I have been studying at the University of Queensland St. Lucia in Australia for a little over two months now. There are some big differences between Australian and American colleges and universities. I have been living in Emmanuel College, a residential college, which is somewhat similar to an American dorm, but with some key differences.
1. General Definition.
In the US, college is where you study and dorms are where you live. In Australia, a college is where you live and a university is where you study. In America, the terms college and university are interchangeable. An Australian college is much more community-oriented than an American dorm. A college is a mini-campus. You have all your meals in the college and there are college-specific clubs, activities, events, and teams, which is not the case in dorms.
2. Roommates.
Australians don’t have roommates. Everyone has their own single room without having to share. This is a positive because they don't have to stress about being placed in a room with a stranger and whether or not they’ll get along. However, this can also be a negative aspect because they don’t have the responsibility of learning to adapt and co-exist with another person. Plus, your roommate becomes your first friend.
3. Rivalry.
There is no rivalry in American dorms. You tell people what dorm you live in, and they may have an opinion on it, such as it’s really nice or really small, but that’s it. With Australian colleges, there’s a huge rivalry between them. Each college has their own sports teams and compete against one another. You also need to apply to live in a specific college whereas with a dorm, you just get placed in one. There is a large sense of comradery and community in an Australian college than in a dorm.
4. Population.
In American colleges, nearly everyone lives in a dorm, whereas in Australia, only a small amount of people live in colleges.
For example, at the University of Queensland, there about 45,000 students total. There are ten colleges that each house approximately 200-300 students. Therefore, the majority of Australians do not live on campus. In America, moving away for university and living in a dorm is a rite of passage. Most Australian students stay at home or find apartments nearby and commute.
In addition, it is very common for Americans to travel away from home to study. Additionally, the US has tons of colleges. There are large state universities, but there are also several smaller universities. The number of students can range from 900 students to 90,000 students. It really depends on the college.
Australia does not have as many universities. It has large state universities, but not many smaller ones. Therefore, the majority of students attend the large universities, while in the US, people attend universities of all sizes.
5. Application Process
Applying to college in the US is a very selective and rigorous process. Admission is based on SAT/ACT test scores, high school GPA, extracurricular activities, etc. Students have much more of a choice of what college they would like to attend because there are so many and they are all so different.
Australians tend to attend the university of the state they live in. For example, many people from Cairns choose to attend the University of Queensland because Cairns is in the state of Queensland. Applications for Australian universities are not nearly as difficult and with much less variability. In Australia, if your test scores and grades are high enough, you will get in. There are not several other factors that play into your admission as in the US.
Once you are accepted and choose to attend a US college, you are placed in a dorm or you select a dorm based on a lottery system. In Australia, once you are accepted to attend a university, you must figure out your own housing. The colleges are associated with the universities, but the selection process is done completely outside of the university.
Colleges all have different criteria that they look for in members and are very selective with academics highly emphasized. For example, one college may recruit members based more on sports.
Colleges have two very different meanings in the US and Australia. I've experienced both sides and I can't say that one is necessarily better -- they're just different.
