The Preparation Team
Two terms of teaching that took him from Level 3 English to a mainstream Year 7 classroom.
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He Started at Level 3 English.
He Started at Level 3 English.
He Finished in the Top 1%
Adam Li · 李庆彬
In July 2017 Adam arrived from Guangdong, China and began the High School Preparation Course with Level 3 English. Six years later he graduated with an ATAR of 99.55 — the top 1% in Queensland — and left for the University of Queensland to study the two subjects he loves most.
2017
Arrived From Guangdong
Level 3
English on Arrival
99.55
ATAR — Top 1% in Queensland
UQ
University of Queensland
July 2017
Level 3, and a Long Way to Go
Adam arrived from Guangdong province in July 2017 and started the High School Preparation Course at John Paul International College. His English was assessed at Level 3 — the point where a student can manage everyday conversation, but not yet a science lesson in English.
That is the honest starting point for a great many international students, and it is exactly what the preparation course is built for. It teaches academic English — the language of instructions, textbooks and exam questions — alongside the study habits an Australian classroom expects.
It took Adam two terms. In that time his teachers recorded clear gains in both his language and his study technique — enough for him to move into the John Paul College mainstream curriculum the following year.
2018 · Year 7
The Prize in His First Year
Adam entered the main school in Year 7. At the semester graduation ceremony that year — his first as a mainstream student, in a language he had been learning for two terms — he was awarded an Academic Prize.
The College's own account of that moment is careful about what mattered. It was not the trophy. It was that Adam saw his effort return something, in front of classmates who applauded him for it. His confidence changed from that point, and his results kept climbing through the years that followed — in the classroom and in the co-curricular program, where he picked up further recognition.
For families weighing whether a child can really catch up, this is the part worth reading twice: the gap closed in Year 7, and it stayed closed.
What He Loves
A Mind Built for Numbers
Ask Adam what he wants to keep studying and the answer is narrow and certain: mathematics and physics. Those are the subjects that hold his attention, and they are the ones he chose to carry into university.
There is something worth noticing in that. Mathematics and physics are, for an international student, among the most demanding subjects to take in a second language — the reasoning is abstract and the wording of a question can decide whether you understand it at all. Adam did not avoid them because English was hard. He went further into them.
That is what senior subject selection is for: choosing the subjects that both interest a student and open the university door they want. You can see how those choices work on our Year 10 to university pathways page.
The People Behind It
He Names Two People
When the College asked Adam what made the difference, he did not point at a program. He pointed at two people: his Head of Year in Year 10, and the careers counsellor he worked with in Year 12 — the person who helped him turn a set of strong results into a clear plan.
His Head of Year
In Year 10 — the year senior subjects are chosen — someone who knew him well enough to advise him.
His Careers Counsellor
In Year 12, the guidance that turned “good at maths” into a university plan he could name.
One Rising Arc
Adam’s Journey at John Paul College
Six years, from a preparation classroom to the top 1% of the state. Each step below is a real stage in the College — follow the links to see what your own child would be walking into.
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Jul 2017
Prep Course
Arrives from Guangdong and starts the High School Preparation Course at Level 3 English.
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2 terms
Ready to Move
Clear gains in language and study technique — enough to enter the mainstream curriculum.
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2018
Year 7 Academic Prize
Wins an Academic Prize in his first year in the main school, in front of his classmates.
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Year 10
Choosing His Subjects
Picks senior subjects with his Head of Year — mathematics and physics among them.
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2023
ATAR 99.55
Graduates with an ATAR of 99.55 — the top 1% in Queensland.
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Now
Maths & Physics at UQ
Studying the two subjects that held his attention all along, at the University of Queensland.
For Families New to the System
What an ATAR of 99.55 Actually Means
If you are reading this from outside Australia, the number may not mean much yet. Here is the plain version.
It is a rank, not a score
The ATAR does not say how many questions a student answered correctly. It says where they finished compared with everyone else in their year group across the state.
99.55 means the top 1%
Any ATAR above 99.00 places a student in the top 1% in Queensland. Adam sits comfortably inside that band.
It opens the competitive courses
A result at this level meets the entry rank for Australia’s most competitive degrees — which is how Adam reached the University of Queensland.
What’s Next
Mathematics and Physics, at UQ
Adam went to the University of Queensland to go further into the two subjects that interested him most. Six years earlier he had been sitting in a preparation classroom, learning how to read an exam question in English.
Mathematics
The subject he never stopped being good at — and chose to keep at university level.
Physics
Taken in a second language through his senior years, and carried into his degree.
University of Queensland
One of Australia’s leading universities — reached from a preparation classroom in six years.
Your Child Can Start Where Adam Started
Adam began the High School Preparation Course with Level 3 English and finished Year 12 in the top 1% of Queensland. Every international student here starts somewhere — and is supported the whole way.