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Talent search: Jugnu Roy.

New Zealand universities are driving the innovation in the education arena. The country is fast becoming the first choice for an increasing number of international students seeking quality education. New Zealand bases its education on the British system.

Studying in New Zealand costs slightly less than in any other English-speaking country in the world. Students get real value for money as living costs and tuition fee are less. Also, the universities over there offer wide-ranging subjects from bioinformatics to animation. The students can work for 20 hours a week during the term time and up to 200 hours during vacation time.

No. We do not offer any kind of scholarship. But the New Zealsnd Government has recently slashed the fee for international Ph.D students. Research students need to pay only the domestic fee (1/4 of the international fee). This is to attract more high quality researchers from all over the world.

As we have been conducting this fair for the past six years, we understand that Chennai students show great interest in business and engineering market.

Also the city is essentially a postgraduate market. Of late, the interest shown for undergraduate courses is also on the rise. We want good quality students from Chennai to study in our universities.

Yes, the number of applications received and the number of admissions has been on the rise. Last year, we received 45,000 applications from India, and a 45 per cent increase is predicted this year.

At present, there are 3000 Indians pursuing their education in the eight universities in New Zealand. This is because the universities there offer flexibility in course duration and commencement dates.

The advantage of studying in New Zealand is that there are only eight universities and all of them are government-funded. There is no ranking of these eight universities and all are absolutely equal. These universities offer a unique learning environment. All universities have an international student centre, which provides the forum for foreign students to interact with other students from their country.

Engineering and technology courses are greatly in demand. As New Zealand is an agricultural economy, all courses related to agriculture are popular and prestigious too. Apart from this, multimedia, animation and design courses are globally popular, especially after the release of films such as Lord of the Rings and The Last Samurai which made use of New Zealand locales and animation technology.

There are two intakes, one in July and the other in February, to the courses. Most Indian universities and the State Board and the CBSE syllabus are recognised in New Zealand. For master’s, the minimum requirement is a pass in undergraduate degree. There is no entrance test for admission to the courses. Only MBA students have to take the GMAT. IELTS or TOEFL is necessary to test the students’ English proficiency, but it is sometimes waived for Indian students.

After completion of the course, students can get a six-month job search visa and work permit for up to two years. After this period, they can apply for a permanent residence if necessary.

Chitra Deepa A.

All eight universities are government-funded and enjoy equal status.

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