Established in 1970 with its main campuses in the northern Queensland coastal cities of Townsville and Cairns, James Cook University (JCU) is committed to enhancing life in the tropics through education and research and is a world leader in many fields related to its tropical setting, including ecology/environment, plant and animal science, public health and tropical medicine, geosciences, coral reef science and tourism.

JCU's location close to two World Heritage natural environments - the Great Barrier Reef and the Wet Tropics rainforest - provides unrivalled teaching and research opportunities for students and staff.

Research challenges within this region are of national and global significance, a status recognised by the establishment of the first Commonwealth Environment Research Facility (CERF) at JCU.

JCU maintains island, rainforest and outback research stations and more than 20 specialist centres including: ARC Centre of Excellence in Innovative Science for the Sustainable Management of Coral Reef Biodiversity; Australian Centre for Tropical Freshwater Research; Australian Institute of Tropical Medicine; Australian Tropical Forest Institute; Bioinformatics Applications Research Centre; Centre for Disaster Studies; Centre for Sustainable Indigenous Communities; Centre for Tropical Agri-Tech Research; Cyclone Testing Station; Comparative Genomics Centre; Economic Geology Research Unit and Centre for Tropical Tourism and Hospitality. JCU is also home to a twice-awarded Federation Fellow, Dr Terry Hughes, one of the world's leading coral reef researchers.

JCU maintains active partnerships with eight national Cooperative Research Centres (CRCs) and other research institutions, including the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority, the Australian Institute of Marine Science and the CSIRO.

Comprehensive study options span the arts, business, creative arts, education, engineering, law, medicine & health sciences, science, information technology and social sciences. Industry and professional groups contribute to course content and support work placements for many programs.

Renowned for its friendliness, JCU has accessible teaching staff and support services that give students the personal attention they need to achieve their best. Examples include a student mentor scheme that matches first-year students with second- and third-year mentor students from similar courses. Accommodation assistance helps students find rental, shared and on-campus accommodation. JCU is committed to making university education accessible and achievable to a wider range of people in the region and supports a range of tertiary access programs for equity groups. JCU has some of the highest Indigenous student enrolments of any Australian university.

Courses are taught on campus as well as externally and in flexible study modes, some utilising shorter, intensive classes. JCU champions the use of technology for teaching and learning, with an internet network that is one of the most powerful in regional Australia. There are 24-hour computer laboratories and more than 740 computer stations on JCU campuses.

Videoconferencing technology links lecturers, researchers and students between study sites, and is also used by a range of local organisations. As well as the main campuses in Cairns and Townsville, JCU has study centres in Mackay, Mount Isa and Thursday Island. JCU also has a campus in Brisbane for international and fee paying students and its first international campus, JCU Singapore, opened in 2003.