Australia is a country and continent surrounded by the Indian and Pacific oceans. Its major cities – Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide – are coastal. Its capital, Canberra, is inland. The country is known for its Sydney Opera House, the Great Barrier Reef, a vast interior desert wilderness called the Outback, and unique animal species like kangaroos and duck-billed platypuses

Australia is currently the third most popular destination for international students in the English-speaking world, behind the United States and the UK. Many international students choose to study there because of the cultural diversity, friendly natives, and high quality of education

In the 2016/2017 world university rankings from QS, there were six Australian universities ranked in the world’s top 100. There are 42 universities in Australia, so the number judged to be among the world’s best gives a good indication of how high standards are.

Most of the international students in Australia are studying in the higher education sector, followed by the Vocational Education and Training (VET) sector, the English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students (ELICOS) sector and the schools sector.

Most popular study areas are: Engineering, Business, Computer Science, education, environmental science, medicine, and psychology.

According to Australian Government Department of Education And Training in 2016, there were 712,884 enrollments generated by 554,179 full-fee paying international students in Australia on a student visa. This represents a 10.9% increase on 2015 and compares with an average annual enrollments growth rate of 6.5% per year over the preceding ten years.

The top  source countries of International students in 2016 were:

• China                         196,315
• India                           78,424
• Republic of Korea      30,595
• Thailand                     30,451 9
• Vietnam                     29,766
• Malaysia                     28,504

The culture of Australia is a Western culture, derived primarily from Britain but also influenced by the unique geography of Australia, the diverse input of Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and other Oceanian people. The British colonization of Australia began in 1788, and waves of multi-ethnic migration followed.

International students in Australia on a valid student visa can work for up to 20 hours per week while school is in session, and there is no limit on the number of hours an international student can work during recognized school vacations.

After you graduate, you are eligible for a Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) which lets you live and work in Australia for 18 months.

There are multiple options to pursue permanent residency:

• 487 RegionalSponsored VisaThis visa provides a pathway for permanent residency while allowing you to work for 3 years and work in a specialized regional area.
• 887 Skilled RegionalResidence VisaThe 887 visa awards you permanent residency and with this you can live and work in Australia permanently. You must have already lived in Australia for two years, have a year of work experience and have sufficient points.
• 885 Skilled IndependentResidence VisaThe 885 visa allows you to live as a permanent resident and work without needing to be sponsored.
• 886 Skilled SponsorResident VisaThe 886 visa allows an overseas student to apply for permanent residency and work while being sponsored by an employer.

Links:

Online student visa application

Documents required

Student visa subclass 500

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Fee:  AUS $550

Interview required:  Yes

Time frame for visa acceptance: 4-12 weeks