hmm you guys were able to get your visa done pretty quickly, i had mine done within 6 working days, i did mine online through my college's placement centre, and according to them it usually takes around 5 working days, not sure if it's just coincidence or what...

I got my VISA done in 7 days but I'm under 18 so it's a bit of a hassle. Use their online attaching facility for all of the documents(except x-ray and medical), it is much better and faster.

Anyone know whether I should put my backup portable hard disk in my check-in luggage or carry-on board luggage ?

Will my data be erased by the powerful scanning machine ?

Both methods are fine. It is a matter of preference. I think you dont need to be worried about the data being erased by the scanning machines if not all electronics equipment would have suffered long time ago.

Does anybody know whether it is better to book accomodation now before we go to australia or wait till we arrive in australia ?

Will it be fully booked by then ? Around mid feb 2007.

IF you are getting on-campus acco, for sure you get it way before you even reach Australia, or you face high chances of insufficient space.

Off-campus well, you can leave for Aussie earlier to look at various places first. Stay with a friend or something in the mean time.

temperature over here in Perth is damn freakin hot for yesterday n today!!!
41*C...!
yesterday was Australia day and they had a 30 minutes Skyworks which is very beautiful...

If you can egt accomodation when you arrive then just wait before you book any apartment contracts. There are plenty of Accomodation notices posted on the notice boards and even websites. try this. goinghomesale.com.

Which part of Australia are you going to? i'm in melbourne and i;ve got an empty room till April.

How about University of Adelaide?Is it good?

well are u a new international student? if yes, then i believe ur uni will have a airport reception and temporary accomodation ( mayb up to 2 weeks) .then during ur orientation week find some friends to stay together by renting outside/ find room vacancy at notice boards etc..i recommend renting outside since its way cheaper than on-campus...well the choice is still up to u..if u have the $$ then oncampus will be fine as well

anybody going to UQ this feb?I'm having trouble searching for houses

i am currently having this concern bout my textbooks, from what i heard the textbooks are pretty expensive in australia, but i have been looking at various sources in hope to be able to find some info bout the booklist, but to no avail.. i wanna know is there any ways to get the booklist earlier in order for me to look for the books here first before leaving to aust? or any of the second or third year students has some experience to share regarding this?
i have thought of asking my parents to search the books here once i get the booklist and mail it over to me, but i have no idea how much it's gonna cost for courier service and the possible custom charges if there's any...
fyi i'm gonna take commerce in unsw this feb, and i have been told not to get second hand books by my cousin there as according to her, books used in commerce are regularly changed i.e different edition and so on, so second hand option is out for me...

This post has been edited by jae: Jan 28 2007, 10:33 PM

I think it's quite difficult to get the commerce books you need here because they are mostly meant for the Australian market. I remembered I couldn't get the books for Accounting and Economics here, but Engineering books can be ordered locally. The textbooks change regularly for Commerce (at UNSW at least), so it's hard to predict what they'll use. Last year, they change our Accounting textbook because they adopted the international accounting standards, so those with old books or hand-me-downs are practically screwed.
Usually, we make predictions by asking the seniors what books they have used and sometimes, buy it off them if those are the books that indeed are going to be used. You can also check the course web pages and the university bookshop web site. With the implementation of WebCT Vista, you can no longer gain access to many individual course sites until the start of session, though.

http://www.bookshop.unsw.edu.au/

If you have friends at UTS or USyd, you can ask them to buy certain books for you because they have Co-Op agreements which is slightly cheaper than UNSW (no Co-Op).

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Jan 28 2007, 11:22 PM

I guess the books will depend on which uni you're enrolled in. For Monash and some selected universities you should be able to get the books here for a much lower price. I've bought books for my sis for 2 years from the Monash campus in Sunway and it's still cheaper even after adding in shipping cost (used Pos Laju). You can also take chris's advice

So anyone attended the pre-departure briefings for Monash and Melbourne Uni today?

chris: based on your experience, how often does it occur when old texts are usable on the following year?
i tried searching at the bookshop website and it says textlist wont be out until mid feb which is around orientation
btw is there any difference in terms of price between buying from the university book store and other book stores out of the campus?
crazynut: what course was/is your sister taking? commerce as well? and just wondering how long did it take to ship the books to your sis in aust?

My sister took a Bachelor or Commerce (Accounting and Finance). It took about 1 week+ (8-10 days) using Pos Laju to reach her...she just shared the books with her friends or borrowed from the library.

Anybody know what is the bank draft rate that they charge over in australia ?

For example, if my malaysian bank gives me a ANZ bank draft and I bank into my account in commonwealth bank. What are the charges for

1. ANZ

2. Commonwealth

Can I just dump in my cheque at the bank machine in commonwealth ? How many days to clear ?

Really not sure unless you are working for the bank! haha..
Email their customer support? i'm sure they would reply you promptly.

Normally takes 1-2 working days, if not immediately.

Assuming this is your first year there, there's 2 types of textbooks, Prescribed and Recommended. You must buy Prescribed texts, but Recommended ones are not necessary (don't bother usually because you may not have the time to read them). In the first lecture, you'll be told which books to buy and then all the kiasu students will rush to the bookstore right after that to snap up a copy. There's usually enough so they won't run out.
You don't even use the textbook until the 2nd week when tutorials begin, so there's some time to get them. The Accouting textbook we used last year was
http://www.thomsonlearning.com.au/higher/a...an/3e/index.asp
You need to get the practice set too, which when bought in a pack, costs less. I'm pretty sure you can't get this book in Malaysia, but you can try to get the Econs one (but they change/updates all the time depending on the mood of the lecturer ). I don't do QMA, so I'm not sure what books you'll need for that.
University bookstores are usually 10-15% cheaper than normal retailers because they are subsidised (from the exorbitant amount we pay anyway).

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Added on January 29, 2007, 12:02 pmNo charges at Commonwealth Bank. You may have to declare your value when you purchase the bank draft in Malaysia cos government wants to control the outflow you know.
Surprise, surprise, I have not seen those high-tech cheque deposit machines in Aussie banks like we do here. Even the ATM card uses magnetic strips.

This post has been edited by chris_c28: Jan 29 2007, 12:02 PM

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Added on January 29, 2007, 12:02 pm
No charges at Commonwealth Bank. You may have to declare your value when you purchase the bank draft in Malaysia cos government wants to control the outflow you know.
Surprise, surprise, I have not seen those high-tech cheque deposit machines in Aussie banks like we do here. Even the ATM card uses magnetic strips.

[/quote]

yea tat is so true...in malaysia..we got cheque deposit machine...here cash deposit machine also dun have...