Empowering high school students to shape their futures

The successful UNSW Gateway Program supports high school students to shape their education to assist them in their future careers – and it continues to go from strength to strength. 

The UNSW Gateway Program has expanded its reach recently, connecting with more students from underrepresented backgrounds than ever before — and the results are beginning to show in UNSW's own classrooms.  

Since the Year 10 Gateway Program and Year 11 Leaders Program began, several students who participated have gone on to enrol at UNSW — another testament to the long-term impact of early engagement with Gateway Partner Schools.

Taking the Year 10 Gateway Program to students

This year UNSW shifted the delivery of our Year 10 Gateway Program from on-campus to in-school, reaching more students. The new in-school workshop model saw University Ambassadors visit schools to deliver a one-hour Values Exploration lesson using our InsideOut app to guide students through values-based reflection and exploration of study areas.

"It boosted my confidence a lot because it showed me different traits I've never seen and how they can be used to benefit my future," said a Year 10 Student from Plumpton High School.

The workshop was designed to also be delivered independently by schools, so all resources were shared with Gateway Partner Schools that didn't receive the workshop. These included regional and remote schools that previously had limited access to on-campus experiences.

This year, the Year 10 Gateway Program engaged 1810 students across 43 schools, more than doubling last year's reach.

Year 11 Gateway Leaders Program returns to campus

Now in its second year, the Year 11 Gateway Leaders Program continued to bring together nominated emerging leaders from Gateway Partner Schools across Greater Sydney for a full day on campus at UNSW Kensington.

Over two weeks, 620 students from 80 schools took part. An intentional strategic direction saw the program increase student attendance from low socioeconomic backgrounds, rising from 18% in 2025 to 38% in 2026.

The program included a communication workshop with internationally acclaimed speaker and AGSM expert Jo O'Reilly and a University Ambassador-led session on authentic leadership.

“The Ambassador-led workshop is a standout moment – it’s where students actively challenge assumptions about youth and leadership and start to see themselves as capable leaders,” said Travis Keene, Head of Educational Outreach and Pathways, Student Equity, UNSW. “That sense of confidence and possibility is critical in supporting their pathway to university and beyond.”

To wrap up the day, students attended a networking session where they had the opportunity to share their personal leadership story with peers.

Together, the Year 10 and 11 programs reflect UNSW's commitment to our Widening Participation Target — the goal of ensuring that by 2026 25% of commencing domestic undergraduate students come from low-socioeconomic, socio-educationally disadvantaged backgrounds or are Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander.