The Complete Guide To Charles Darwin University (CDU)

1. Introduction

1.1 Background

Charles Darwin University (CDU) was born in 2003 after the merging of

• Northern Territory University (NTU)
• Menzies School of Health Research
• Centralian College of Alice Springs

Yet, you can find its footprints in 1974, when it was once the Darwin Community College.

The name “Charles Darwin” came from honouring the naturalist himself. His devotion to natural science and curious spirit inspired CDU’s mission of becoming a place that nurtures passion. Now, it is a dual-sector institution with over 300 Higher Education courses and 146 vocational training.

Total student population	Approximately 22,000+
% of international students	16.7%
Teaching faculty-to-student ratio	1:15-20

1.2 Charles Darwin University Rankings 2025

According to the 2025 QS World University Rankings, Charles Darwin University ranks #621 – 630 globally. Here are CDU’s courses that ranked on the QS Subject Rankings:

QS Subject Category	Subject World Ranking
Medicine	#651 – 700

2. Student Life & Living Cost

2.1 Charles Darwin University Campuses

CDU is a nature lovers paradise. Its campuses are spread across Darwin, Palmerston, Alice Springs and Sydney. These locations are full of stunning landscapes, diverse wildlife, tropical greens and bodies of water.

Moreover, there are many natural wonders surrounding the university, such as

• Mindil Beach
• George Brown Darwin Botanic Gardens
• Royal National Park
• MacDonnell Ranges
• Marlow Lagoon Recreation Area
• and many others

So, if you are into exploration, like Charles Darwin, grab the chance to explore them during your free time. There are regular buses to take you around.

Waterfront Campus

Key Highlights

• Founded in 2003 as CDU’s largest campus with over 300 courses taught here.
• It was once the site for the Darwin Community College.
• It is the main hub for Higher Education, TAFE, and Research programmes.
• The campus sits on 56 hectares of parkland and is close to a beach.

How To Get Around?
🗺️15-minute drive from the Darwin CBD

• Travel by bus, car or by bike.
• You can find major bus interchanges a 12-minute walk from Casuarina Square.
• There are also free inter-campus services to take you to CDU Waterfront.

Palmerston Campus

Key Highlights

• One of CDU’s satellite campuses that specialises in vocational training.
• Key Subject Areas: Tourism & Events, Culinary Arts &  Hospitality, Hair & Beauty Services,
• The surrounding tropical bushland creates a relaxing campus vibe.
• Bonus: The scenic lake attracts birdlife, great for birdwatching.

How To Get Around?
🗺️20-minute drive from the Darwin City Centre

• Travel by bus, bike, car or on foot!
• The Palmerston City Centre is a 20-minute stroll from campus.
• The NT Department of Transport runs regular bus services around Palmerston.

Waterfront Campus

Key Highlights

• It houses the Asia Pacific College of Business & Law and the CDU International College.
• This campus focuses on Higher Education pathways.
• It also offers TAFE courses for Business and Retail studies.
• If you love history, the iconic WWII Oil Storage Tunnels is right next door.

How To Get Around?
🗺️1 km from the Darwin City Centre, a 12-minute walk away.

• Travel by bus, car, bike or on foot.
• There is a public bus stop in front of the Kitchener Drive building.
• You can catch more buses opposite Brown’s Mart and Civic Park.

Alice Springs Campus

Key Highlights

• CDU student’s kitchen management and hospitality hub with exclusive training facilities.
• Key Subject Areas: Automotive, Business & Retail, Community Services, IT, Engineering & Mining, Creative Art & Design, Culinary Arts & Hospitality, Education, Hair & Beauty Services 
• You will be near natural wonders, like Uluru and King’s Canyon.

How To Get Around?
🗺️3 km or a 5-minute drive from Alice Springs

• Travel by bus, bike or on foot.
• Public buses run from Monday to Saturday, except for public holidays.
• You can use the Northern Territory Government’s walking and cycling path map to get around.

Sydney Campus

Key Highlights

• Key Subject Areas: IT, Business, Accounting, Nursing, Project Management
• Postgraduate courses with guaranteed placement opportunities are available here.
• The small class size adds more personal interactions.

How To Get Around?
🗺️2 km or an 8-minute drive from Sydney

• Travel by public transport or by bike.
• The campus is across from Central Station, Sydney CBD.
• Travel Tip: Use an Opal Card to access the city’s public transport.

2.2 Learning Resources

The next agenda on our “virtual tour” is visiting the CDU’s learning resources. These facilities are specially designed for you to study your way with confidence! Among them include

2.3 Recreational Facilities

Charles Darwin University believes in having a healthy mind, healthy body and a healthy community. Thus, the University created many places for you to build your routine.

Tip: Change where you study or relax to keep the creative juices flowing.

2.4 Student Activities

Student Life At Charles Darwin University

Now who likes a bit of a celebration, hands up! 🙋

This Australian university is brimming with festivities and fun, including

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• CDU Fitness Hub
• 20+ Student Groups
• CDU Student Ambassador
• CDU Students’ Council 
• Social and Cultural Events
• Workshops 
• Developmental Programmes
• Volunteering

2.5 Student Services

#youmakeCDU is not just a slogan. It is also the University’s dedication to prioritising and empowering its students with a support network of

• 24/7 online tutoring 
• Peer Mentoring
• Peer Assisted Study Sessions (PASS)
• Online tutoring
• Careers and Employability Support
• Exercise Physiologist Services
• Student Counselling
• 24/7 Wellbeing Support Line
• Disability Service
• Student Visa and Compliance Support
• CDU Buddy Program
• Elite Athlete Support Program
• CDU Buddy Program

2.6 Charles Darwin University Accommodation

Is CDU on your list? Great! This Australian university has both on-campus and off-campus stays. They are

• Safe and secure
• Welcomed by enriching activities
• Easily accessible 
• Well-connected to the university, amenities, public transport!

Before you decide on a place, mark down these nearby locations. They can become your reference point for your daily needs.

Darwin Accommodation

On-campus	Off-campus
International House Darwin Cost: From AUD 220 – AUD 270/week *The cost covers for a 1-person stay.	Nearby suburbs – Casuarina, Tiwi, Alawa, Moil, Wanguri, Palmerston City, Driver, Yarrawonga, Elrundie, Durack, Darwin City, Stuart Park, Darwin

Alice Springs Accommodation

On-campus	Off-campus
Alice Springs Student Accommodation (ASSA) Cost: From AUD 200 – AUD 5270/week *The cost covers for a 1-person stay.	Nearby suburbs – Alice Springs, East Side, Sadadeen

Sydney Accommodations

Off-campus

Nearby suburbs – Sydney CBD, Surrey Hills, Ultimo, Redfern, Pyrmont, Glebe, Eveleigh, Chippendale

Cost of Living In Darwin and Sydney

To live in Darwin and Sydney, you may need to spend around.

• Darwin: AUD 372 – AUD 1,530 weekly 
• Sydney: AUD 3495 – AUD 2,080 weekly. 

The estimated living costs cover your rent, food/ groceries, utilities (gas and electricity), transportation (public transport and owning a car), and telecommunication services (wifi and phone).
*Note: Your lifestyle and spending habits can change your expenses.

To be safe, have at least AUD 24,505 ready and submit a financial record during your visa application.

3. Courses, Fees & Scholarships

3.1 Courses You Can Study At Charles Darwin University

Launch into your new world with CDU’s many Foundation, Diploma, and Degree courses. Over 300 options are awaiting you.

Fields Of Study	Courses
Accounting	Accounting, Digital Enterprise
Arts	Architecture Design, Arts, Creative Arts
Business	Accounting, Business, Business Studies
Communications & Design	Creative & Digital Arts, Communications & Digital Media
Education	Birth to 5 Years, Early Childhood, Primary, Secondary
Engineering	Engineering, Engineering Science
Health	Allied Health Sciences, Community Services & Social Work, Nursing & Midwifery, Public Health
Humanities & Social Sciences	Global Humanities in a Digital Age, Society & Culture, Humanitarian Aid & Development
IT & Network Engineering	Computer Science, IT, Software Engineering, Network Engineering
Law & Legal Studies	Laws, Legal Studies
Psychology	Psychological Science, Psychology, Counselling
Sciences, Environmental Science & Management	Biomedical Science, Environmental Science, Science, Medical Laboratory Science

3.2 Course Fees At Charles Darwin University

We have also saved you the hassle and compiled the full list of CDU’s detailed course fees into one article below. Check it out and share it!

Coming Soon!

3.3 Charles Darwin University Scholarships

These are some of the scholarships offered by CDU to international students. Check out the full list here. (Coming Soon)

CDU Global Merit Scholarship Commencement

Value: 30% off your tuition fee per year throughout your course. For new commencing international students who are accepted in time with their studies of chosen intake. They must also meet the University’s academic and English language entry requirements for their chosen course

Vice Chancellor’s International High Achiever Scholarship (VCIHAS)

Value: 50% off your tuition fee per year throughout your course. For International students with at least 95% in their highest completed qualifications. They must also meet the University’s academic and English language entry requirements for their chosen course. *A 600-word supporting statement is needed. *Applicants must not receive any other scholarships or financial sponsorships. *Must maintain a GPA of 5.3 and no fail grades each semester.

3.4 Popular Courses At Charles Darwin University

Health

The Health discipline tops the CDU’s popularity chart with 4,330 higher education enrollments in 2023. This is because it caters to various interests. In this area, there are 23 Undergraduate courses for international students, such as

• Psychology
• Exercise & Sports Science
• Nursing & Midwifery
• Humanitarian Aid & Development
• and many others. Phew

Next, the university built facilities that nurture healthy minds, bodies and communities. One of our go-to’s is CDU Wellness Centre. This is a place where

• CDU-ians (students and staff) can use its gym and weekly classes to start their fitness journey.

• Psychology students train their assessment, prescription skills and people skills. They provide services to the community.

• Human physiology research projects take place with the help of training machines and performance analysis tools.

Bonus Fact: The Wellness Centre also aids a 12-week telehealth exercise program for older adults in Katherine. The programme is supervised by CDU’s Exercise and Sport Science students!

Speaking of healthy communities, the university collaborated with various parties too, including

• Menzies School of Health Research
• Swimming NT
• Cyclone Indoor Rowing NT (CIRNT)

Together, the teamwork created health-related programmes and more clinical opportunities.

*P.S: Check if your degree is recognised in your home country.

Society and Culture

If you are keen on studying and connecting people, Society & Culture is well-liked at CDU.

Charles Darwin University is a leader in Indigenous education. It created a diverse community and learning experiences. Its Arts and Society faculty is home to

• Over 4,000 First Nation students yearly
• Innovative programmes, masterclasses and courses
• A dedicated research centre, the Northern Institute.

Speaking about the Northern Institute, it specialises in social and political studies. The institute hosts events, seminars and research projects. One of the projects that took place there is the CDU-CSIRO Research Partnership. The joint work looks into improving the well-being of North Australia’s First Nation people and the rural community workforce.

Moreover, this Australian university comprises inspiring staff and alumni, like Mr. Chris Aitken. The Education master graduate used music to boost children’s literacy and language skills. He also joined hands with remote communities to produce 180 illustrated books and 1,200 original songs. 

For anyone interested in this field, CDU provides courses highlighting human expression and cultural and societal systems. Here are some of the degrees we found:

• Bachelor in Art – This degree has 15 majors combined with a unique focus on Indigenous leadership, issues and opportunities.

• Bachelor in Creative Arts – Music, screen media and visual arts are the main storytelling tools in this course.

• Bachelor in Humanitarian Aid and Development – Here, you form skills in community development, humanitarian aid and development support.

• Bachelor in Law – It began offering intercultural mediation as a specialist elective in 2024. 

Information Technology (IT)

Is Information Technology taking over? Hmm…

In 2023, IT took the top 5 places for popular courses at CDU with 1,1,52 Higher Education enrollments. This study “conquered” part of the campus with a new Cyber Security Skills Hub in the same year. But, for good reasons!

At Charles Darwin University, this discipline covers sought-after topics, such as

• Data Science
• Cyber Security
• Network and Software Engineering

They have accreditations from the Australian Computer Society (ACS)!

Meanwhile, the hub allows students and businesses to earn qualifications in Cyber Security. Thanks to the teamwork with the Northern Territory Government, it developed

• apprenticeships
• training modules and short courses
• research scholarships

If you are up for a challenge, check out CDU’s annual IT Code Fair. There are competitions to put your brain and skills to the test.

Management and Commerce

Management and Commerce at Charles Darwin University is a serious business. This specialisation welcomed 1,129 higher education and 1,936 vocational students in 2023.

The university keeps many doors to the field open. It teaches subjects in

• Accounting
• Business Studies
• Digital Enterprise
• Management (Kitchen, Tourism, Events, etc.)

With management, it is also about organising human resources. As such, CDU covers the practical part of Management and Commerce with its facilities. For example, the Alice Springs campus has a training restaurant where you will learn how to run a restaurant and a kitchen.

Additionally, there are many other ventures outside the classroom! You can join the CDU Society of Business Students’ workshops and activities to broaden your skills. Or, explore Sydney and Alice Springs to learn about the current market. According to the university, Alice Springs’ tourism industry is flourishing with hotels, resorts and restaurants.

3.5 Industry Partners

CDU partnered with other organisations to help enhance people’s lives, including

Did you know this Australian university collaborated with various organisations to learn more about the Aboriginal People? 

For example, it worked with the North Australian Aboriginal Justice Agency (NAAJA) to form the True Justice Program. There, law students can study the legal system of the First Nations Peoples. They can visit sites and connect with First Nations Peoples experts.

4. Entry Requirements & Intake Dates

4.1 Charles Darwin University Entry Requirements 2025

Minimum entry requirements for a Foundation:

• SPM –  Aggregate of less than 20 points across 5 subjects, including English

Minimum entry requirements for a Diploma:

• STPM – 2 Passes
• UEC – Aggregate of less than 30 points across 6 subjects, including English 

Minimum entry requirements for a Degree:

• STPM – GPA 2.0
• UEC – 2As and 2Bs
• A-levels – 6 (DDD Grades in 3 A-level subjects)
• IB Diploma – 24 points 
• SACE/WACE –  ATAR 60
• Australian Foundation Programme –  70%
• Canadian Programme –  60% overall average

Minimum English requirement (IELTS)

• Foundation: 5.5
• Diploma: 5.5
• Degree: 6.0

Some courses may require you to earn higher entry requirements and additional qualifications.

4.2  Charles Darwin University Intake Periods For 2025

If you plan to apply, these are important periods to note.

• Foundation: March, July, November
• Diploma: March, July, November
• Degree: March, July, November
• Postgraduate: March, July, November

Intakes for certain courses may differ. Speak to our Study Abroad Consultants for the latest updates

4.3 Admission Process To Australia

Studying in Australia can be tedious especially when applying to various universities before their application deadlines and ensuring proper documents are submitted to procure your student visa.

Here are some more helpful articles to help you navigate:

• Your Essential Study In Australia Guide For Malaysian Students
• Education Consultants And The 8 Steps To Study Abroad
• Top 10 Benefits Of Engaging A Higher Education Consultant

5. Student Testimonials & Alumni

Watch these videos to hear from CDU’s very own graduates:

6. Conclusion

Charles Darwin University treasures your time there. Whether you love nature, like Charles Darwin, or someone starting a uni life, #youmakeCDU.

The university settles across Darwin, Alice Springs and Sydney, giving you various exposure. It also fosters over 300 Higher Education programmes and 146 Vocational courses. As such, you can look forward to learning more about yourself and gaining various experiences.

The best part? There is space for you to pace yourself.

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