Student Life in Australia

Student Life in Australia, what to expect on your everyday routine

Living in Australia is an experience like no other, from a new environment, a new continent, to meeting new people and friends and experiencing a journey that you never thought you would, so here is what you can mostly expect on your everyday journey doing everyday things:


Shopping

Australia is also known for shopping and buying great items.  The hours of the malls usually run from 9:00am to 5:00pm seven days a week, with late night shopping until 9:00pm on Thursday and Fridays, so enjoy those days and go out late to shop once your school work is done.  Some supermarkets open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, which is great if you ever just need to go grab something for dinner or you forgot an item.  However, keep in mind most large chain supermarkets, like Coles and Woolworths, are open until about 10pm every day, still giving you enough time to go get anything you need.


Banks

There are many banking institutions which mean many options.  Normal hours are from 9:30am to 4:00pm Monday to Thursday and 9:30am to 5:00 pm on Fridays.  Some banks are open on Saturday mornings, but all are closed on Sunday and public holidays.  Automatic teller machines (ATMs) are ready fro withdrawals 24 hours a day.

Most stores and supermarkets have Electronic Funds Transfer at point of Sales (EFTPOS) terminals where you can pay for your good directly from your bank account, so as long as you have the money in your bank account to cover what you are buying just use the EFTPOS to purchase your items and you can even make withdrawals.  This is another reason why is not so important to carry large amounts of cash with you on hand, you can visit any EFTPOS and quickly withdraw money and pay for items.

Australia’s four major banks with branches are the Commonwealth Bank, ANZ, Westpac and National Australia Bank (NAB).  There are plenty of smaller banks too are just as good.  You can search for more banks at www.infochoice.com.au.


Postal services

Want to send something to someone and make sure they get it? Postal services are provided by Australia Post and mail delivery; services are from Monday to Friday.  For larger packages, a card will be left in your letter box for you to take to your post office to pick up the item.  The postal service is reliable, you can count on them to deliver your package or making sure you receive yours, they are efficient with next day delivery, within the same city too!  Most post offices are open from 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday.  They also sell stationery, post bags, phone cards and stamps; you can pay some bills here too, like electricity and telephone.   

 
Telephones

In Australia local calls can cost about 30cents and are not timed, so for 30 cents you talk all you please.  Interstate and international calls costs vary depending on your service provider.  If you have broadband access at home, if can be cheaper to set up a VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) plan for your calls.

Public telephones are available an accept coins and pre-paid phone calls.  Cell phones are also very popular and are available from a variety of service provider.  You can purchase a pre-paid phone or a post-paid phone (contract phone service).  

A pre-paid phone is a great option for students with limited funds.  You pay for the phone handset upfront (or buy a basic phone for under $100).  A post-paid phone handset is generally free, unless you want something more particular with certain elements included then it can cost you and no matter what you will be bind to a contract with the provider for two years.  You just need to establish which plan would be best for you and your needs.
You can find some plans that cost as little as $20 a month that provide you with $100 worth of calls and text messages.

Major telephone service providers in Australia are Telstra, Optus, Virgin Mobile and Vodaphone.


Internet

Australia has hundreds of Internet Service Providers.  Plans vary in cost and speed of downloading.  You can find information at www.broadbandguide.com.au.  Depending where you live is the options you might have and it’s also the speed you might get.  


Libraries

Public libraries in the cities, town are usually open six days a week (closed on Sundays) and stocks plenty of books, CDs, DVDs, newspapers, magazines, journals and e-books.  If your library does not have what you are interested in you can place an order at another library that does have what you are looking for and ask the library to order it for you.  Borrowing items are free but you will need to join the library in order to have this access and therefore would have a membership card.

You have a period of time with the items you took out and late fee will incur a small fee.


Television

Since March 2009 the free to air digital network has up to 15 digital channels.  You do not need to purchase a license to view free to air or digital channel but there is a monthly subscription fee for the channel available on Foxtel and Austar.


Newspapers

The Australian (www.theaustralian.news.com.au) is Australia’s national newspaper.  Each state has is own major newspaper as well as several regional newspapers and tabloids.

You can do a search for your local paper on www.newspapers.com.au

New South Wales
The Sydney Morning Herald – www.smh.com.au

Victoria
The Melbourne age – www.theage.com.au

Queensland
The Brisbane Courier Mail – www.news.com.au/couriermail

Australian Capital Territory
The Canberra times – www.canberratimes.com.au

South Australia
The Adelaide Advertiser – www.news.com.au/adelaidenow

Western Australia
The West Australian – www.thewest.com.au

Northern Territory
The Northern territory News – www.ntnews.com.ua

Tasmania
The Hobart Mercury – www.news.com.au/mercury

There are also locally produced foreign-language newspapers available in Australia and some international locales in some districts.  That way you can stay up to date with everywhere.

 
Multicultural community groups

Joining groups associated with your home community can be a good way of finding support in Australia, making new friends, learning more about yourself.  There are many ways you can join a community group, for instance where you live they have groups formed already, or in your institutions you can join a club or social activities, you can even create a group yourself and post up adds for anyone interested.  


Some handy website links to help you find groups in your areas:

Australian Capital Territory  www.communitiesonline.org.au
New South Wales  www.communilink.org.au
Victoria  www.multicultural.vic.gov.au
Western Australia  www.multicultural.online.wa.gov.au
Tasmania  www.tas.gov.au/tasmaniaonline
Queensland  www.multicultural.qld.gov.au
South Australia  www.multicultural.sa.gov.au
Northern Territory  www.nt.gov.au/dcm/multicultural
Links provided by the Australian government