Legal work is the best, obviously. It's always ethically, morally correct to do so. The interviews and tests are good because they prepare you for the real world as this is what you'll have to go through when you start a career, not simply by "knowing people and having connections". As long as you hold yourself well in interviews (the tests are generally IQ tests which are not very difficult), you can get in. Find good references if you can, preferably local like your lecturers.
Yes, you have to pay tax, but you can claim a certain percentage back. People pay tax all the time, no matter where you are. It's a fact of life.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Mar 6 2007, 09:33 PM

I once heard that Sydney Uni's Great Hall (the big old sandstone building) has leaking roofs and it rained during one of the exams.

Firstly Computer Engineering != Software Engineering (we can go on a long discussion about this, but I believe it has been addressed before and I'm quite tired of it really). If you're interested, the best Computing schools in Australia are CSE at UNSW and Monash's Clayton IT, so they are definitely worth considering. Tbh, I don't think Swinburne is on the same level if it's going to cost just as much.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Apr 15 2007, 06:22 PM

Yeah, SENG is quite tough here and generally, a lot of resources are needed to teach it properly. Afaik, there's no SENG offered in UNSW Asia in Singapore either, so the best option is to come over to Australia (didn't you say you're going to Melbourne anyway?).
If you're interested in doing SE, scrutinise the universities' programs and courses carefully before you decide as there are unis whose SE programs are "half-baked", meaning 4 years of Java/C# training (learning programming languages is not important because they're just tools), but fails to teach fundamental software design, implementation and management.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Apr 15 2007, 09:34 PM

chris_c28 UNSW Software Engineering/Commerce 3rd Year

ANU is not the top engineering school in Australia (but they are still pretty good) and they're not difficult to enter at all (with the exception of their gifted Computer Science program which are well, for the gifted). UNSW and Melbourne are the top Engineering schools in Australia and they offer the widest range of Engineering programs, more than any other universities in Australia. If things have not since changed, UNSW's Engineering faculty should still be the biggest in the country.

The latest rankings shows this (surprisingly):
Business & Economics
1. Melbourne
2. UNSW
3. ANU
4. Monash
5. Queensland

But take all rankings with a piece of salt because at the end of the day, if you look at the metrics they used, it can be argued that there are major flaws. Some unis get high average rankings because they have a big number of international students (Monash) and some simply because they dedicate more efforts into research (ANU) and peer exchange compared to undergraduate teaching, which I believe is more important as we are undergraduates. Some even grade unis by their entry requirements, which is completely pointless in Australia because the entry requirements here are based on UAI/TER and their equivalents and are scaled according to demand and supply, not according to the needs of the program.

See, the research was conducted by the Melbourne Institute, a research institute at the University of Melbourne.

http://www.melbourneinstitute.com/publicat...e%20Summary.pdf

Regardless of this fact, I'd say not to take any rankings seriously because there's no uniform metrics applied at all and sometimes, the results are skewed or differ only by a small margin. Unless you're a postgrad, this should not be a major worry. As you can see, all the Go8 unis perform incredibly well.

Because they're better funded.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Apr 28 2007, 01:49 PM

Because it IS true. Go8 universities get more funding because they:
a) have more students. They attract the state's top performers, etc.
b) do more credible/excellent research work than any other university. Don't fall for marketing ploys, but you can check the universities' web sites and the Australian media to see which universities' research work are usually highlighted and they are usually Go8 unis by no accident.
c) have better academic resources, international links, etc.
d) are more prestigious, much like the Ivy Leagues in the US. <- This is of no real concern.

Although rankings are insignificant, there is a difference between the graduates of the first-tier universities and their peers. For one, the work/assignments are generally tougher, hence giving their students a greater challenge. They also have more industry partners so graduates are able to stand out from the crowd. Teaching quality, however, is subjective. This is an area where students' comments are valuable. Many university lecturer's renumeration awards aren't based on their teaching performance, but their research work, hence they lack the dedication to teach.

There are also other significant fields of engineering besides civil and mining. Particularly in technology, there's always Computer, Software, Eletrical Engineering, Telecommunications, etc. which are playing an increasingly important role as we rely on the power of computing to perform our everyday tasks.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Apr 30 2007, 10:58 AM

I can recommend UNSW, if you don't mind it being in Sydney. The reason I had to put it this way is because people here don't seem to enjoy studying in Sydney, but I really don't see the point of their arguments. Sydney is a great city to live in, very cosmopolitan, modern and vibrant. On top of that, UNSW is one of the leading engineering research schools in the country (it is primarily an engineering and technical university) and is very highly-regarded here, especially for technology-related programs, which includes Electrical Engineering, Computer Sciences and Telecommunication.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: May 15 2007, 07:59 PM

UTS isn't a Go8 uni, hence it isn't really in the same league as UNSW and Melbourne. The main difference between UNSW and Melbourne is the heritage. Of all the Go8 unis, there are 3 which doesn't have a sandstone heritage, i.e. ANU, Monash and UNSW, because they are established after WWII, as opposed to the others which have the OxBridge styled sandstone structures. UNSW probably has the most modern campus here after its recent multi-million dollar campus upgrade, which is still being implemented in stages.

The Malaysian government has close ties to Melbourne University and Monash, hence they will always be the first choice for Malaysian students. In contrast, UNSW has a close working relationship with the Singaporean government and NUS, hence UNSW is the top choice for most Singaporean students. One mistake UNSW probably made was to award its contract for its foundation studies course (similar to Trinity College Foundation programs) to KDU college, which isn't doing a good job of promoting it over its other alternatives. Most Go8 universities do not do twinning or 3+0 programs with overseas colleges for their major degrees.

Students should chose their universities according to what they want to do. Universities in Australia are undergoing major overhauls in the next few years, so expect some radical changes. Students in Melbourne Uni should have heard about the Melbourne Model announced recently. The recent Budget 07 also means unis will get better funding to compete.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: May 17 2007, 02:30 PM

Why is that? I thought the Melbourne Model is revolutionary. In fact, many universities will soon implement something like that. UNSW and USyd already have what we call the Flexible First Year program for Engineering since last year, where students do a common set of subjects and engage in Engineering design and innovation courses. My thought was that the Melbourne Model is similar to this, only on a larger scale.

There's no official university rankings in Australia, unlike the US. However, the Go8 universities are often regarded as first tier because they are the leading research universities here. They are much bigger and much better-funded than any other universities. They also offer a broader range of disciplines. They also have greater political-power.
Similarly in the US, there's no official statement which says Ivy League universities are first-tier. It is mainly through years of reputation, research and academic performance that people associate these universities as "first-tier".

For commerce, I doubt there's any real difference between Melbourne and Monash. You're just an undergraduate student. If the fees are an issue, go for the more affordable option.
Fees for universities here vary all the time and the factors include the funding they get, the numbers of students they enrol, etc.

Try
www.careers.unsw.edu.au
www.seek.com.au

A pay of around $20/hr is usually for more skilled positions (internships, etc.), usually related to your field of study. Ordinary retail jobs pay less than this, but can accomodate first/second year students more easily. What's your field of study?

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Jun 4 2007, 11:08 PM

Yeah, pretty depressing weather. Imagine being stuck outside, trying to get a taxi home at 2am at the Cross in this condition. That's what I had to endure yesterday after celebrating a friend's birthday.

Internet here is miles better than Malaysia's "superior" TMNet, but pales in comparison to other OECD countries.

UNSW is a good university for Engineering in that it's main emphasis is on Engineering (it's established primarily as an Engineering/technical university and its biggest schools are still in Engineering). I think Monash is on a similar footprint. Electrical Engineering is offered by almost (if not all) universities in Australia that offers Engineering degrees, and most are actually decent from what I've heard (I cannot speak for other unis).

These sites should provide adequate information on the program.
http://www.eet.unsw.edu.au/
http://www.eng.unsw.edu.au/

What dahfa said is also quite true. Engineering subjects are very challenging and requires constant hard work and innovation. In a big university with lots of students, competition is intense and it is the survival of the fittest.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Jun 12 2007, 09:27 PM

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.