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- Visa. Getting your visa is a inexpensive activity, but getting all the paperwork together for it will be a bother. Many people in Australia are calling for a more simplified visa application process in the future. Unfortunately, if you are going to study for 3 years, you will need to show you have enough funds to cover yourself for 3 years, unlike other countries, where you only need to show the first year. This is another change that many institutions are pushing for.
- Study Fees. International students, pay on average, 4 times more than Australian students. Fees are different for each course, but this is a rough guide. Australian Universities cost about $10,000 to $18,000 per year and English Courses cost around $3,000 to $13,000 a year – the price courses can vary greatly depending on content and depending on institution.
- Living Costs. Living costs vary greatly in Australia. If you are studying somewhere like Sydney you will find the cost of accommodation is much higher than other cities. If you are studying somewhere that is a little more regional you will find that it is much cheaper. You will probably need around $500 per week, which means another $26,000 per year, but again, this will vary on where and how you live. Sharing a house in inner Sydney will mean around $200 a person for the lower end, although if you were in somewhere like South East Queensland you could get a very large home with 4 bedrooms for around $400 per week. Your living arrangements will greatly influence the cost of your living. Most students share, and even so do most Australians, and this is a very good way for many young people to live and is a very good lifestyle when it is done right. For the total $500, you should be able to cover all your needs well.
- Returning home. You need to think about returning home at least once each year, and students can get cheaper deals on flights, but you are probably still looking at more than $2000 for each round-trip flight.
- Emergency Fund. You should make sure that you have insurance to cover the worst of situations and this may be a requirement of your visa.