U3A Brisbane
U3A is the University of the Third Age, which is the age of active retirement, coming after the age of working life and home making. University is a loose term - there are no academic requirements for membership and no exams.
U3A is a worldwide self-help organisation promoting learning for personal enjoyment and wellbeing. Keeping the brain active, doing interesting things and making new friends are essential for helping older people to maximise their chances of independence, and this is what U3A does very effectively. U3A is making a very substantial contribution to society by helping its members to remain healthy and active for longer.
U3A Brisbane is one of many similar U3A organisations in Australia. Formed in 1986, we are a totally volunteer organisation, and provide leisure and educational courses to local seniors. We have over 3000 members and offer more than 200 educational courses each term, all of these at low cost. Most classes are in-person, but we also offer online classes.
Our City Campus classes are held at our own premises at 97 Creek Street Brisbane, and in leased rooms nearby at 232 Adelaide St Brisbane, just a short walk from bus, train or ferry. Other City Precinct classes are held at various locations in the CBD.
We also have classes in surrounding suburbs and districts - in Logan, Southside, Northside, Westside and Wynnum.
See the Class Search page for information on all current classes, or download our current term's Class Schedule in PDF form. Our Site Map provides links to all pages on our website.
Join Our Learning Community
To attend our classes, you must first become a member. Membership is for a calendar year and costs $45 per annum. You can then enrol in classes via the Class Search page. District (suburban) classes are generally free of charge, but our City Campus classes require an upfront fee for the term. There are 4 terms per year based on Qld school terms. For more information see our How to Join page.
Current Classes
Class Schedule for Term 2 2025 is now active and enrolments are open. Term 2 commenced on Tuesday 22 April.
To join a new class, enrol through the Class Search page by clicking on the Enrol button, or contact the tutor directly. If you book online you may assume your enrolment is accepted unless the tutor advises otherwise.
You can use the Member Dashboard to view your class enrolment status.
2025 Term dates:
| Term | From | To | Weeks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tue 28-Jan | Fri 4-Apr | 10 |
| 2 | Tue 22-Apr | Fri 27-Jun | 10 |
| 3 | Mon 14-Jul | Fri 19-Sep | 10 |
| 4 | Tue 7-Oct | Fri 12-Dec | 10 |
Anzac Day: Friday 25 April
Labour Day: Monday 5 May
Upcoming Special Presentations
Deep Listening to Nature
Presenter: Andrew Skeoch
Venue: City Campus, 232 Adelaide St.
How can we engage our hearing to connect more deeply to nature around us?
Acoustic ecologist, Andrew Skeoch, will guide you into hearing the communications of nature; developing your listening skills, identifying species by ear, recognising behaviours and repertoire, and finding empathy with the voices of other beings. Deeper listening allows us to hear the integrity of habitats, and reveals communicative interactions that support the functioning of natural systems.
Andrew's presentations are an immersive weaving of evocative recordings, fascinating spectrogram analysis and original ideas. You'll hear the natural environment around you in a whole new way.
Speaker Biography
Andrew Skeoch is a professional wildlife sound recordist, acoustic ecologist and author of 'Deep Listening to Nature'.
Over the last thirty years, he has been documenting the sounds of environments around the planet and, through his label 'Listening Earth', published over one hundred recordings allowing listeners to immerse themselves in wild soundscapes from around the world.
His recordings have been heard in documentaries, installations and feature films such as Peter Gabriel's soundtrack to 'Rabbit Proof Fence'.
Andrew has given presentations to audiences ranging from local community and naturalist groups to university students. He's appeared at festivals such as WOMADelaide's Planet Talks, written for The Conversation, and presented radio features, keynote addresses and a TEDx talk.
He is the president of the Australian Wildlife Sound Recoding Group, and on the board of the Australian Forum for Acoustic Ecology.
Current Bookings: 6 (Maximum: 50)
Register for this Event
Acknowledgement of Country
In the spirit of reconciliation, U3A Brisbane (the inner city area is traditionally known as Meanjin) would like to acknowledge the Turrbal and Yuggera peoples, the Traditional Custodians of Country and their connection to land, sea and community. U3A extends this acknowledgement to all Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia. We pay our respect to their Elders past, present and emerging and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
