Schools in remote and rural areas have suffered from serious staff shortages for years, but now there is a renewed enthusiasm for heading out West from QUT students.
Of the 17 education students who attended Queensland University of Technology's Over the Hill program last year, four have already applied for, and received, teaching positions in rural schools, beginning work there next year.
Over the Hill is coordinated by Sue and Peter Hudson, both lecturers in the Education Faculty.
The program takes a group of second and third-year education students to remote areas for five days of work experience and has changed the attitudes of many students.
Mel Dunn, 22, of Bribie Island, is one of these students, and said if it was not for the Over the Hill program she would never have had any interest in teaching at a school in a remote area.
She changed her mind completely and will start work at Injune State School in the Roma district next year.
"I took part in Over the Hill because I thought the experience would look good on my resume, that was all really as I never had any interest in teaching at rural schools and knew very little about them," she said.
"I was a bit scared at the thought of being out so far; I thought I would be totally isolated.
"But I was really surprised when I went on Over the Hill, because the place we went to was really friendly, and there was such a nice community feeling that it changed my mind completely.
"I did my four week practical work experience in a rural area, which confirmed that this is the sort of place I want to work in, and I am really looking forward to it."
Over the Hill began when Condamine State School's principal, Michael Lawrance, an ex-student of Sue Hudson, contacted her last year with a suggestion to help schools in his area deal with staff shortages.
"He suggested we bring students out for a short period of time, to create awareness of what it is like to teach in rural and remote areas," said Ms Hudson.
"There has been a shortage of staff in rural schools for decades, and I think one of the reasons is that pre-service teachers don't know what to expect, so don't apply for these positions."
The students were asked to report their thoughts on the experience; last year, everyone who went to the Miles District expressed an interest in completing a four-week practicum in a rural area.
And this year, although the responses have not yet been collated, Ms Hudson said she expects the written responses to be similar.
"Anecdotally, from speaking to the students when they returned, I think the enthusiasm is the same as last time - not one of them said anything negative about the experience," she said.
"We are now hoping to embed this experience within a QUT unit so that it becomes a sustainable part of the teaching program."
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