirely possible that the top 20 applicants might have interviews just as good as the bottom 20 and thus the cut-off for the 'get in' GPA would be 6.5. I would imagine however that someone who got around a 6.0 and had a 'great' interview would have a pretty decent chance of getting in.
Written Component
Question: The written component is said to be important in even getting an interview. Can they decline people with GPA higher than 5.75 if their written application is a little shaky? Really, how important is the written component in getting an interview?
Answer: Yes it's very important and yes I would suspect that they could possibly decline you even if you had 5.75 if it was dodgy. Similarly, someone with a 98 could not be offered an interview when someone with an 96ATAR might be offered one because their written application was good. You have to look at it on the whole - someone with a good GPA and a bad written application might be equivalent to an average applicant - as the scores as summed.
Cliche Application Responses
Question: JCU is my one and only application in Australia for the unique course it offers. I've made it clear in my application that I want to do medicine for both the rural/indigenous community aspect but a lot more emphasis on humanitarian work overseas with MSF (doctors without borders) in the most neediest communities. I have been told that mentioning in your application about the cliche "helping people" is not the way to go. But for me it is actually a very genuine reason - would this possibly disadvantage me over others? I am aware one of JCU's main goals is to provide doctors for Australia's rural health deficits. Would anything outside "staying in australia to do rural" disadvantage me?
Answer: I've got one piece of advice for you - be honest. Though it's important to remember that cliches are cliche for a reason - a lot of people believe them/use them! - so make sure you've got something that sets you apart from everyone else. Don't just say that you like helping people, give them a reason WHY you like helping people, an anecdote, a past experience, anything. Once you make it personal and give something to show that you really are like that it's no longer cliche, it's just honest insight. I'm not entirely sure what your last sentence means, but if it's that you don't want to stay rural then I probably wouldn't say that.. if I was you I'd probably go out and do a bit of research on WHY JCU is trying to produce more rural doctors, on how the socioeconomic determinants of rural areas impact the communities and maybe have a look at what rural doctors actually get to do. The insight won't just help you with your interview or application it'll give you a bit of valuable insight.
Question: I feel like if i DO say to help others and improve their quality of life, and that its always been my passion, etc. that it'd sound too cliched. I know they want honesty in the answers, but im concerned that the cliche-ness will outwash the honesty, and hence the competitiveness of my application, any help would be fantastic!!
Answer: Saying you want to help people doesn't sound cliched if you back it up with something. If you just say "I want to be a doctor so I can save lives," then sure it sounds cliched and like you're pulling their leg but if you try fit it in as a piece of your whole overall scheme rather than making the responses fit around it then it doesn't come across that way.
That Last Question about Extracurricular Activities
Question: And in the last questionwhere it asks for any other relevant information, what do you suggest i add there? I'm thinking some extra-curricular activities and academic achievements..but just wonder if there's any other things i should add.
Answer: I didn't really have anything to add there other than school awards and volunteer work that I'd done. In hindsight, it would have been a good place to further my ideas that I'd put into the previous questions rather than just listing a bunch of stuff that I'd managed to do.. If you have anything else to add, put it in here (obviously)!
Letters of Support
Question: What kind of people would be most credible to get the letters of support from? would they have to be medicine-related professionals?
Answer: Letters of support should always be written by someone who knows you well, or (more realistically) someone that's going to paint you in a good light. A letter from your GP wouldn't carry as much weight (unless you've worked with them a LOT) as would one from, say, your Chemistry teacher who's spent the last two years watching and helping you fight through year 11 and 12 to get the marks you want/need... if you understand what I mean
I thought I'd cover my bases and get a good representation of work ethic, academic and social so I included my boss at the time (producer for BBC), my principal who is also a family friend and my Ancient History teacher. Just make sure you sit down and talk to the people you choose about how important it is, because the last thing you want is for them to take it on half-heartedly.Work Experience
Question: I'm really worried because i have practically no work experience and i feel that this section will really let me down. May i ask if you had any work experience? and if such, at what kind of places? I'm thinking of getting some work experience within this month, but year 12 is quite hectic - do you think 1 day at a doctor's clinic will suffice? I also have taken part in an Oral health care program at my school...could i use that for medicine too, or is it only good for dent?
Answer:
Yes, Year 12 is quite hectic but honestly take the time out and do a couple shifts at a hospital. The benefit you'll get in an interview from doing more work experience far outweighs any difference it could/will make with your OP (unless you're doing the shifts the night before an exam).
I had work experience with my Dad researching up in Cape York, but at the time the application was submitted that was it. I pretty much just plugged the whole rural health thing there, and didn't actually get any work experience until about 2 weeks before my interview when I did a week at the Emergency Department at Cairns Base... which was amazing, I'm actually going back there at the end of the year for another two weeks
I strongly recommend you try get somewhere other than a GP, or if you're going for a GP find a good, rural one because the sad truth is that metropolotian GP's do a shitload of boring work. The rural GP I did my placement with this year, in contrast, let me suture up a whole bunch of excisions, taught me a heap about paediatrics, neonatal care and immunology and a whole bunch of other stuff I don't think I'm allowed to talk about. A GP up in Malanda that my friend did her placement with also did a C-section and a bunch of other surgical procedures that I'd wager a metropolitan GP would never go near.edited by season: remember that GPs/hospitals aren't the only place you can get work experience. Think outreach clinics, nursing homes, pharmacies etc. Any work experience in healthcare is looked upon favourably.
Gap Years and Volunteer Work
Question: I did the umat last year but ended up with a measly ____ percentile. So i decided i would take the year to work, prepare for umat and do a bit of volunteering/community service. What do you recommend getting involved in during the year to maximise my chances of getting in to JCU med? Would it be worth mentioning that i took the gap year? Was there anything specific you got involved?
Answer: Personally, I wish I had taken a gap year. It's not that I'm not loving the course so far, it's just that the benefits of it far outweigh the benefits of starting the course a year early - for that reason, I would definitely include the gap year in your interview/application... provided it actually has something of relevance!
That last point is important to do something about: if you're taking this gap year and have free time (trust me, even if you don't think you have much time now you'll have even less when you get into med) then use it to figure out what you want to do! Use it to make sure med is actually what you want to do, that you actually want to work with patients or in the health community, use it to find out about rural health and whether you want to go to a school that emphasises it (no one really does... but it's something to look into because you'll definitely get asked about it). Get involved in some kind of community service or health work, it doesn't really matter what and it doesn't really matter where (rural is better, but it's also harder to do..) but just make sure you're involved in something because if you bring up your gap year the interviewer could come back with, "so with all your free time, what did you do that shows your commitment to JCU/rural health/medicine as a profession?". Further from that, volunteer work is amazing; you meet tonnes of new people, you do things that you can look back on later and be happy about, you get a broader view of the world and in a slightly less altruistic manner it's good for your application.
Applying for Medicine and Dentistry
Question: If i wanted to apply for both medicine and dentistry, would i need to do the written response twice? (once for each course) or am i to condense my desire for either course into the one written response?
Answer:
I've heard mixed things over the written application and applying to both dent and med - some people say condense it into one, others say write two... I know people that have done both methods and have gotten in, so both obviously work. Personally however, I think writing two different applications is a good idea, as your reasons behind wanting to be a doctor or a dentist will/may be different. There's hardly enough space there to answer for one profession, let alone to condense it into both. If you want to be sure though, I suggest calling up the admissions office and talking to someone there yourself.
Interview
Question: Did you find the interview process stressful? (That is the part of the application process that I am dreading the most!)
Answer: The interview process wasn't stressful at all. Out of all the interviews I did it was the most casual and relaxed. It's semi-structured in that they have a set of questions they want to ask you but will happily deviate from those questions to further probe your answers. On top of that they usually have 2 scenario questions and a debating topic.
Coursework
Can actually find a pretty good set of blurbs on each year at this link:
http://www.jcumsa.org.au/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=20&Itemid=149
Also covers Second, Third and Fourth year if you go to Academics -> Course Overviews
Lifestyle
Question: Is it better to live on or off campus/which college on campus? I think I would enjoy living on campus, but there is the issue of only one kitchen between like 10 people!
How are you finding the transition from grade 12 to first year?
Was leaving home difficult? (not knowing anyone etc.)
Answer: First of all, you'll only have to share kitchens if you go to Rotary which I don't advise you do. Every other college at JCU is catered, so you don't have to cook your own food - you just walk on down to the dining hall at breakfast, lunch and dinner and eat away. The leaving home thing is something that personally, I didn't have any trouble with at all... mostly because I was on college. If I wasn't on college, I have the feeling that these last few months would have been a lot harder. On college, however, you're met from day one of O-Week with hundreds of other fresher's from your and other colleges who don't know anyone and are in the exact same position as you are. You make friends pretty darn quick on college is what I'm saying. Plus there's always a heap of med kids at all the colleges which means you know people in your course even before day one. College is pretty much the best part of my life, and I'm really not even kidding there. Everyone basically becomes family after the first few weeks. If you can afford it, get a spot on college. I just wrote a pretty detailed summary of the colleges for another PM that I'll send through after this message (if I forget, remind me.) Just make sure you apply SOON as they fill up awful quick.
The transition between year 12 and first year is one that you're going to have to live through to understand. Right now year 12 might seem like the most stressful and hardest thing you've ever done in your life, I know it did for me. First year is a lot different from that, but at the same time pretty similar; there's comparatively a lot less stress involved because all you're aiming for is to pass rather than to ace everything so there's a lot more room for error, but there's also comparatively a heck of a lot more to learn. For example, JCU medicine covered what I knew from year 12 chemistry and biology in two 50 minute lectures, and from then on out it was entirely new material. The way of learning is also shockingly different (there is no 'practice time' for concepts: they tell you the concept and you understand it, then they move onto another concept), but you get used to it pretty quickly - it's starting to feel a lot better and more natural now. Don't stress about it now, it'll feel natural when it happens and you'll deal with it just like everyone else does.
Working
Question: Money is an issue at the moment. What do you do after hours (as in after school hours) on campus?
Answer: It's very possible to work while studying first year - you're usually at class from about 9-4 every day (average 5 hours a day of class) but you're free in the afternoons. I currently work about 10-15 hours a week.
Choosing a College
Question: Which college is the best?
Answer: You can find my opinions on colleges here: http://www.medstudentsonline.com.au/showthread.php/21858-James-Cook-on-campus-residences
Edit: No, you can't anymore. Sorry guys, as per the thread update feel free to ask me and I'll give you my opinion but too much of it was being taken as outright fact for me to leave this up as it was.
Airconditioning/Heat
Question: My accommodation doesn't have airconditioning, is it really such a big deal/should I try and re-apply for the other colleges?
Answer: This is something that a lot of people are worried about.. I've lived in the tropics all my life so I'm sort of used to it and couldn't tell you from personal experience how hard it is to acclimatise. I do know however that the American students we get through in first semester struggled for about the first week and then got used to it. It's about wearing the right clothes most of the time - shorts and singlets are about the most you'll see anyone wear in summer. A lot of the time it's also raining which makes it much more bearable, on top of that the rooms at Uni Hall have what can be described as a door-window - so on the other side of your room leading onto your balcony is a set of three windows that slide up and down and basically give you an open door onto the balcony. The amount that helps depends on which side of the building you're on (there's Sunny and Shady side) and whether your neighbour across the hall has their windows and door open for air flow.
Yeah, it's get pretty hot in Townsville around summer time but it's definitely bearable and by the time any serious study needs to be done (mid year exams) it's not that bad/the dining hall is airconditioned and open for study till late (12? I think?). I can't comment on what it's going to be like for end of year exams because I haven't been through it yet.
Something important to note is that the almost the entirety of 'real' summer (1st Dec - 28th Feb) you're on holidays and not even in Townsville. That's when it'll be the worst and that's when you'll be back home in Victoria.
As for re-applying, you can if you want but odds are that GR didn't give you a spot because they didn't have one to give you, not because you weren't a good applicant. The chance that they'll have more spots open up in the next few months is there if people decide they aren't coming back next year, but it's a small one.
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I guess you would get used to it in the end. Is George Roberts the only one with aircon or are there others as well?
