dhama

Hi Every one,
We have planned to move brisbane by august end. I have no friends and relatives living in brisbane to guide us in initially. Basically i am a HR Person and my wife is a software professional. So i need all of your guidance in settling down in brisbane as well as OZ.Please consider the following when you guide me .

1. Schooling:

My Daughter Has just finished grade 5 in USA and her school got closed for summer vacation. Is it possible for her to get admission in grade 6 once we land there in august.Her date of birth is 22-02-1999.

which area public schools are the best and what are the documents that we need to produce for admission. Any vaccine record is required for school registration.

2.Accommodation: we are looking for apartment for a short term probably 3 to 6 months lease either Furnished or unfurnished . Any recommended web site or agent would be fine. We are looking for the apartment in a suburb which is based on our job opportunities and daughter's schooling.Is it possible to get a apartment $300 to 400 weekly till we stabilize financially once we get job. This is the big help and guidance i am really looking for . So that we can book the apartment from usa and we can straight way land in brisbane.I don't know exactly that how far it is feasible.

3.Job : Which part of the brisbane do we get lot of job opportunities for IT and HR and other cash jobs. Will it be ok to look for accommodation based on this criteria.


4.Basic steps.:
What are the basic steps that we need to follow after landing in OZ .

1.Driving license(I belive holding a valid USA Driving license would be helpful in getting OZ Driving license
2.medicare registration

3. or any other formalities do we really need to do initially.


Thanks for your patience and i would appreciate your response on this regard and it would be great help.


Thanks and Regards

Dhama

The Bloke

1.a) Better to wait until next year, but I would contact Education Qld www.education.qld.gov.au or the school in your area now, but since you have no idea where you will live that maybe a problem. School year finishes late November to early December, and some schools start enrolling around that time as some have limited spaces in some classes.
b) Depends on where you live and the schools in the area.

2. www.realestate.com There is no guarantee that you will get employment in your local area, ie you may (most likely) have to commute.

3. Apart from the CBD, www.seek.com.au BTW, what do you refer to as "cash jobs"????

4. a) Contact Qld Transport and Main Roads, http://www.transport.qld.gov.au/Home...ing_a_licence/
b) You are not required to register with any one doctor, but it would be helpful to contact Medicare www.medicareaustralia.gov.au and/or a private health insurer.

I really think you have left the organisation of things like this abit late, as it is nearly the end of June. Have you actually done any prior research or a reccie before you applied for your visa? By your set criteria, I think not.

dhama

Thanks bloke for a detailed description and guidance. Thank you very much for your time and effort.Yes we did lot of research but other personel issues were involved . yeah we would not mind if she gets admssion in grade 6 th by 2010 jan but we want her to go school in septemeber to same grade to pick up the cultural diffrences and local Atmosphere. Once again thank you very much for the great help. Dhama

poppyjasper

Hi
Your daughter should go into yr 5 when you arrive in Aug and will move into yr 6 in January. I wouldnt put her in yr 6 when you arrive as she will be too young and the schools probably wouldnt allow it anyway.
My son is in yr 8 (DoB feb 1996) and is one of the youngest in his year, with a lot of his friends being over a year older than him.

I would also research which High School you would like her to go to, I think Qld issue some sort of 'performance tables' for their schools, so I would try and find that out. It will give you an idea of which area to move to for the better schools. I'm not sure of Qld's admission criteria but here in NSW if you live in the school catchment area then you are guarenteed a place at that school.
Expect rental prices to be higher in 'good school' areas though.

Sorry I cant help with anything else as I dont live in Qld.
Good luck with your move.

quoll

Just forget anything you know about education and go with the flow. It's a totally new system and as long as they put her with her age peers it doesnt matter one jot about what the grade level is called that she goes into. However, I would think she would be in year 5 for the rest of this year and go into year 6 next year but the systems are so totally different it really doesnt matter.

As long as you rock up with your visa, evidence of her date of birth, evidence of your longer term address and her vaccination record then she can enrol in her local school pretty much immediately. BTW she wont be going to HS until 2012 as Qld starts HS in year 8 so you will have a bit of leeway there.

You can keep her out of school for a while until you get somewhere permanently. You are unlikely to get anywhere to rent while you are overseas, there are too many people on the ground who will be fighting for every rental opportunity. Best bet is to go for a holiday let for about a month and then take your time to get something more permanent. Get your job first then you will know where you want to be living. I think your rental estimates are going to be on the low side for something vaguely close to the CBD and if you are new to town you may need to strengthen your position by offering a good lump sum of rent in advance - say 6 months worth as well as the bond everyone has to pay.

this charming man

I was going to say "the long and winding road" but realised ive got the wrong thread,ill get my coat.

dhama

[


Hi Poppy
Thanks for the prompt response. I really appreciate it Thanks much.Dhama

QUOTE=poppyjasper;7681558]Hi
Your daughter should go into yr 5 when you arrive in Aug and will move into yr 6 in January. I wouldnt put her in yr 6 when you arrive as she will be too young and the schools probably wouldnt allow it anyway.
My son is in yr 8 (DoB feb 1996) and is one of the youngest in his year, with a lot of his friends being over a year older than him.

I would also research which High School you would like her to go to, I think Qld issue some sort of 'performance tables' for their schools, so I would try and find that out. It will give you an idea of which area to move to for the better schools. I'm not sure of Qld's admission criteria but here in NSW if you live in the school catchment area then you are guarenteed a place at that school.
Expect rental prices to be higher in 'good school' areas though.

Sorry I cant help with anything else as I dont live in Qld.
Good luck with your move.[/QUOTE]

dhama

Hi Quoll,
Thanks for the advice. I understand that what you say makes sense. I will follow you suggestion. I have a clarity on this issue.

Thanks and Regards
dhama