louise

I have read loads and loads of threads about Australian education and all I can say is I am confused

I have 2 boys 9 & 6, both doing very well in a strict catholic primary school. My eldest is going to miss transition to the feeder high school (best in the area and over subscribed), if things didn't work out and we returned I would be gutted if he couldn't get into that school.

However, main concern : I know in England they do GCSE, do they actually have an exam in Oz (we are heading for Queensland) or is it this Overall Position (OP) thingy. If all worked out well and we stayed but boys decided to return to UK after they finished school would any qualifications gained in Oz be recognised in UK?

If anyone could help I would be really grateful. Hope this isn't too garbled.

Cheers

NKSK version 2

As far as I know, Qnsld does not have any external assessment as part of the graduation process. It is all school-based. They will still get leaving certificates though which will have as much currency as other states' externally assessed certificates.

Your last point is important. They wil definitely be recognised in the UK. My fear is how valuable they will be seen by UK universities. I'd love to hear from people who have experience of sending their child to a good UK uni after secondary school in Australia.

Don't forget that to qualify for Home tutition fees (i.e. heavily subsidised) at UK universities, you must have resided in the UK for the 3 years immediately prior to stating the course. Otherwise you'll need to pay internatinal fees (starting at 9000 GBP per year)

Vash the Stampede

Speaking as an Aussie, I've personally known a number of Australians educated in Australia who had no problem getting into UK universities.

NKSK version 2

I know that there are lots.

I'd like to know of people who have managed to go straight from Australian schools to GOOD UK universities and how their secondary cerificate was viewed. Positively or negatively - easier or harder to get into than equivalent courses in Australia

sherie_in_oz

Hi,

We recently went to an evening seminar in Brisbane by the British Council who were promoting Uk education to Aussies/ poms in Oz, and a few thousand go to the Uk and study degrees/ masters each year, its a lot cheaper to do the same in Oz and the student debt at the end is a lot less in Oz than the Uk.

I think its something you have to come to terms with and accept that education is different here if you really want to live in Oz. Schools and employers don't understand GCSEs and A levels, QLD only do OP at the end of year 12, so no GCSEs, or A levels. OP is competitive as you are marked against everyone else in the state but kids could do IB (International Baccalaureate) at one of the top private schools if they were interested in going to study at degree level in the Uk/anywhere else in the world.

There are some very good private, catholic and in some cases state schools here but you do need to check these out yourself. Many of the top private schools here are much cheaper than in the Uk. The schooling is different but I'd say its a better preparation for life. Less emphasis purely on passing exams and more on sport, confidence, more field trips, our kids say its much more interesting and they prefer school here.

Also remember great education and school does not necessary mean the best job in the world! I used to work as a careers adviser in 2 universities in the Uk and theres so many kids with good grades coming out of universities these days in the UK, theres simply not enough graduate jobs to go around so employers look for something else as well. Having lived in a foreign country is a bonus, its something employers like and your kids will be much more aware of things on a global scale, so personaly I think its worth the risk. I didn't want my kids getting all those grades in the Uk and working at Tescos...

Got to think more of a global economy

Hope this helps,

Sherie

www.migratemates.com

sherie_in_oz

If you wanted more information of the kind you are asking contact
www.britishcouncil.org.au/educationuk

Most UK unis are very keen on overseas students if they can afford to pay and have the right grades, they will have come across OP. There were stands at the British Council seminar I went to in Brisbane recently for Nottingham, Warwick, LSE, UCL, Oxford, Cambridge etc and international officers in each uni are used to looking at overseas qualifications.
A lot of people don't bother to go back to the Uk because they don't want the student debt from studying in the UK, and some go to the USA too.

Vash the Stampede

I'd need to know how you're defining a "GOOD UK university".

Is it fair to assume that you have a particular institution (or more) in mind?

Gibbo

I've posted this before on here but I think it is appropriate to do so again. Last year my youngest son was touring Europe and UK. He was not seeking employment yet he had very good job offers from people he met. These were based in Switzerland, UK and USA. He has had all his education in Australia. He is an honours graduate. Don't know what it says to anyone else but it tells me that Australian educated people are held in pretty high regard overseas. So the education system can't be as bad as some make it out to be.

NKSK version 2

I suppose I'm thinking of first-tier unis excluding Oxbridge (which tend to be a law unto themselves).

So....Manchester, Bristol, Bath, Durham, Nottingham, Newcastle, Sheffield, Leeds, London.

NKSK version 2

I don't think for one moment that Australians are unemployable. My concern is whether they can compete with the best in the world on at least an equal footing for the very best undergraduate courses or the very best graduate jobs. Even then, my concerns are directed at WA – no idea really about the rest of Australia.

Gibbo

I have every confidence that they can and actually do.

OzSheila

Interestingly enough I have just received a leaflet from the Oxford University Society in Victoria that states that there are 680 Oxonians recorded with addresses in Victoria alone. Presumably this figure includes English graduates who now reside here and Australian citizens who either worked or studied there. My own (Australian) employer is a graduate of Sydney University, University of Oxford and Stanford University so he was obviously able to compete with both English and American students.

I also have a friend who was invited to do post graduate studies at Cambridge after obtaining her degree in Sydney.

My own view is that whilst some Australian graduates are lacking in basic language and mathematical skills they have been taught certain life skills and "thinking outside the box" skills which dont seem to be so prevalent in the UK education system.

My OH (Australian educated) rose to Director level in a large FTSE company in the UK so clearly he must have learnt something here at school.

busterboy

No St Andrews, Glasgow or Edinburgh then?

NKSK version 2

Good post thanks a lot - gives me hope!

NKSK version 2

No!!!!!!!

They're Scottish!