# A Few Questions



## jofibeca (Mar 12, 2015)

Hi, 

My name is João (or John, if the til is not available) and I am in need of some answers so I thought the members of this forum here could be of some help! 

My girlfriend and I want to move to Australia after our IELTS exam, with a Working Visa for her (as an Architecture Intern) and with a Student Visa for me (to study a one year course and work a part-time job in the meantime).

My questions are:

1. Are internships paid in Australia, per norm, and if so, how much? Our information right now is that an undergraduate should expect around up to a certain level but that the rules for an internship wage are more flexible, so can we expect to rely on an internship as an living income source? According to payscale, she should be able to expect 2900$ per month with a Masters and less than a year's experience.

2. As an immigrant, is it easy to find a part-time job? My English level is C2 and I've lived in England before so I am not scared with the job environment. I am scared though, since I am an immigrant with an English Majors Degree and a Linguistics Post-grad, that I won't find a part-time job at all.

We want to move there but right now our plan is based too much on assumptions and general info. We need to make sure that, worst case scenario, we can still live there with an underpaid internship and a minimum wage part-time job, ex: two part-time (20h p/week) minimum wage jobs in Australia (16,87$) equal a monthly income of 2699$. 

Is this reasonable to expect? 

So is there a kind and brave soul out there who can elucidate two very eager young people? 

Thanks for reading!

Cheers,
João


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## javeline (Mar 12, 2015)

jofibeca said:


> Hi,
> 
> My name is João (or John, if the til is not available) and I am in need of some answers so I thought the members of this forum here could be of some help!
> 
> ...


Hi john. Good thing you are doing your best to plan well before taking the big leap.I am on student visa and i think you should read my post. This could give you an idea what is up ahead. It will not answer all your queries here but you could get some pointers out of it! Goodluck!


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## aussiesteve (Mar 16, 2012)

jofibeca said:


> Hi,
> 
> My name is João (or John, if the til is not available) and I am in need of some answers so I thought the members of this forum here could be of some help!
> 
> ...


Hi João
You dont say which country your girlfriend is from, as that as well as her age will determine if she is eligible for a working holiday visa or not.
with the downturn in the economy it would probably be difficult for a foreign national to obtain an internship yet alone one where the employer is prepared to sponsor their visa.
If you can prove you have benn in a Defacto relationship for 12 months or more you could add her to your student visa as a partner.
As far as students finding work goes some have had success and others haven't. 
If you are prepared to do ANYTHING you will find a job if you wish to be selective then you may have difficulty.


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