International students have been studying at The Gordon since the 1920s. The first were students from Nauru who enrolled at the Institute's Junior School and Japanese students who studied wool-classing and wool-sorting. One Nauruan student, Hammer de Roburt, later became President and High Chief of the Republic of Nauru.
Overseas enrolment continued after World War II, when several Malaysian students enrolled in mechanical engineering. Other students, often from Asian countries, enrolled in commerce, secretarial and dressmaking courses, as well as architecture, chemistry and textiles. These courses were so popular that at one time a quarter of The Gordon's full-time enrolment was made up of international students. It was said The Gordon's architecture program, in particular, was responsible for much of the design of a well-to-do suburb in Kuala Lumpur.
The Gordon's Textile College played a large role in the training of international students, with many students from Pakistan, in particular, studying textile technologies. The Institute also had many students who came to study under the well-known Colombo Plan, a prestigious scholarship program that brought many students from Asian countries to study in Australia. Australia joined the Colombo Plan in 1950 as part of its first major Asian foreign policy initiative. The program ran until the 1980s with many Colombo Plan scholars distinguishing themselves in academia, business and government in their home countries.
With an approximate 12,000 international alumni, the Gordon continues to attract overseas students to study. The International Education centre takes care of an increasing amount of students who choose to study in a variety of programs, including our highly regarded English Language Programs (EAL). International Education provides personalised services for overseas students choosing to study at The Gordon, including an airport welcome and pick up.