my sister went to nz for her master course required ietls score but her degree was done in UM. If no mistake, she has 1119 or some ESL course taken b4 that.

when I applied my master course, they allowed me to skip ietls since my degree was completed in usa (4 years there...really enjoying life there. everything was cheap hehe) but end up i took uk one though. they didn't require ietls either for my case...

i believe most university require ietls as a standard. it is just how the world is run. for example, our governmetn won't buy-in taiwanese degree holder as a bachelor..but indeed, they have the knowledge.

welcome to the cruel world

actually, i really failed to see the reason for the angst in complying with ielts, other than the exam fee issue, which doesn't make any sense, for people who are contemplating paying full fees in uk/oz/nz........whats rm500 when you are willing to pay rm200k-rm1mil for a degree there..?

as for the 'why'. it's called international benchmarking, a concept quite foreign to many msians.......and that's why they do NOT trust msian certifications, including 1119.........

i don't know about all here who express such reservations about ielts, but i certainly would want to know where i stand in the world, english language wise, and would sit for it, even if the university does not need it........

hey just asking ur opinion.....

bcom at auckland uni?
or
bcom at otago uni?

wic wud be the better choice (in terms of employment prospects, student life etc..)?
or is there little or no difference at all?

Employment prospects - little or no difference.
Student life - Otago by a mile. But that's just my opinion.

difference between auckland and dunedin is like kl and kampar......so it depends on what you are used to, and what you like......

as for the ultimate degree given, agree it will make practically no difference in employment prospects........

Hey... I heard that NZ is famous for studying Accounting. Is that true???

hey hey..
sorry for the late reply..
pretty busy lately and just got connected with the internet..
im not in uni..i am in international pacific college, IPC in Palmerston North..
im majoring in english studies..
to be honest, i didnt sit for any tests like ielts,toefl or toiec or whatsoever..
but last monday,someone asked for my ielts result..
but i just saying that i only sit for english 1119..
she was like.."what s that???"
ok ok, so i need to take english test (from toeic Qs)
then I passed...yay FANTAGERO!! i straight away go for my degree..no foundation!
cool aint't it?? huhuhu..its pretty tough though..ghee
thank God everything s fine now..

<planning to join yoga club..huhu~~>

ermm...not really..i think australia is more famous for that(although nz's accounting is on par).
NZ famous for medic, science stuf...although they're pretty good in business n law as well...
overall, NZ is a quality place for education. so dont hav to worry whether 'famous' or not.

---

Added on April 17, 2008, 7:21 pmhey guys, is there any real difference in quality n prestige between these top 4 NZ Unis:

Auckland
Otago
Canterbury
Victoria

ie, will a degree from one of these unis(lets say auckland), be significantly better than the other 4?
And, are these generally considered to be the best unis in nz internationally? thx...


This post has been edited by aaron4d: Apr 17 2008, 07:21 PM

care2elaborate?

This post has been edited by EmperorMeng: Apr 17 2008, 11:20 PM

hey guys, which is THE best uni to study economics and/or politics in NZ? izzit auckland uni, or otago, or some other uni?

The great thing about New Zealand is that their upper 4 uni's are all competent. In NZ, it does not matter where you graduated from. There is no such thing as "prestige" in NZ. It is a very egalitarian country, through some might say they do bring it too far with things like NCEA.

Some uni's have their strengths. In particular Canterbury is well regared in Science/Engineering, and Otago's accounting/commerce courses are highly thought of. However, this is not to mean an Engineering graduate of Otago is inferior to one from Canterbury, nor is a accounting student from Canterbury any less employable. At the end of the day, your qualification only gets you to the interview room. If you've a useless employee, you get the sack, regardless of which uni you gradauted from.

This is a concept that is very alien to many Malaysians.

aaron4d, if I were you, I'd make my decision on where to go on other factors, such a cost of living, air connectivity, social connections etc, rather than the perceived "prestige" of a university.

Well, like Haya said, in terms of educational standards both Auckland and Otago (and Vic and Canterbury) are on par with each other. So there's little or no difference when it comes to employability.

As for student life, Otago is 'famous' for the quality of it's student life. There's also a degree of camaraderie among the students and a common bond/feeling of pride/loyalty to the uni (Haya has said it can be annoying and to a degree, I agree). I think I've mentioned this before but in short, there are certain powerful factors:
1) 75% of Otago students come from outside Dunedin.
2) Of these, I'll say 90% of them live in the North Dunedin area, also known as the 'student ghetto'.
3) Because most students come from outside Dunedin, there is the common experience of living as first years in one of the 13 residential colleges. Obviously cos of numbers not everyone gets this chance but the fact is that the colleges play a huge role in the university culture.
4) Because of the huge influx of students every year, the North Dunedin are and the town centre (about 2-3 mins away from the main campus) is pretty much a student town, it's very student oriented and student friendly.

This all provides an experience largely missing from the other NZ unis (except Massey, Palmerston North campus). Auckland is a business and commercial city that happens to have a uni in it. Dunedin today, without its uni, would be more like... say... Invercargill.

So while Limeuu is right to an extent comparing Auckland/Dunedin with KL/Kampar, he's also wrong. Kampar (at least until a time that UTAR transforms it into a uni town... if that ever happens) doesn't have the vibrancy that Dunedin has thanks to 20,000 students descending on it every year.

Agreed. Btw Otago doesn't do engineering, mate.

Aaron4d, go to the uni that suits you best in terms of lifestyle and other factors. If you want to boost your employability, get a part-time job and get involved in extra-curricular activities. That will count far more than grades/degree/uni in NZ. As a friend of mine puts it, in NZ, it's experience that counts not qualifications.

thx for the heads up, haya n wornbook...made me escape the narrowmindedness typical of msian students(the prestige etc..)

based on my interests, i wud love to go to otago, auckland also seems quite nice.

What are your interests?

i always wanted 2 experience a great student life. based on ur comments bout otago, it seems to fit the bill. then again, i'm always a city boy at heart...lolxx

Just curious, what is your idea of a great student life? Cos opinions differ and Otago's might not exactly what you would want.

I'm a city kid too. Otago is great to study at but I couldn't live there forever.

a sense of camaraderie among students, lots of student organised activities. i want to be in a place where life is centred among students, somehow i feel that being in a big city dilutes this student experience. agreed, i cant live there forever, but at least for my student years, i want to experience a rich student life (ie strong bonds, sense of togetherness, etc. etc.)

Sounds like Otago's more the place for you than Auckland then. This is the uni where people carry bikes and race down a river while being pelted with flour bombs in the middle of winter.

Bear in mind that the experience is what you make of it though. I know a few who never get involved in anything and stay in their little cocoons. But you don't sound like that sort of person.

Something you should take note of though - a big part of the experience is the drinking culture. If you cannot stand the crazy behaviour and noise created by drunkards or are strongly against drinking in principle, stay away. The drink culture is something you cannot escape in Otago, whether you choose to join in or not, unless you live in your own little cocoon. It's easier not not get involved/affected in Auckland since you don't live with potential drunks.

I'm not a drinker myself though I don't mind a drink or two now and then. But I found the whole experience, umm... educational.

For a really different experience, watch out for national nude day.

Oh, and there's a total absence of Malaysian food in Dunedin.

Whoops. My bad.

Don't forget the things people do at Baldwin St.

Like the jaffa race? Whoever came up with that must have been drunk.

Some aren't funny/fun though - the wheelie bin incident comes to mind.