Ballarat Tech School

07/10/2026

🚨 LAST CALL, FUTURE SCIENTISTS! 🔬✨

Want to showcase your science, research and ideas? Now’s the time to register for the Peter Doherty Science Awards!

⏰ REGISTRATIONS CLOSE:
11:59pm, Friday 9 October

Already registered?
Don’t forget your poster submission is due by 5pm, Monday 2 November.

Don’t miss your chance register now!

👉 REGISTER:
https://surveys.federation.edu.au/jfe/form/SV_0oEeMBRQRSeRuqG

🔎 FIND OUT MORE:
https://ballarattechschool.vic.edu.au/programs/peter-doherty-science-award

29/09/2026

If you've ever been to the Tech School and enjoyed a gaming experience, you'll definitely want to check this out!

Extra Lives: Interactive Video Game Concert

This EPIC CONCERT FOR GAMERS is coming to Ballarat!

If you're into Cyberpunk - Choose your own adventure games - RPG - DnD - The Dark Room - then this is for you.

Backed by visuals, music, sound effects and footage drawn from the legendary console games of the ‘80s, ‘90s and 2000s... and a live score provided by the lovable nerds of Extra Lives.

At key moments, you will get to vote on how the character proceeds, leading to special story branches.

With multiple endings and 60+ possible variations depending on the audience's in-game choices, this immersive feast for the imagination will transport you back to your childhood.

Every show is completely unique so let's play!

🤖 Family friendly show
🤖 Plenty of free carparking around venue
🤖 Drinks and snacks available
🤖 Seated event
🤖 Tix $30 / $25

📆 Sunday 11 October at 2pm
📍 Main Hall, Ballarat Performing Arts Centre
🔖 https://bpacballarat.org/ticket-page-extra-lives/

21/09/2026

21/09/2026

Koorie Motion Lab is a deadly collaboration between Ballarat Tech School, the Department of Education, Victoria’s Koorie Education Workforce, Federation University Australia’s Aboriginal Education Centre, Victorian Aboriginal Education Association Inc., and local community partners.

On the first day, students were welcomed to Country by the awesome TO, Shannen Mennen, who set the tone for the program with a beautiful water ceremony overlooking the Yarrowee River.

This two-day program is all about connection, bringing together mob from Years 6 and 7 to support their transition to high school next year.

Students got creative in a fantastic session exploring how symbols can be used to tell stories. They then spent the afternoon laser-cutting their designs onto leather wallets, which they hand-stitched together.

On day two, students made their very own mini Marngrook’s from possum skin with the help of Adina King.

Jordon Eldridge from the Western Bulldogs then took the students out to the oval to kick the Marngrook’s around.

A huge thank you to everyone who contributed and helped make these two days so special.

Gobata!!

16/09/2026

Boys in STEM - Term 3

Engineering, automation, Antarctica and robotics - our Boys in STEM packed plenty into Term 3!

Students stepped inside Freighter Group Ballarat manufacturing site to see STEM at work on an impressive scale, exploring the advanced technology, systems and automation behind modern trailer manufacturing.

Back at the Tech School, engineer Richard Blackburne shared stories from his extensive international career in clean energy, including his experiences in Antarctica. Students then got hands-on, assembling, troubleshooting and running Stirling Engines powered by the temperature difference between hot and icy water.

The term wrapped up with the LEGO SPIKE Prime Unearthed Challenge, where teams put their creativity, problem solving, programming and teamwork into action.

Discovering the technology, people and STEM careers shaping our world - including those right here in Ballarat!

10/09/2026

Twenty-five young STEM leaders. Fifteen schools. One incredible day.

On Tuesday 18 August, the Royal Society of Victoria threw open its historic doors to twenty-five Year 10 students from 15 secondary schools across 5 Victorian Tech Schools, for the inaugural Leaders in STEM Forum, held as part of National Science Week.

The day was jam-packed. Students explored the RSV's iconic building, heard from Jake Fehily of the Victorian Student Representative Council, sat down face-to-face with RSV Fellows including Victoria's own Lead Scientist Amanda Caples, and got hands-on coding with the wonderful Robogals team. Rob Gell AM, President of the Royal Society of Victoria, was there in person to welcome this new generation of STEM leaders to the 170-year-old home of science and technology in Victoria - the first time in the RSV's history that secondary students have been welcomed into the fold.

This was so much more than a day out. It was Tech School staff and students from across the state, standing shoulder to shoulder, connecting regional and metropolitan communities with the people currently shaping the future of STEM in Victoria.

And we are just getting started. The vision: an annual statewide Leaders in STEM program, built on a powerful partnership between Victoria's Tech Schools and the Royal Society of Victoria.

Watch this space!

08/09/2026

08/09/2026

Girls in STEM - Term 3

From advanced manufacturing to Antarctica, Stirling Engines and LEGO robotics - Term 3 was packed with hands-on experiences for our Girls in STEM!

Students visited Goldacres manufacturing site to see STEM in action right here in Ballarat and discover the technology, skills and career opportunities behind modern agricultural manufacturing.

Back at the Tech School, they met engineer Richard Blackburne, whose international career leading clean energy projects has taken him around the world, including Antarctica. Richard shared his experiences before challenging students to assemble, troubleshoot and run Stirling Engines powered by the temperature difference between hot and icy water.

The term finished with our LEGO SPIKE Prime Unearthed Challenge, putting problem solving, creativity and teamwork to the test.

A fantastic term of exploring where STEM skills can take you!

02/09/2026

There’s still time to register for the Peter Doherty Science Award!

If your teacher mentioned this one and it's been sitting on your to-do list - now's a great time to lock it in. The PDSA is a science investigation competition for Years 7–10 students, individually or in teams of 2-3. Pick an everyday question, investigate it like a scientist, and put together a scientific poster for a chance to win cash prizes and a spot at our Finals Event.

You're not on your own. As soon as you register, you get free access to our Interactive Tools - an AI Investigation Assistant that coaches you through shaping a question and planning your investigation, plus an Experiment Builder, a Hypothesis Tester and a Poster Builder that helps you lay out your final poster. Between them, they cover every stage from "I don't know what to investigate" to a finished, submission-ready poster. No special equipment required.

Registrations close:
Friday 9 October 2026

Cash prizes for group entries, certificates for individual entrants.

Finals Event livestreamed 26 November.

Register now: https://surveys.federation.edu.au/jfe/form/SV_0oEeMBRQRSeRuqG

Find out more:
https://ballarattechschool.vic.edu.au/programs/peter-doherty-science-award

01/09/2026

At the start of Term 3, 50 students from our Girls in STEM and Boys in STEM programs travelled to the Victorian Space Science Education Centre (VSSEC) in Melbourne for two action-packed days of space exploration and discovery.

With a 7:00am departure from Ballarat and a 5:00pm return, they were big days - but well worth the early start!

Students suited up as astronauts, explored the Martian surface, worked together in Mission Control and analysed “Martian” samples in the laboratory. It was a fantastic opportunity to step into the world of space science and experience some of the skills, technology and teamwork that underpin the space industry.

So proud of our students who embraced the experience with enthusiasm and curiosity.