AIEC

News and Events


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Latest News:

Release of ESOS Education Services for Overseas Students review issues paper and call for submissions. On 23 September the Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Act 2000 issues paper was released.

Australia: known, loved and spurned everywhere  THE good news is that Australia has again retained its ranking as the world's top country brand. The bad news is that we are not attracting visitors or investment from multinationals. It's a story of lost opportunities.  The Country Brand Index, compiled by global branding specialists FutureBrand and public relations firm Weber Shandwick, ranked Australia number one — for the third year in a row — across 78 countries

Government funded e-marketing kit hits 10,000 downloads in days. A joint state government funded online marketing course for Australian tourism operators is being downloaded by the bucket load by local operators…..The kit, claimed to be the country’s largest free online e-marketing course for Australian tourism operators, is comprised of 37 tutorials to date……… incorporates information about basic online marketing concepts to more complex issues…According to ATDW the current appetite of Australian operators to catch up with the rest of the world on their online marketing prowess.

Go Regional Australia! Lower cost of living, better education and health, nature and recreational facilities and easier to make friends!  Many people are attracted to employment opportunities in regional Australia. Regional Australia offers open spaces, less expensive life styles and the wonderful Australian environment. Many regional centres also have a strong cultural diversity with well established migrant communities. There are a range of initiatives to attract migrants, with particular skills and abilities, to many regions of Australia. The Life in Regional Australia pages show the increasing opportunities for migrants to successfully settle outside of the major Australian cities. 

New permission to work arrangement for student visa holders People granted student visas on or after 26 April 2008 will receive permission to work with their visa grant. This will apply to both the primary student and any family members travelling with them on their student visa. As a result, most student visa holders will no longer need to apply separately in Australia for permission to work.

JJJ Music Radio Documentary "Wide Open Road" a roadtrip through Australia's musical lanscape November 2008

(New) Tourism Australia campaign is no shrimp on the barbie PAUL HOGAN, who once promoted the country with the famous "shrimp on the barbie" commercials, is no fan of the new $40 million tourism campaign.

New Video - Country New South Wales NSW TAFE Institutes - Coffs Harbour, Port Macquarie, Riverina and more

New eVisitor Visa for Europeans From 27 October 2008 eligible passport holders from the EU and other European ETA eligible countries will be able to apply for an eVisitor. eVisitor is for travellers seeking to visit Australia for business or tourism purposes for up to three months. The Internet ETA application will no longer be available to eligible European passport holders, however access will not change through travel agents and airlines.

"The First Australians" New Documentary Series SBS TV

New Tourism Australia advertising campaign....created by Baz Luhrmann Picture Gallery 

"Melbourne outranks Paris" Melbourne not only overtakes Sydney as one of the world's most liveable cities, but leapfrogs Paris into top 10 for quality of life. http://www.theage.com.au/world/melbourne-outranks-paris-20080612-2paf.html June 2008

THE outlook is bleak. Melbourne, not Sydney, is Australia's city of the future.

Australia: known, loved and spurned everywhere  THE good news is that Australia has again retained its ranking as the world's top country brand. The bad news is that we are not attracting visitors or investment from multinationals. It's a story of lost opportunities.  The Country Brand Index, compiled by global branding specialists FutureBrand and public relations firm Weber Shandwick, ranked Australia number one — for the third year in a row — across 78 countriesNew permission to work arrangement for student visa holders People granted student visas on or after 26 April 2008 will receive permission to work with their visa grant. This will apply to both the primary student and any family members travelling with them on their student visa. As a result, most student visa holders will no longer need to apply separately in Australia for permission to work.

Scholarships:

AIEC QUEST cannot give scholarships or grants. Students need to contact their respective government's Ministry of Education to learn about study abroad grants. AIEC QUEST cannot give scholarships, but it is up to students to research and make their own application. If a student cannot apply for a scholarship independently then they have little chance of winning a scholarship on merit.

Australian Scholarships 
Jason's Post Graduate Scholarship Database
Australian Goverment Education Portal Scholarship Listing 
Study in Australia Portal Scholarship Listing 
Australia Endeavour Study Awards Program
The Network Scholarship Programs of the Open Society Institute is pleased to offer supplementary grants to students from Eastern and Central Europe

Australia in the Media and other News:

Traditional Trades Training or Apprenticeships are coming online for international candidates of all ages. Most of these are SOL or MODL and include training hours e.g. Cabinet Making, Building, Bricklaying, Automotive and Air Conditioning Refrigeration, mostly in Melbourne or South East Queensland via both State TAFE and private VET providers.

Changes to the General Skilled Migration Program for students see www.immi.gov.au

Important changes to General Skilled Migration

All Changes click here

Overseas Students Skilled Migration

Skilled Graduate Visa

More Britons look for better life Down Under

They've got the Ashes, a beach lifestyle, and prawns sizzling on the barbie. We've got crime, high house prices and large school classes.

And that, according to Australia, is why the number of Britons emigrating Down Under has almost tripled in four years. Figures released by the Australian government show that 23,290 "settlers" made the move in 2005/06, the biggest annual total since the 1980s and more than 2½ times the 8,749 who went in 2001/02.

Attempting to explain the trend, a senior Australian politician said that crime levels, the terrorist threat and the housing market were all factors.

The Daily Telegraph (UK) 3 June 2007

Uni Grads May Need TAFE for Job Skills

 
The TAFE (VET Vocational Education & Training) sector could become the new finishing school for university graduates as employers express concern that an increasing number of tertiary students are not job-ready after completing their degrees.

The Australian, Higher Ed, 16 February 2007

Australia No. 2 for Lifestyle

"Australia is an attractive option, especially if you're young," the magazine reported. "The climate is good ... the lifestyle is easygoing and there are plenty of ways to spend your days living in the great outdoors."

The rankings were based on scores out of 100 in nine categories: cost of living; culture and leisure; economy; environment; freedom; health; infrastructure; safety and risk; and climate. Australia received excellent scores for climate (89), economy (89), and cost of living (73).

American Traveller 2007

Economic Freedom & Australia

Australia lies 3rd internationally for most economic (and implicit other) freedom, after Hong Kong and Singapore but ahead of the U.S.A., Japan and the E.U.

The Economist Intelligence Unit, 2007

$1 Trillion Legacy..........

THE amount of money Australians have invested in superannuation is about to pass $1 trillion – that's one thousand billion dollars under super funds' management, or $50,000 for every man, woman and child.

The Australian 30 December 2006

Rising demand for uni degrees

AUSTRALIANS are turning to university in an effort to improve their career prospects, reversing a trend of school-leavers taking advantage of record low unemployment and the resources boom to land full-time jobs.

Higher Education, The Australian 28 December 2006

Australia is still the world's favourite holiday destination....

...in the judgment of seasoned international travellers in all age groups. For the second year running, travellers from around the globe who took part in this year's Lonely Planet "Travellers' Pulse" survey have voted Australia as their number one getaway.

The Age December 2006

Employers suffer talent shortages

"Talent shortages among professional workers are emerging around much of the globe...typically middle management accountants, engineers, IT workers, sales/marketing staff and health/medical."

Financial Times, October 2006

Global hunt for 20,000 workers

AUSTRALIA will launch the biggest global recruitment drive for skilled migrants since the "ten pound pom (English)" campaign in the 1950s and 60s, as the Howard Government tries to attract 20,000 workers from across Europe and Asia to rescue key industries from labour shortages.

The Australian, August 2005

Australia Ranked World’s Number One Nation Brand

Australia was ranked first in tourism and immigration (preferred place to live and work). Australia, a new entry has replaced Sweden as the world’s strongest nation brand. Canada was ranked second, Switzerland third, the UK fourth and Sweden fifth.

  • Australians were considered the friendliest, most honest and hospitable people
  • Australians are the preferred nationality to hire
  • Australia is the world’s most powerful tourism brand
  • Australia is the world’s favourite place to live and work
  • The Australian government is seen as trustworthy

Anholt-GMI Nation Brands Index (NBI), August 2005

Australia was placed 5th in a UN study

Australia was placed 5th in a UN study of the most effective education systems among the world's 24 richest countries. South Korea topped the list, followed by Japan. Britain was ranked 7th, New Zealand equal 10th, The USA 18th and Germany 19th.

OECD PISA, 2003

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