Changes In The Student Visa And Their Effects

With the changes being made in the Australian student visa program, many foreign are now wondering whether it is worth it to continue their plans to study here. Some, has in fact, already decided to drop the chance altogether. And these turn of events are now worrying not only school officials, but also many immigration officials.

It can be noted that the revamp of the student migration have actually begun early last year, when the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) announced that it will be revising the skilled occupation list to make way for more higher level professions. A lot of the positions that where removed were of the vocational kind.

And since many foreign students are taking up these vocational course, a lot of them were heavily affected by the move. It should be noted that the main reason behind these students taking up vocational courses is because these are the easiest ones with which to get a permanent residency visa in the old system. Many of those who were affected were left with no choice but to forgo their applications and return back to their home countries.

And it seems that this was not the only problem that would be going in the way of many foreign students. At the same time last year, the DIAC also announced that changes would be implemented to the foreign student program itself. Some of the biggest changes were made with regards to qualifications for the program. One of this was the increase in the needed funds that a student needed to present first before being granted a visa, which was upped from the previous amount of AU$ 12,000 to AU$ 18,000. Stricter rules were also implemented with regards to qualifications, now with a greater emphasis on English proficiency.

As it turns out, while these changes were intended to sort out the most qualified among foreigners to be granted a student visa, these also had the negative effect of shying many potential students from applying. A lot of them argued that the new rules are seriously limiting their chances of getting into the country. Thus, they have now begun to seek out alternative countries, like the US or Britain, to study in.

According to government officials, they were well aware of these likely consequences. But they said that these moves are necessary in order to get the right kind of people in the country. Thus, they said that they will remain firm with their decision. However, immigration officials assured foreign students that those who want to take up vocational courses are still very much welcomed into the country, provided that they meet the requirements.

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Australia's Best Universities

The great quality of education in Australia is often considered as one of the biggest reasons why a lot foreign students flock to the country yearly. Indeed, Australia has been ranked as one of the top destinations when it comes to education. Thus, a lot of people consider it a once in a lifetime chance to be able to study here.

And of all the educational institutions in the country, Australian universities occupy a high rank in terms of prestige. Thus, being given a chance to study in them is considered a great honor. And so for the hopefuls out there, here some of the top universities in the country where you can try your luck to get in.

Australian National University
Ranked the highest among Australia's universities, the ANU is one of the institutions that has the largest population of foreign students in the the country. The ANU was established in 1946 through an act by the Australian parliament, the only one in existence in the country.

The ANU maintains several colleges in its Canberra campus, including the prestigious College of Law. The university also maintains several research schools that are aimed to furthering technology development. One of the university's most notable alumni is current Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
University Of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is Australia's second oldest university, having been founded in 1853. the university is also the second largest research organization in the country after the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization.(CSIRO). Thus, it is considered as one of the top schools when it comes to the fields of engineering and medicine.

Being one of the largest in the country, the University of Melbourne maintains several schools in its main campus in the Victorian capital. Aside from that, there are also several institutions around the state that are under the direct supervision of the university. And being a research center, UM also manages several departments that work with other research institutions on various projects.
Monash University
Monash is the largest university in Australia, with a current enrollment of around 39,000 undergraduates and about 16,000 students taking up post graduate studies. The university is the second oldest in the state after the above mentioned University of Melbourne. The university has eight campuses in total, six located within the state of Victoria and one each in Malaysia and South Africa. It also maintains a research center in Italy and a graduate research school in India.

Monash prides itself at being one of the leading research institution in the country. As such, it has continuously sought to get new technology for such a purpose. One of these is the Australian Synchrotron, the first one in the country, which began operation in 2007. The equipment allows researchers at Monash to study matter on a molecular level.

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Low Foreign Student Numbers Alarm Australian Schools

Being able to study in Australia is one of the major reasons why so many foreigners come to the country yearly in fact, Australia's educational systems is considered by many as one of the best in the world. Thus, being able to study here is often described as a one in a lifetime opportunity.

However, according to the latest figures from the schools themselves, the actual number of foreign student enrollments have actually decline by a significant amount in the last few moths. As it turns out, this one didn't come as a surprised to many experts, who argue that this one is actually to be expected. They further blame the new immigration changes that were put into effect early these year as the one causing the decrease in foreign student numbers.

As can be recalled, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship has started a major revamp of the various immigration programs that it currently offers. One of the biggest of these revisions is the one that was done on the general skilled migration program. The changes saw the removal of more than a hundred jobs that has been considered by the department as being of low priority. Many of these jobs are the vocational ones being offered in the various colleges in the country.

Since a lot of foreign students are taking vocational courses, mainly because they are the easiest ones to get permanent residency with, the move has put them in a rather precarious situation. Many opted to simply cancel their enrollment and return to their home countries. On the other hand, those who chose to remain in the country have to face an unsure prospect, as their visa applications have been canceled automatically with the revamp of the jobs list.

And to seemingly add more headache to these foreign students, the student migration program itself also underwent several changes. One of the biggest of these was the increased in the required minimum funds that a student must present, which will greatly restrict the number of students coming in. another one is the increased educational requirements.

Thus, many school officials have voiced their worries as to how these would greatly affect the enrollment numbers. Indeed, in the few months after the changes have been fully implemented, more done a dozen colleges mainly catering the foreign student market were forced to close down due to lack of enrollment. This had lead to several education experts to ask for the reversal of these policies.

However, it seemed that the government is firm with regards to the new immigration policies. They said that these changes are badly needed by the country in order to get the right kind of workers. Thus, it is unlikely that they will change it anytime soon.

New Immigration Rules Open Door To Post Graduate Students

Getting an education in Australia is actually one of the major reasons why so many foreigners travel to the country yearly. Indeed, Australia's educational system is considered one of the best in the world today, which is the reason behind so many students going here annually. However, the recent changes in immigration policies have many people in and out of the country fear that these numbers will go down.

As can be recalled, the changes in the skilled migration program was implemented late last year. These changes included the removal of a lot of the jobs that were considered to be low level by the immigration department. Since many of the foreign students here were taking vocational courses, which are some of the positions that were considered by the immigration department as low level, they ended up having to cancel out their enrollment. It should be noted that the main reason behind many foreign students taking vocational courses is because, under the older system, these are the ones with which it is easiest to get a permanent residency visa after graduation.

Since, as have been said, much of the foreign student population here are taking these low level courses, many education experts here feared that such moves will certainly decrease the number of students coming into the country. And it seemed that those fears were realized when the number of foreign enrollees suddenly dropped at the start of this school year. The situation was further aggravated by the closure of several colleges who are mainly catering to these foreign students.

However, the government is quick to allay these fears. They argue that these moves are necessary in order to get the right people into the country. As it is, according to the latest statistics, Australia is actually suffering from a shortage of highly skilled professionals, due to the fact that most are gunning for the lower level positions.

And it seemed that the immigration department was somewhat vindicated in their move. After the initial shock from both students and educators, and a dip in foreign student numbers, everything is now starting to return back to the same level again. However, this time around, there's a big difference. While previously, a lot of students are coming in to become cooks and waiters. More and more students are now enrolling in highly skilled courses, such as engineering and business administration. Post graduate enrollment also posted high numbers, as more and more students seek to get a better positi0n under the new immigration rules . Thus it seemed that all of these moves are working as intended.

Enrolling Your Kids

One thing you must consider is the education in Australia of your children. And since there are a lot of schools in the country, this can often become even more complicated. And so, here are some useful tips that can help you in enrolling your kids.

Getting to know The Australian school calendar

• The Australian school year usually begins from January to December for both primary and secondary
• Each school year is composed of four separate terms, with breaks in between, the longest of which is the Christmas break often lasting for six weeks
• in terms of enrollment, Australia has one of the largest rates in the world today.

Public and Private schools compared

• Generally, there are no differences between them in terms of educational quality.
• The national state governments provide sufficient subsidies, which means that they are practically for free, though you will still have to pay a few fees.
• Though private schools do get fees, these are actually reasonably priced compared to the rates in other countries.

Looking for a school

• Most schools allow online sign-ups, which would be a great help to incoming immigrants.
• There are also online directories that provide comprehensive information on schools, which you can also use in selecting a school.
• Almost all towns in the country have a nearby community school where you can easily enroll your kids in.

Getting your kids to school

• It would be a good idea to let your kids visit the school before the term starts to familiarize themselves to the area.
• You might want to enroll your kids to the nearest school for security and convenience reasons.
• In case of a far school, you can get your kids a dedicated school service or fetch them yourself.

Last Reminders

• Make sure you have your kids' complete records when enrolling them to avoid going through the hassle of getting them afterward.
• Many schools require incoming students to have complete medical check-ups so be sure to promptly comply with this.