Ali France (Dickson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No matter where you live, how much you earn or how much is in your bank account, everyone should have the opportunity to further their education. That's why the Albanese Labor government is cutting student debt by 20 per cent and why the Albanese Labor government opened Queensland's very first Suburban University Study Hub at Strathpine in the great electorate of Dixon. The new study hub, on Gympie Road, is providing student support and facilities for students who are studying a university or TAFE course without having to leave the community. At the opening of the hub with Minister Clare, I met students Jackie and Charlene, two third-year law students who love the new hub at Strathpine, and I just received an update on their studies. Jackie, who studies law at QUT, recently got a high distinction in constitutional law. She also volunteers with the Women's and Men's Alliance, a local group that provides support for First Nations people. Charlene, who also studies law at QUT, got a high distinction in contracts law. Charlene recently started a paid role as a paralegal at a local law firm. I'm told these were the first high distinctions in law they have both achieved since beginning their studies. Jackie and Charlene attribute their success, in part, to having the great facilities at the hub available for them to study together, particularly in the lead-up to their exams. They also take advantage of on-site tutors. These are just two examples of many of the great results achieved by the hub students.

Currently, around 45 per cent of young people in their 20s and 30s have a university degree in Australia. That's not the case in Dixon. In Strathpine that number is only 12.4 per cent. The evidence shows that, where study hubs are, university participation goes up. Bringing education closer to where people call home will mean more people can go to university, particularly those who might not have thought it was possible before. That's why the Albanese Labor government has opened a new study hub in Strathpine. It's why we are funding paid prac for nurses, teachers and social workers. It's why we are delivering more free TAFE. It's why we are reducing student debt by 20 per cent.