Education in Australia

Aussies are actually wise. If they know they can get benefit from you, they will treat you well. That's why their tourism is among the best of the world.

Same situation to education. Their universities organise recruitment talks all over the world, including in many developing countries (e.g. India and China. That's why the campus is full of students from different Asian backgrounds). The staff are cheerful and welcoming. Courses are plenty. The brochures are well-presented and attractive. The school fees seem to be much cheaper than that in the States or the UK.

What they are doing is selling their education as a product. They know that students from the developing world want to get a PR in Oz. They know their advantage as a native English-speaking country...so thousands of students (actually their parents) are willing to spend every penny in their purse for education down under.

But after they come, they will know the reality. Lazy lecturers with little academic involvements, uncompetitive students asking irrelevant question on the class, stand-offish campus officers, weird (at least to foreigners) Aussie humour and accent...even racist violence on campus sometimes. Can't deny that they have good hardware such as big libraries, sufficient budget for research programmes, but the software, i.e. the human intelligence, is not alright.

I wasn't there for a PR (A Dutch passport is convenient enough for me to travel around the world...and I love my country!). I just wanted education with quality. However, it's more than disappointing to me. If they recruit international students, courses should involve more global thinking too. But unfortunately most are quite localised. I know international students need to integrate with Australian culture...but on the other way round, can Australians adapt foreign cultures too? I think the American and British people do much better in this aspect. Personally I have been to both London and Sydney for studies. Studies in London is impressive, because professors lead you to think logically. Many international workshops and seminars organised. Finally I find a reason why Oxbridge and Harvard are always the best unis in the world, but Aussie ones, even with great attempts, can barely enter top 20.

I'm not trying to discourage people to go down under for education. Perhaps if you're outgoing and good at sports, Oz is the place for you - very spacious and good pools/gymnasiums. But for academics, I'll go on the negative side - can't beat the UK and the States. Think and explore more before you come!