Student Visas

If you enrol in one of our training programmes you will need a student visa which you will be pleased to know is not difficult to obtain. It is not necessary for you to use an agent to obtain your visa unless you wish to do so. In fact nearly all the overseas students who join us each year obtain their own visas using the documentation we send to them. We can supply this documentation as the Academy is on the Australian Federal Government's CRICOS, Provider No. 01765B.

In order to get your student visa all overseas students need OSHC (overseas students health cover) which at present costs $342 a year. We can arrange this for you. Students from Sweden and Norway are exempt from this because their government has an agreement with the Australian government.

The best advice we can give you is to get your application in to us as soon as possible to allow the maximum time to apply for a student visa if you are offered a place.

When applying for a student visa you will be unlikely to encounter any problems if you make sure you read the instructions carefully and follow them. Once you have been offered and accepted a place in one of our training programmes, we will be supplying you with some of the necessary documentation you will need when you apply for a student visa. Remember we are here to help you and will advise you how to proceed.

As you may know the Australian government gives each country an assessment level rating and if your country is on level 3 or 4 it is even more important to get your application in to us as soon as possible. This is because if you are offered and accept a place, you need to start your visa formalities quickly as AL 3 and AL4 visa applications do take a while. It is best to allow four months.

You should also note that students from AL3 or AL4 countries can only apply for our Diploma or Advanced Diploma of Screen programmes.

If you are not sure of your country's assessment level, you can find the full A.L. List on the following website: www.immi.gov.au or you can ask us if you wish. We also advise you to go through the Six Steps to Obtaining a Student Visa to be found on the same web site as this will alert you to any potential problems.

Finance

To give you an idea what it will cost to live in Sydney, the Australian government has the following guidelines. It is suggested that single students allocate A$12,000 per annum for living costs in Australia. Married students should allocate a further 35% for their spouse, an additional 20% for one child and a further 15% for each additional child.

If you have school age children you will be required to pay full school fees in both government and non government schools. You should allocate a minimum of A$9,000 per annum per child for kindergarten to Year 10 and A$11,000 for Years 11 and 12. School fees in some non government schools will be more than this.

You are allowed to work up to 20 hours a week as long as it does not interfere with your studies. In the holidays you can work full time if you wish.