How can a Russian citizen in Australia not become a “deprived person”
The Australian newspaper Herald recently reported that over the past six months, 1,869 foreigners studying in Australia have been denied visas and deported from the country. According to the Australian educational center Students International World Wide, there are Russians among them, although they are few.
How not to fall into the number of “deprived people” and what, in fact, are expected from you – as a foreign student – in Australia?
Australia, like any highly developed country, is interested in foreign students. In fiscal 1997-98, 63.574 Australian student visas were issued, and in 1998-99, 67.130. In addition, Australia does not object to the fact that foreigners who graduate from local colleges and universities remain in the country further. In any case, graduates of Australian educational institutions have some immigration benefits. For example, they can apply for immigration immediately after graduation (all the rest – in a year or two). And it’s easier for them to go through a sieve of immigration selection. Holders of a professional diploma, bachelor’s or master’s degree from an Australian college or university receive an additional 5 points when considering a case, and a doctoral – 10 points. Another 5 points will be given to someone who managed to work while studying in Australia – at least 6 months.
Why, then, is the percentage of students who are denied the right to study in Australia so high? Indeed, if we assume that visas are issued and canceled evenly throughout the year, it turns out that more than 5% of those who received it lost their visa.
The main reason is that Australia is a country open to immigrants, but not to everyone. In addition, the immigration process is long and expensive. Getting a student visa is easier, so there is a demand for cheap courses – anyway. Neither their quality nor even the content mattered – if only the educational institution sent an invitation. Demand creates supply, and private colleges have appeared in the country, which are not so much taught as traded in visas. Even a term appeared for them: visa shops, “visa shops”. They struggle with visa shops, which is why innocents suffer, they are tempted by the low cost of studies, they submit documents there, and the embassy does not give a visa (or they do not extend it in Australia itself): the college is in a bad shape.
All the severities introduced in the past year and a half in relation to foreign students are somehow related to the fight against illegal immigrants: since December 1998, a student visa has ceased to automatically give permission to work, it must be requested in Australia itself and after starting to study . At the same time, local authorities are vigilant to ensure that the student during the semester works no more than 20 hours a week.
A student is required to attend at least 80% of classroom studies, not have “tails”, and pay tuition on time. And this is not a joke: according to the Australian Newspaper, at the beginning of the year, the New South Wales Senate commission “called on the carpet” 11 state colleges complained to by DIMA (Department of Immigration and Intercultural Relations) and the students themselves. Among them is Skywell Business College, which submitted to DIMA a list of 500 foreign students and offered to deprive them of their visa for missing classes.
The student is obliged to immediately inform DIMA of his address upon arrival, and in case of change, notify the department within 2 business days. There was a case when a girl, returning from Russia to Australia, “hovered” in Singapore: only here it turned out that her visa was canceled for missing classes. DIMA notified her of this at the old address – the new young lady did not report, and therefore suffered.
By the way, having received a message that you were deprived of a visa, do not rush to run to the pond to drown: first try to make excuses (this should be done quickly, in writing and in English; the help of specialists is very useful here, you can contact her, in particular, SIWW). It is possible that the authorities will accept your explanations favorably and restore the visa.
It is impossible to arbitrarily change the educational institution: if the duration of the course is less than a year, the student must study for the entire period for which he was given a visa, in this educational institution. If the course lasts more than a year, you are supposed to study at the first educational institution for at least 12 months, and only then, with the consent of DIMA, you can change your place of study.
So, before applying for a visa, you need to have a very clear plan: how many weeks will it take to study at a language school, how many – at college, at university preparatory courses, etc. Moreover, coordinate your own scheme with all of these educational institutions. It is clear that it is impossible to cope with this task yourself, even if you get a mountain of school guides and booklets – after all, booklets from visa shops are no worse than from respectable educational institutions. There certainly will need a consultation of professionals.
