The Adelaide College of the Arts is many things to many people. It houses a couple of theatres that…read moreare used as schoolrooms to teach technical production to students as well as provide acting students an opportunity to perform in a state of the art venue; it also provides this experience to the dance students who get a degree in dance at the college. The theatres are also for hire at different times of the year, particularly during the Adelaide Fringe Festival and that's when any number of theatre companies may be appearing in public seasons of plays, stand up comedy or dance. The facility houses galleries where exhibitions are constantly featuring work by graduates of the variety of courses on offer at the school including print making, jewellery and sculpture. Most often the work is available for sale. The large foyer area hosts small scale exhibitions of work related to student productions and there are many opportunities to purchase work by students and view productions by students. One of the best things for the public is the cafe housed in the foyer where you can get a coffee or other beverage, a muffin, a wrap or toasted sandwich and sit at one of the indoor or outdoor tables and relax for a while watching the creative types come and go. Outside there is a small but rather beautiful cactus garden bed, and inside on the last Tuesday of each month a poetry reading is held free of charge between 1 - 2 PM, so there is often something to listen to as well as watch. Music usually plays in the foyer area as well. AC Arts is transitioning into an independent business and encourages the public to use the cafe facilities and attend the exhibitions and poetry readings on site. Always an interesting place to meet for a drink in the city and who knows, you may just bump into the next Picasso, Cate Blanchett or Judy Davis!

It's always a fun art exhibition opening to go to. Packed full of people creating an excited buzz,…read morevariety of artwork, abundance of artwork and some lovely Fox Creek wine to accompany it. Tonight was a graduate exhibition and I love those as there are always proud parents and other supporters of the emerging artists there, which creates some sentimental moments if you're people watching! Penny Griggs, SALA CEO gave a warm and wonderful speech. One tip is to collect the booklet as well as the listing of works. In the booklet all the artists are featured, which makes a great reference for following the up and comers as they grow and develop and exhibit in future shows.

I went to Uni straight from school and was lucky enough to have all my classes for my media degree…read moreat Magill. It's a great local campus with public transport, plenty of cheap parking, food facilities and easy going small classes. The setting is beautiful, with lots of grass, open space, trees, bridges, park benches and a creek that runs pretty heavy after rain in the hills. I went here for 3 years and the time was good and I learnt a lot. The teachers were ok, not the best, but you always get the good and the bad. If you are lucky enough to be able to complete your whole Uni degree away from the city, then make the most of it. It saves you lots of time, travel, money, effort, stair walking and busy campuses.

I used to be a student here back in 2000 and I used to bitch and moan about how boring it was. 'We…read moredon't even have a decent bar here, the best thing about this place is the creek, why aren't I popular, waaah!' After attending Flinders and working around the corner from Magill Uni for the last year however, I've realised that it's actually a beautiful campus and the main problem with it was my stinking attitude! Magill students have a local, the Tower Hotel, just up the road, as well as some really good and cheap food places just up on Magill Road. The 106 bus goes straight from the city to uni pretty much constantly and there's heaps of parking (unlike other University's) so they don't have to worry about transport, and it's a beautiful campus! The gardens are immaculate and the buildings are a mixture of beautiful historic and totally up to date modern. It's a sweet Uni! And I bet all you nature loving kids just can't get enough of that creek.

22/12/2011 5 photos Before I start, I'd just like to mention…read morethat it was a very happy day indeed when I graduated from the University of South Australia in December 2010. Whew! I did it! Anyway back to what happened here...... So we both went to UniSA City East Campus after coffee last Thursday morning, with my best friend, and I would say my experience here was quick and fun! In the sense that I was just cruising everytime I come here. I really like the modern layout I really like doing a professional degree that leads to employment I really like the really friendly staff I really like the speed of service I really like the computer facilities I really like the available resources and support I really like the care taken by all of the staff to assure our time from start to finish was as low-stress as possible And mostly, I was happy that we both walked out, each with one degree, two references for our job hunt, new student IDs, several new friends for life, and 9-12 months later - new job offers!) without forking over any money (well except for the large HECS debt owed to the Australian Government, of course). I've learnt that at other Universities in Adelaide, it can be much harder to obtain any of these. My conclusion? Well, one big reason I got this job and other awesome jobs is because of the course I finished at UniSA. So the hard work definitely paid off in the long run. If the other big Universities in Adelaide aren't working out for you, I highly recommend you to try UniSA!

I took one subject at the UniSA city east campus while I was at university…read more The city east campus is quite nice, and fairly modern for the most part glass and steel. It merges almost seamlessly with the Adelaide University campus next door at which undertook my primary studies. Whilst certainly not as cool as its City West counterpart, it has good facilities, including a gym, grassed area and couple of cafeterias.

The Hub is a modern studying environment equipped with technology, collaborative study spaces and…read moresome pretty cool study rooms. Level 4, the level you enter when you walk in, has a range of cafes and places to buy food. These outlets are great catering for everything from Chinese food to baguettes, coffee, snacks and everything in between. Level 3, is where the main facilities are though. There are quite a few desks and benches and couches. You are allowed to rearrange the furniture as you wish and there are quite a few Macs and PC's around the place. You can also quickly hop across to the Barr Smith library on this level too as the two buildings are connected. Whilst being a great open plan study environment and a must go for university students, it does have a few issues that I am sure will be improved over the coming years. The first of which is the fact that it is borderline impossible to find a place to sit between 10am and 2pm each day as the place is packed. On quite a few occasions, I have had to venture down two flights of stairs to level 1 of the Barr Smith Library to get a spot to study. The toilets are also far from numerous too. While there is a decent sized one on level 4, level 3 houses only one male toilet with a small urinal and a small cubicle. More often than not, I find myself having to go upstairs or downstairs as the toilet is usually occupied. Also power points can be an issue. While there are quite a few outlets, the places where they are present tend to go first. If you need to charge your devices and the hub is busy, then level 1 of the Barr Smith Library is probably your best bet. A really good thing about this place is the fact it houses the Writing Centre and Maths Learning Centre. These services are free and can be used by students to help get feedback on essays or to get support with mathematics. The two centers are on level 3 and are open 10am - 4pm Monday to Friday, If you have to study at night or on the weekend, you can access the hub 24/7 during the year (except for during the summer holidays, Christmas and New Year's Day) by using your student card. I went here on the Good Friday public holiday to finish an assignment. All in all, this place is great for individual study and collaborative learning, it just is very busy and could perhaps do with being slightly larger.

I'm skeptical about universities at the best of times. So when I heard Adelaide Uni was building a…read more'learning hub', I was even more skeptical. Oh great, a big room with lots of weird shaped cushions and good wireless. And there is that, but there is some other really useful stuff too. Adelaide Uni developed the design through student consultation processes, which is perhaps why it is actually so useful. It seems to be part of their attempt to become tangibly more 'up to date' - it's a futuristic learning centre right in the middle of a historic sandstone campus. It certainly makes me sniff a little at UniSA's City West campus. So what is in the hub? A whole bunch of green grass blocks and Space Odyssey furniture - relaxed study spots, special booths for group work that have AV facilities, 200+ computers, printers (you can print from your laptop which you can't do at UniSA if you have a Mac), lockers, skype booths, a maths and writing learning centre, student kitchens (THAT is a good idea), cafes, a post office.... During the year it seems to be populated by students either making out, sleeping or actually studying. I'm pleasantly surprised though - it doesn't feel like a big fat flop, it feels genuinely useful!

Coming from the country, moving to a big city for tertiary study is a big thing especially for a…read more17/18 year old. St Ann's provided the ultimate Segway into adult life while caring for the needs of a young adult looking to make their mark on the world. Originally I was only going to come for one year before moving out into a share home as most university students do, however due to the way this residential college provided and nurtured my academic, residential, social and emotional needs as well as providing safety, accommodation and food it was extremely easy to stay for 4 years making life long friends. As a new professional making their way through the education pathway I highly recommend this college to all university students to come and try a once in a lifetime experience. You will not regret it.

Do you enjoy drinking goon on a regular basis? Noise? Baboons? Then this college is the place for…read moreyou! Located just north of the city, St Anns is one of Adelaide's best residential colleges for university students. Don't worry, you won't actually come across any baboons, although apparently people can hear them from their rooms sometimes (zoo is very close). I attended this college for my first year of college and had a lot of fun, even though I'm not really one for sharing space and constant noise. You need to be accepted to this college, so apply early and get ready for an interview. The living quarters are fairly good, although first years are often in the smaller, less modern rooms, with share toilets and cubicle showers - not so fun. Other rooms are great, most with en-suite bathrooms and air conditioners. Food is included here, with 3 meals a day served within certain times, and other basics available throughout the day. The food is good, depending on how fussy you are. But there is always a bar filled with salads and cold meats for sandwich's, which is great for packing a uni lunch. St Anns certainly knows how to party. Prepare yourself and your liver for O-week; constant drinking, pranks, games, beach days, pubs and more. Be ware of port and choc night, I will not give details as I think it's meant to be a surprise for freshers. My advice is to remember where your bedroom is and a toilet bowl. All in all you should have a good time here.

This school stands out for me as apart from the normal high school curiculum, it has a special…read moreeducation unit which offers building and construction, basketball program which gradually leads into a Sports Coaching program and Tower Arts Centre where I was privilleged to attend a Meet the Author sessions some years back. They have a lovely mix of students from various multicultural background, which makes it a great and happy place to learn. My friend was a Student Teacher here for a term or two, and she came back with positive reviews. Great location and easily accessible by buses along Five Ash Drive along Goodwood Road.

Immanuel College has a double campus between the Primary and Secondary School and takes up a huge…read moresite on Morphett Rd. The school has a great reputation as a medium priced private Adelaide school which provides boarding options and facilities for rural, interstate or international students. They do not specialise in any particular field, but prefer to be strong across a wide range of the curriculum. Their facilities are second to none boasting an indoor swimming pool with three indoor sports courts and full tennis facilities. For those in the arts there is a dance studio and a theatre and a reputable music program. They have language program in German and Japanese and have sister schools in both countries, which allows students to complete some of their studies over there in a student exchange. Great reputation for academic success with the majority of students achieving high level employment opportunities.

I enrolled in the Sampler Arts Course, 6-9pm Mondays, designed to give beginners an understanding…read moreof different mediums and their applications and felt excited about the upcoming learning. On the first night it became apparent that half the class had different instructions on what materials to bring to first class. I was gifted materials from the kind person next to me. (that person did not turn up again) The teacher appeared tired and unenthusiastic. The information she provided was minimal and sometimes inadequate. Her voice, with strong accent, was very hard hear and this was exacerbated by clanging and banging from the adjacent room. Over the subsequent weeks, this demeanor continued and one had to work hard to understand her instructions, observe her practice and try and reproduce that at our desks in short time frame. I felt that with this level of engagement, more learning could have been acquired by googling and you tubing. I note that this teacher does most of the art classes WEA run and maybe she is overcommitted? My overall experience of WEA has been much better and comes down to the qualities and character of the teacher which is usually a good standard.

This is a great, much cheaper, alternative to TAFE and takes a lot less time. Basically WEA offers…read moreshort courses in almost anything you can imagine (and some things you probably wouldn't believe anyway unless you read them). Not sure if there is an age minimum but as a teenager in high school I did a couple of courses there. One was a Beginner Saxophone course. My mum was sick and tired of me wanting to play an instrument, doing it for a couple of terms of a year then getting bored and choosing a different instrument. So this time she told me I had to do this course first and see if I really liked it. Well her bad luck - I loved it! Then she had to start getting me more expensive real lessons so I could progress further after the course but I still have my sax and play to this day. I also did a hair braiding course here where I learnt so many cool things for a) a female, and b) one with long hair. My friends was as glad as I was that I had done the course! Plus I've done a speed reading course here to help me get through work quicker at school. All 3 were fantastic experiences and I met some new people and learnt some new skills. A great alternative to meet some friends with similar interests - especially if you're not a pub type person. Check out their website. As well as the courses they even have educational trips, like study tours I guess, which can travel to many places in the world and be from a few days to a few weeks long. There really is something for everyone!