News and Events

At International House, residents find all the support they need to make their time at university enriching and worthwhile. There's a welcoming mentor program for new residents, academic support through a tutorial program, guest lectures and potential scholarships. This adds up to a significant advantage for students, who get to live in a supportive environment that also supplements their university education.

The International House Members' Association (IHMA) hosts many exciting events throughout the year, such as musical performances: discos, dancing and singing competitions; sporting events like paintball, soccer, and basketball; trips around Australia and harbour cruises.

Social and Cultural Events

IHMA organises a wide variety of social and cultural events aimed at fostering community spirit within the House. IHMA’s calendar contains activities appealing to everybody regardless of taste or cultural background.

Just some of the events on the IHMA calendar include social events such as the Harbour Cruise in Semester 1 and the Ball in semester 2; sporting events such as the Interfloor Games and Paintball, fun activities such as the Assassination Game, iNight, Quiz Nights and Floor Parties. Other activities organised by International House includes an international food fair, environmental day dinner, a trip to the House’s Log Cabin in the Belanglo State Forest, a formal candlelight dinner in the end of the year and much more.

Sports

IHMA organises several sporting events throughout semesters 1 and 2. Our major sporting activities include the Interfloor Games, which brings every floor in the House together in a contest for the best floor of the year. Be prepared to be competitive! Semester 2 hosts the Paintball day. This popular game in Australia is attended by numerous residents and is held outside the grounds of the campus. It is a game of strategy, of revenge, of no sympathy and mostly of much fun throughout the whole day. All these are highly subsidised by IHMA and the residents’ contributions are very reasonable.

Besides these major sporting events, this semester’s weekly sporting activities include indoor soccer and netball. These are usually played at different times on 2 days. These activities are organised by the University Sport and Fitness, and the teams from the House play against teams from other colleges on campus or any group of students from the University.

The House has an IH Soccer Team and games are organised every Friday and Sunday in the park opposite the House. Every resident is welcomed to play in the teams. Moreover IHMA organises soccer games against other colleges such as St Paul’s and St John’s. These are friendly games in which every resident is welcomed to attend and join and wear our proud International House, University of Sydney T-Shirts. See you on the field.

Academic Support

Besides social and community events, International House provides accademic support for current and new residents living at the House through initiatives such as these:

Mentoring Program – Current IH residents volunteer to mentor new residents, ensuring a smooth transition to their new home away from home.

Tutorial Exchange Program – The House has agreements with other Colleges allowing residents to receive tutoring for their units of study if required.

Guest Lecturers and Speakers - Experts from a variety of fields are invited to the House to give lectures and talks during major events or Lecture series. Past speakers this year have included Keith Suter, political commentator and international affairs consultant; Dr. Ron Cameron, acting Chief Executive Officer of ANSTO (Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organization); and Dr. Steve Hatfield-Dodds, one of Australia’s leading environmental economists and executive of Australian Government Department of Climate Change.