I study full-time, pay $10k+ per session for it, but only get 16 hours of contact. Where did the rest of the time go? They are all wasted on assignments and more assignments. As SE is mainly project-based, there aren't many tutorials or lectures in my major courses. Many international students may think this is a poor deal since the lecturers basically hand you a project where we have to research and figure out each and every solution without any handholding and you really wonder what the lecturers do in the mean time. Many of them are actually busy with their research since they are still primarily in uni for that, not really to teach.

This doesn't mean the lecturers are not helpful at all. I find that most of the time, they are very approachable and will answer any queries if you make the effort to e-mail/speak to them in person.

Obviously not. I'm just highlighting how students can misunderstand their roles as well as those of their academics at university.

A standard cab from Tullamarine to Southbank (23km) costs $55. Tullamarine to Clayton is double the distance, so I'd expect that you pay around $110, give or take some?

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Added on June 15, 2007, 12:56 amIf the promised hours weren't delivered wholly, I think it's justifiable only if the subject matter has been sufficiently covered. However, if it isn't, then the students are getting shortchanged! The administration/teaching staff ought to take due diligence in ensuring that their students' academic needs are met, and while unforeseen circumstances do happen, they should be the exception not the norm. Perhaps that's what's going on at RMIT? Without having read the news article (where is it? I can't find it through Google News), I can only speculate..

I going australia this june,..
can someone help me on the cab price?
if i were to choose monash's representative to fetch me, i will have to pay approx AUD180 (3 outsiders, each $60).. how much does a cab costs from mel airport to clayton?

a premium taxi since i am going to have hell lots of luggage

weee western australia bus reduce price hahha max 25%! wohoo

I posted this in the architecture thread but i want to ask the oz students too, you guys might be more familiar with it

Has anyone seen the new revised changes to the ESOS Act affecting international students?

http://aei.dest.gov.au/AEI/ESOS/default.htm

Universities across the nation should now be announcing these changes to their students and how it affects them.

Basically, the new policy now makes study visa extension rules stricter than before. Students are required to complete their degrees within the timeframe set in their eCOE and extensions are only granted on exceptional grounds. Afaik, students are encouraged to overload if they think they can't finish their degrees on time (because they may have switched courses or done less than a full load previously).

I've tried asking the international student support group at my uni and they said it won't affect the majority of students and that at this point in time, nobody knows the full effects as the implementation only begins July 1st.

they (some oz playmaker) always hike the rate up early and middle of the year coz they know lots of students n tourist going there. u wait n c after july n august, the rate will go down a bit. it's been like this for the past 3 years

Are you saying that the Australian dollar rises because of students and tourists and not because of a booming economy and high commodity prices? 

Do you have any articles to back this up?  I'm sure the Reserve Bank would be very interested to know about it.

Wow. I thought this thread had died.

The AUD just breached the 2.95 mark, and at the rate this is going, we're going to see 3.0 by the end of this year. The NZD isn't any much better, hovering close to 2.7 to the AUD. On the bright side, it has been good for NZ tourists, who have never seen the AUD and the NZD (1.09) so close to each other.

Interest rates are damn high, and everything is going up, in Brisbane at least. Petrol is still stubbornly $1.20/litre. Bus fares gone up. Vege prices in the supermarkets are also a bit high. Rent is also rising. The exchage rate isn't helping either.

And aobk84, ignoring your (lack of) English, can you prove any data to back yourself up? Usually it is the middle of the year, the AUD and the NZD drops. This year is an unusal outlier (I hope).

Ops sorry it's my own experience after and still studying there for 4 years.. coz when i get back here to change currency it's always higher than other time of the year.

maybe i should do some research since i graduated vit bachelor of econs n now doing postgrad for accounting,sorryla i didnt take postgrad for econs if not this will be my thesis

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Added on July 5, 2007, 3:50 pm

So your main point is that the rate is similar to 2005 right? Sure that is what I'm just trying to say the rate rises during this time of the year and early of the year.

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Added on July 5, 2007, 3:54 pm

First, Australian economy runs under a Managed Floating Exchange Rate. So even if their economy is affected by student,tourists or commodity prices.. there is still an invinsible hand controlling the economy/exchange rate. They will try to do it to their own best interest just like what Malaysia is doing now. Go read Australia n Malaysia exchange rate policy first

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Added on July 5, 2007, 4:06 pm

So now you are saying the exchange rate will be 3  end of this year? (I assume you have a very good data to back yourself up?)

About NZ tourists benefiting from the rise in their rate, is that the best you can conclude from such increase? Do you know what their main exports and imports are? It is agriculture and with such rise, their exports will be hurt. Plain simple Economics. I doubt their government is concern about NZ tourist benefiting from such rise in rate.

Do you know the main thing interest rate rise is to curb the increases in prices/spending. It is not because Interest Rate is high that causes everything to goes up.

For a conclusion, I gotta admit my English is not perfect/excellent. I wonder how good is yours. Now back to you asking me about the prove I have to back myself up. That was just my own experience after studying and converting money for 4 years. I basically convert every month of the year so that is what I see the trend as. The reason i'm not sure.

You say it's an unusual outlier, well maybe.. that's your own opinion right? Well, so it's mine!

In terms of general living costs in these cities, UniSA (Adelaide) will be the cheapest. UTS and Melbourne will the one of the most expensive. Perth is also no longer that cheap now, through still cheaper than the SYD/MEL.

Generally, staying in a student hostel is more expensive than living outside. However, I STRONGLY recommend staying in the student hostel for the first 6 months at least. It gives you time to get used to the place, the environment, and the general cost of living. Because when you first arrive, you're not sure if $150/wk for a particular place is cheap or overpriced.

As a guide, from my experiences being in Brisbane, staying in the student hostel will set me back around $250/wk, through that includes utilities, 3 meals, a fairly nice room, plenty of places to socialise and not that far from uni. Living outside with friends, I'm paying $130/wk in rent, about $5/wk in utulities, and once you add in groceries etc, $210/wk for just living is possible. What prices are like in other places, I cannot say.

If I was accepted into all uni's in the list through, I'd go to Uni Melbourne anyday!

Why not? It's getting harder and harder to get in, with the "Melbourne model" and all. And it is one of the top uni's in Australia.

Engineering Uni in Aus i think Monash University(got a campus in Sunway,Sarawak), and Melbourne University is quite good.
About IELTS, For me, i think acutally is base on ur luck see who is the one that handle your application. I just apply for computing & IT in Perth(ECU). and the pre-req is ILETS, or SPM 1119 3b above, BUT... BUT i did't have any ILETS Cert and my SPM 1119 get "C"(not sure what number already)... but i still approve to take the course and without and ILETS cert and SPM 3(b) ... but my friends that taking some course with me, he need to get the ILETs CERT to get in the course ... SO i really got no idea what is going on. Oh ya.. i help my sister to submit the application form to the same person that approve my application, she got the same ! without ILETS or SPM 1119 3(b) ...