Time With the Elderly
Venus visited and chatted with elderly people in the community — small moments of company and kindness that meant a great deal to those she spent time with.
All Alumni Stories
From Hong Kong
From Hong Kong
to a University Dream
The journey of Venus Chan — from her first day of English to an ATAR of 99.25, the top 1% of the state, and a place studying Physiotherapy at the University of Queensland.
2022
Arrived From Hong Kong
99.25
ATAR — Top 1% of the State
Care
Elderly Visits & Refugee Homework Help
UQ
Physiotherapy — University of Queensland
The Aspiration
A Big Goal, a New Language, a New Home
When Venus arrived from Hong Kong, she carried a big goal — but also a new language, a new country and a new school to get used to. Like many international students, her English was still growing, and university felt a long way away.
What she had was determination, and a school ready to walk every step with her. At John Paul College, that first day of English was the beginning of a four-year journey toward a university dream.
“Believe in yourself. Be confident. Be comfortable.”
Venus Chan · to students just starting out
John Paul International College · building English, step by step
Learning in English
Two Terms to Find Her Feet — Then Straight Into Year 9
Venus joined John Paul College in 2022 and began in John Paul International College at the intermediate level of English. For two terms, she took the time to build her English and get to know the school around her.
With that foundation in place, she moved into mainstream classes in Year 9 alongside local students — learning the same subjects, in the same rooms, ready to keep up and grow. It is the preparation pathway working exactly as it should: build confidence first, then reach further every year.
Servant Leadership
More Than Study — Learning to Give Back
At John Paul College, Venus did much more than study. Through our community care program she stepped beyond the classroom and into the lives of others — the heart of our servant leadership values.
Helping Refugee Children
She helped refugee children with their homework — sharing the confidence and English she was building herself, and helping others take their own first steps.
Servant Leadership
This is what our students learn to do: to give back to others. Venus grew in confidence every year — and helped others grow, too.
Four Years, One Dream
Venus’s Journey at John Paul College
From a first day of English to an ATAR of 99.25 — follow the arc that took Venus from Hong Kong to graduation, each step supported by teachers who knew her name.
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2022
Arrival
Venus joins JPC from Hong Kong — a new country, a new school and a big goal.
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Terms 1–2
English First
Two terms at John Paul International College to build English and settle in.
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Year 9
Mainstream
Into mainstream classes alongside local students — keeping up, growing in confidence.
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Years 10–12
Community Care
Servant leadership — supporting elderly people and helping refugee children with homework.
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Senior
Subject Guidance
Personal subject-selection meetings mapped the right prerequisites for her university goal.
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2025
ATAR 99.25
Graduated in the top 1% of the state — and into Physiotherapy at the University of Queensland.
A demanding QCE program in mathematics and science
Her Program
A Strong Academic Path Toward Health Science
With her teachers’ guidance, Venus chose a demanding program for her Queensland Certificate of Education (QCE) — the mathematics and science foundation a physiotherapy degree is built on.
It is the program that carried her to an ATAR of 99.25: five senior subjects, four of them mathematics and science, studied in her second language.
- Specialist Mathematics
- Mathematical Methods
- Physics
- Chemistry
- Biology
Guided every step by teachers who checked her results and advised the right prerequisites for her chosen career.
In Her Own Words
Watch Venus’s Story
Venus shares her journey — from her first day of English in Brisbane to a university physiotherapy pathway.
Her advice to new students
- Believein yourself
- Be confidentevery year you grow
- Be comfortablethis becomes home
UQ & Beyond
An ATAR of 99.25 — and a Place at the University of Queensland
Venus graduated from Year 12 in 2025 with an ATAR of 99.25, placing her in the top 1% of the state — four years after her first day of English. She is now studying Physiotherapy at the University of Queensland, one of Australia’s leading universities.
University of Queensland
One of Australia’s Group of Eight universities — and where Venus is now studying health science.
A Career in Care
Physiotherapy turns Venus’s strengths — science, patience and a heart for helping people — into a profession that changes lives.
Confidence That Travels
From a first day of English to an ATAR of 99.25, Venus left JPC ready for whatever comes next — confident, capable and comfortable in the world.
Believe in yourself. Be confident. Be comfortable.
Venus Chan · Hong Kong · Class of 2025
Your Child’s Journey Can Start Here Too
Venus arrived with a new language and a big dream. Four years later she graduated in the top 1% of the state and began her physiotherapy degree at UQ. From English classes to university guidance, John Paul College supports international students at every step.