Tips and tricks for International students living in Australia

Brooke Montgomery

• Most of the student life hacks circulating the internet are more focused on the party life

you have while living on campus, rather than living on a budget in general. For example, reheating leftover pizza on the clothes iron,

cutting the tops off plastic and glass bottles to make cups, or using a tortilla as a bowl so you

don’t have to wash up

• I mean, let’s be realistic, a big part of living as an international student on campus is about

the dorm parties and cheap drinks, but there’s also some really great tips and tricks for

anyone attempting to have the full international university experience on a

budget.

• One study tip I’ve found in my research is to put gummy bears or a square of chocolate after each paragraph of the textbook page. Once you’ve read, the paragraph, you get to eat the gummy bears. It’s a great study incentive and if you’ve got some self-restraint, it actually works!

Some other great tips for living in Australia are:

• Make use of the Universities facilities

– Living on campus gives you a great opportunity to meet new people and

the uni always has support systems like

tutoring or counselling, and even free movie

nights for when you want to save some money.

• Lara – A 21 year old from England who has been studying at the university of Western

Sydney this past year.

• Be prepared for any weather when packing to come here – Australia can be freezing and stormy in summer, and have a heatwave in the middle of winter so don’t

forget to pack a bit of everything. Also remember seasons are opposite here to Europe and America. We don’t have a white Christmas; it’s usually boiling hot

and spent at the beach.

• When you are eating out, tipping isn’t necessary like it is in Europe or the U.S.

Although it is more than welcome if you do tip, people wont look down on you if you don’t.

“I’m so glad tipping isn’t expected here, I’ve saved so much more money because of it!” – Lara, 21

• There’s an unwritten rule to stay to the left –

Walking down the street or on an

escalator, always stick to the left just like

when driving in Australia.

• Try and get used to the currency before you come out here – it makes it a lot easier to make purchases

when you know which notes or coins to take out. Even though you can’t help but

convert the currency back to the one you’re used to, soon enough you’ll get used to the

Australian dollar and how much things should be

worth.

• Olivia – A 20 year old student from the University of Wollongong who’s spending a

semester studying in Massachusetts.

“I definitely understand the struggle of international students now that I am one”

• Buy second-hand textbooks – Its

cheaper and hopefully the last owner will have done some

highlighting or written notes in the margins that’ll help you get

through the semester.

• Learn a little bit of slang before you come – Australian slang is very distinct and knowing the basics before you turn up will go a long way in helping you understand people and can prevent you ordering the wring thing when eating out.

And its not just Australian slang that’s confusing…

• “In Massachusetts, there’s so many slang words. I was so lost when I first got here…even now there’s so many times when I have to ask ‘what does that mean?’ Its so embarrassing!

And the Boston accent itself is hard to understand sometimes, especially when my

friends get excited and talk really fast, it’s the worst!” - Olivia

• Cut out vices – smoking and binge drinking are terrible for you and expensive. Ha

Ha okay I know that one’s a bit of wishful thinking. At

least try to cut down and if you really want to drink,

buy the cheaper brands, it’ll save you some much

needed cash and half the time you can’t even taste

the difference.