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Western Downs · Council (LGA)

Education & Qualifications in Western Downs

How far people went at school, the qualifications they hold and what they studied.

Fewer than 42% of people in Western Downs have completed Year 12, which is far below the national figure. While school completion rates have risen since 2011, the area still sees much lower levels of higher education than the rest of Queensland and Australia.

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📍 Western Downs, Council (LGA)

Where Western Downs sits — Adults with a bachelor degree or higher

10.8% ▲ +30.0%

All council (lga) areas, 2021. The marker is Western Downs — lower than 68% of areas.

Western Downs10.8%
Rest of Qld 17.1%
Queensland 21.9%
Australia 26.3%

Schooling

Highest year of school completed.

Only 41.2% of residents finished Year 12, which is far below the 58.8% national average. This is an improvement from 2011, when the figure was 33.9%.

Completed Year 12

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41.2% ▲ +21.8%

Lower than 52% of council (lga) areas.

Share of people whose highest year of school is Year 12 or equivalent.

Highest year of school

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In Western Downs, the largest group is Year 12 at 47%, followed by Year 10 (31%) and Year 9 or below (15%).

Year 12 41.2% Year 10 27.8% Year 9 or below 12.9% Year 11 6.4%

Qualifications

Post-school qualifications and degrees.

Just 10.8% of adults hold a bachelor degree or higher, a figure far below the national average of 26.3%. The most common qualification is a Certificate III or IV, held by 37.9% of people.

Adults with a bachelor degree or higher

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10.8% ▲ +30.0%

Lower than 68% of council (lga) areas.

Share of people aged 15+ whose highest qualification is a bachelor degree or above (incl. graduate and postgraduate).

Field of study

What people studied.

The most common fields of study are engineering and related subjects at 17.1%, followed by management and commerce at 14.0%.

Schools

Schools in the area and how many children they serve (ACARA).

The area has 32 schools and 6,357 enrolments, with the vast majority of students attending government schools (84.4%). Most of these schools are primary schools, which make up 68.8% of the total.

Average school ICSEA

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948

Lower than 65% of council (lga) areas.

Enrolment-weighted average ICSEA — an index of socio-educational advantage, centred near 1000 (context, not a quality ranking).

Schools in and around Western Downs — hover a marker for details. Open the full map →

Schools serving Western Downs

32 schools — 6,357 students, average ICSEA 948.

By sector: Government 27 · Catholic 3 · Independent 2

By type: Primary 22 · Combined 7 · Secondary 3
Dalby State High School, Dalby Government Secondary — 1,090 946
Our Lady of the Southern Cross College, Dalby Catholic Combined — 681 1,021
Chinchilla State High School, Chinchilla Government Secondary — 572 941
Dalby State School, Dalby Government Primary — 505 942
Dalby South State School, Dalby Government Primary — 487 910
Chinchilla Christian College, Chinchilla Independent Combined — 462 1,004
Chinchilla State School, Chinchilla Government Primary — 453 912
Dalby Christian College, Dalby Independent Combined — 419 1,009
Tara Shire State College, Tara Government Combined — 353 842
St Joseph's School, Chinchilla Catholic Primary — 288 1,002
Miles State School, Miles Government Primary — 200 908
Miles State High School, Miles Government Secondary — 164 907
Wandoan State School P-10, Wandoan Government Combined — 124 915
Jandowae Prep-10 State School, Jandowae Government Combined — 114 894
Bell State School, Bell Government Combined — 73 946
St Joseph's School, Tara Catholic Primary — 52 843
Drillham State School, Drillham Government Primary — 37 1,026
The Gums State School, The Gums Government Primary — 36 916
Condamine State School, Condamine Government Primary — 35 980
Kogan State School, Kogan Government Primary — 35 824
Dulacca State School, Dulacca Government Primary — 31 902
Meandarra State School, Meandarra Government Primary — 26 987
Brigalow State School, Brigalow Government Primary — 24 865
Moonie State School, Moonie Government Primary — 22 954
Hannaford State School, Hannaford Government Primary — 16 1,017
Westmar State School, Westmar Government Primary — 16 950
Warra State School, Warra Government Primary — 13 827
Jimbour State School, Jimbour East Government Primary — 9 969
Kaimkillenbun State School, Kaimkillenbun Government Primary — 8 883
Glenmorgan State School, Glenmorgan Government Primary — 6 —
Guluguba State School, Guluguba Government Primary — 6 839
Burra Burri State School, Burra Burri Government Primary — — —

Sources

  • Census of Population and Housing — Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 (CC BY 4.0).
  • Australian Schools List — Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), 2025 (CC BY 4.0).

More for Western Downs

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Cite this page

Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2021). Education & Qualifications in Western Downs [Census of Population and Housing]. CensusAtlas, used under CC BY 4.0. https://censusatlas.au/region/lga/LGA37310/western-downs/topic/education