High School Education Overseas / in New Zealand

OzCheapo on 21/06/2020 - 18:32

My sister is graduating at the end of this year and she was considering a move to New Zealand - studying at the University of Otago in Dunedin (she'll be 18 years old then.) She's an Australian citizen. Since she's busy preparing for upcoming examinations and it happens to be a lovely Sunday evening to procrastinate, I'm doing some research for her.

Assuming the trans-Pacific bubble opens up by next year, can anyone with children in a similar position/who's done it before advise me on their experience?

From my understanding, she can take a one-way ticket to New Zealand. For education, she'll be charged domestic tuition rates as an Australian citizen but will need to provide full payment upfront, won't be eligible for the NZ equivalent of social security like Youth Allowance, or be able to take a loan like HECS etc. Cost of living should be comparable as we're from Brisbane.

Based on this, it's best to save up some money for her so she can pay for the tuition fees and some living expenses until she gets a local job that will offset the living expenses. Or, apply for a scholarship.

Education & Work

Comments

  • [Deactivated] on 21/06/2020 - 18:56

    Is she qualified (i.e. gifted) enough for a scholarship.
    If covid here has been an example, pretty sure you have to declare that you have enough money to support yourself (i.e. no pay check), so as long as the family has deep pockets, what could possibly go wrong?

    • OzCheapo on 21/06/2020 - 19:02
      -1

      She's got leadership positions, good referees with reasonable prospects for a scholarship.

      Dad and I are willing to bankroll her for the initial year if she doesn't succeed with the scholarship applications - tuition and board. Or at least me first year and dad potentially longer. But we wanted to make sure it's not going to be a cluster**** with poor preparations.

      • [Deactivated] on 21/06/2020 - 19:14

        Sounds ok then, probably check what credit transfers are like in aust if you cant bank roll or she moves home.

  • dasher86 on 21/06/2020 - 18:58

    Apply for a scholarship and also get a job.

  • p1 ama on 21/06/2020 - 19:26
    +6

    Why though?

    You're giving up on two of the best programs to help university students - that being youth allowance and HECS. It just seems to me that a much better option is to study locally and move to NZ once she graduates if she wants to live/work there. You'd be surprised, but living at home can save you over $10,000 per year on rent and food even after she chips in for the bills and any common expenses at home. It's not like you have a shortage of good universities in Brisbane.

    Honestly, if she wants to just move to NZ to have some fun, she's better off studying in AU and taking a 2-3 month holiday every year with the $10k she's saving. That's not to mention the amount that would be saved through using HECS and getting youth allowance.

    I completely get if she wants to live and work in NZ, but that's easily done after finishing uni. Given how easy it is for Aussies to get work in NZ and just move there at any time, I'd just worry about that afterwards.

    • wittyusername on 21/06/2020 - 19:35

      Or doing a year abroad over there too!

  • [Deactivated] on 21/06/2020 - 19:48

    Meet plenty of people who left nz for au, life a lot slower out there

  • ThatKiwiFella on 21/06/2020 - 20:35

    Hey OzCheapo

    I'm a New Zealand student, also studying in Dunedin so can help you out a bit

    From what I can see, you're correct in your thinking that fees must be paid in full.
    It seems your daughter isn't entitled to student allowance or loan as she doesn't fit the criteria.

    There are a large amount of students that come from abroad to study.

    Cost of living, particularly in Dunedin isn't too comparable to Brisbane. A lot of students live a student life, not splurging on expenses
    For example - I pay ~$80 per week for food, which is cooked meals every day. There are plenty of flats costing approximately $150-$200 all inclusive except food.

    New Zealand, and especially Dunedin, is a great place to grow up, study or just simply spending a small amount of your life here. Everyone is really easy going. Dunedin is quite popular for study, the city can be very quiet unil the semesters start up, and then it becomes a lot more lively.

    Your daughter shouldn't have an issue finding a job. A lot of students tend to do either cleaning, fast food or supermarket work. There's a lot of businesses down in the student area (North Dunedin) that are more than happy to hire students, and mainly look to hire students.

    Any questions, fire away! I hope I've been insightful

    • OzCheapo on 21/06/2020 - 20:43

      Thanks for the feedback mate! Great to see a supportive community.

      PS: Asking for my sister. Dad will be happy.

      • ThatKiwiFella on 21/06/2020 - 20:49
        +1

        Haha must have lost my train of thoughts and mucked up the daughter sister part
        I did read the entire post, promise haha!

    • [Deactivated] on 21/06/2020 - 20:51
      -1

      How many people with extremist views would you suggest live among you?
      *covering myself when sh!t goes wrong and ppl neg this comment.

  • Quantumcat on 22/06/2020 - 13:02

    Does the university of Otago have a program that she can't do in Australia? If not, it seems like a terrible idea. She should study in Australia and take advantage of HECS and youth allowance. There are plenty of fine universities in all the capital cities, and if she wants to have a lot of fun then opt live on campus. She can move to New Zealand after finishing study.

    • OzCheapo on 22/06/2020 - 13:31

      I think its proximity to Queenstown, Mt Cook and Hobbiton a day trip away. The issue that's catalysed her decision is the changes in the fees for courses. I think her fees might be hiked since she's aiming for a commerce course.

      • Quantumcat on 22/06/2020 - 13:50

        Will the fees as an Australian (don't know if they charge Australians more than domestic kiwi students) + living expenses + loss of investment profit over the next 10-15 years of the money, in New Zealand be less than fees + living expenses - youth allowance in Australia? If yes, and she can afford to pay it all upfront, I guess it makes sense to do it.

        I don't think that living near some tourist attractions is a very good reason to choose where you go to university - you're committing 3-4 years of your life for this. She can fly there a few times during semester break or summer holidays. How much time does she think she's going to have to do touristy things? Is she intending to actually try hard at university and take it seriously? It will be much more expensive to live in New Zealand than live in Australia and visit to do tourist things, because then her family has to fly to New Zealand to visit her, and she has to fly to Australia to visit her family. The living in NZ option is a lot more flying for everybody.

        Wanting to live in New Zealand for university just sounds like the flight of fantasy of a teenager who hasn't really thought it all out but wants to dream about how cool it would be.

      • p1 ama on 22/06/2020 - 14:04
        +1

        The issue that's catalysed her decision is the changes in the fees for courses. I think her fees might be hiked since she's aiming for a commerce course.

        Negligible for a commerce course. I agree with Quantumcat's advice below.

        Wanting to live in New Zealand for university just sounds like the flight of fantasy of a teenager who hasn't really thought it all out but wants to dream about how cool it would be.

        Yes. Do the commerce course at UQ, save $10k - $15k every year and take a holiday to NZ every year instead.

        • Quantumcat on 22/06/2020 - 14:27

          Or as a medium ground save $5k and live on campus at a uni in another capital city, so she can experience all the fun and independence without the bad sides.

          By the way, if the fee changes do come through, it doesn't mean that anyone studying a commerce degree automatically has to pay 50% more no matter what, it is done by subject - she can just do the core subjects for the degree but pick electives that don't carry the hefty price tag, like IT, a language, science, etc. So only a moderate increase in price (which won't be felt until a few years after graduating)

          There's no guarantee it will get through anyway. The current administration doesn't have a good track record of managing to implement any higher education changes.

          • OzCheapo on 22/06/2020 - 15:05

            @Quantumcat: I'll bring it up after exams. p1 ama and Quantumcat, you both raise a good point with the opportunity cost.

          • p1 ama on 22/06/2020 - 15:52
            +1

            @Quantumcat:

            By the way, if the fee changes do come through, it doesn't mean that anyone studying a commerce degree automatically has to pay 50% more no matter what, it is done by subject - she can just do the core subjects for the degree but pick electives that don't carry the hefty price tag, like IT, a language, science, etc. So only a moderate increase in price (which won't be felt until a few years after graduating)

            Also, for the record, it's silly to base your educational decisions off of the fee increases. I'm university academic and personally oppose the fee increases, but the objective truth is that the fees will just go onto your HECS, most students don't even know how much their fees are or how much they owe in HECS. There's also the argument that the benefits of a university degree far outweigh the costs, with the fee increases being minimal in the scheme of things. Of course, this is assuming the changes get through.

    • Icecold5000 on 22/06/2020 - 19:47
      +3

      Couch burnings and student riots are an essential part of the Otago experience. Honestly it’s an excellent uni.

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