Mistakes to learn from while applying for Australian Student Visa

Hey guys, One out of every three graduate students is looking at pursuing masters in their field of interest. Even I have a plan to pursue Masters in Cybersecurity. Initially, I planned to pursue it from the US, but I decided to pursue masters from Australia. One of the fundamental reasons being I had an admit from one of the best universities in the world located in Australia whereas in the US I was only getting into tier 2 universities. Regardless of the country you are planning to go to pursue your Masters in, obtaining the visa is a crucial step. Every country has its own set of rules to provide you with one; For ex. before giving you an Australian Visa, all they check is your medical with some strong financials, whereas for US they look at your Financials, Medical, and an structured interview. I will offer you some insights on how to apply for an Australian Student Visa and from my own first-hand experience.

The process consists of two essential steps:

1. Making the application.

• Getting hold of Confirmation of Enrollment (COE).

Once you have finalized the university, you now have to inform the university about your decision, which can be done by paying some deposit to

he university that will later be deducted from your tuition fee. After this, the college releases a COE against your name, and the department of home affairs is also informed about the same.

• Getting a Loan.

There is a list of accepted banks by the home affairs of Australia, and its better to stick to the banks listed by them.

Bank List

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I took my loan from the Bank of Baroda after comparing most of the banks from the list. The rate of interest offered to me was 8.35%. SBI had an ROI of 9.35%, this could be reduced by 0.5% if you opt to insure your loan and another 0.5% if you are a female candidate, effectively making it to 8.35%.

If you are doing your masters completely on loan, here is an extra procedure you need to follow. You should inform the financer about the fact that you are completely dependent on the loan and ask them to disburse a sum before VISA being issued. Otherwise, you might be required to prove that you have sufficient funds to survive for a year which might go up to 40 Lakh INR. Initially, the bank will not agree to do that but request them and ask them to disburse the amount and mark a lien on the same, till you provide them with a VISA.

You will need a similar letter from the bank.

• Getting an OSHC.

Everything you do here will directly impact the duration of the VISA. Say you get OSHC for only the duration of your education, in that case there are high chances that you will only be issued a VISA for your course duration, which will become a huge problem, if you want to search for a job and apply for a work VISA. Thus, it is better to purchase an extra six months of OSHC which will not only help you get a VISA for a longer duration but also cover you if you are unemployed after your course is over and will give you sometime to look for a job

You can compare your OSHC here.

• Making the documents.

This is the most boring job of the entire process. Gathering all the documents represents just a part of the task, the most difficult part is getting them attested, because during the pandemic when the bank employees are avoiding encounters with people.

The documents demanded are:

1. Applicant's Passport

2. Applicant's Academics (X, XII, Degree)

3. Statement of Purpose

4. Financials (FD, Bank Statements, Net Worth Certificate, ITR for 3 years)

5. Loan Documents (if showing while applying for VISA)

6. Sponsors Passport

7. Sponsors Affidavit

Visa document Checklist

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• Applying to the Australian Government

This is the easiest step of all, provided you fill up all the information accurately. You can also ask your counsellor to do this for you.

2. Getting the medical done.

• Make an appointment.

After paying the fees for the VISA application, you will receive your HAPID is required to schedule an appointment with the physician recognized by the Australian Government. You can review the list of registered physicians here.

• Get yourself examined.

Everything boils down to this point and the final stage, where the faith of your visa is decided. While going to the centre for getting yourself examined do not forget to take your passport and a colour xerox of the passport, along with your HAP ID without the above documents they will not start your examination. It is a full-body check-up. They check your eyesight, height, weight, blood pressure, and also take chest x-ray, and urine culture. Well, the only suggestion I can give here is, don’t empty your bladder just before the examination and “KIDS DON’T DO DRUGS.”

I was assisted by my counsellor Ms. Kanika Shekhawat from IDP, Churchgate throughout the process of acquiring a COE to getting my VISA. If you wish to get in touch with her, here are the details.