Australia Student Visa Requirements Eased
April 11th, 2011 by Jennifer FrankelYou may remember from our initial report back in September that enrollment of international students in Australia were dropping. The most staggering statistic was that international students from India, making up 20% of the total number of international students, dropped by over half compared to the year before.
As of April 2nd, the Australian government will require less documentation from international students applying for their student visa for 38 countries – including in India. The student visa gives students the opportunity to temporarily study in Australia. The government is now reaching out to students, families, agents and educational providers with the hope that these changes will increase the number of international students in Australia.
With this ease in student visa requirements for Australia, fewer documents are required and visa processing should be both easier and faster. Students will now be able to present less evidence of English proficiency, academic qualifications, and financial capability depending on their country of origin.
While the government is eager to stress that this will not change the permanent resident application process, students should know that studying in Australia should be a much easier process. Currently, the top sending countries of international students in Australia include India (80,450 students between 2009-2010), China (80,010 students between 2009-2010), and South Korea (21,720 students between 2009-2010). Two of the top three countries, both India and China, are included on the list of countries that this new mandate will apply to.
Tips for Taking a Road Trip in America
April 8th, 2011 by ahoontrakulAmericans are in love with cars and unless you live in one of the few major cities, you understand that it is hard to live without one. Because the United States is so big, there are vast distances between places and you will find that the public transportation is not as extensive as other countries. Having a car gives you access to really experience the many different facets of American culture. Taking a road trip can be a fun and economical way to see the country, especially if you share the trip with a few friends.
Each place in the US has its own unique culture and scenery. Take a road trip and you will see that America is really not all the same everywhere like the movies and news media might make it out to be. From the New England small-town charm and the history of early American settlement by the Europeans, you can compare the internal culture by traveling south for the famous southern hospitality and comfort food. If you are continuing to explore, drive further south to the beaches in Florida and Little Havana in Miami. Go west to Texas where everything is bigger, up to the bread basket with its vast farm land. See the famous Yellowstone National Park or go further west and hit the more progressive San Francisco.
As with taking any trips, you should do some planning beforehand to make sure that the trip goes smoothly. Here are some tips to help you plan a fun and successful road trip in America:
– Consider how much time you have and where you want to go: This will help with the next step of planning the road trip and also with budgeting.
– Get together with your travel buddies to plan the trip: The planning process is half the fun, and it is a great bonding experience. Planning it together also ensures that everyone has a say in where to go and what to do so no one feels left out. After all, you will be spending a lot of time with them on the road trip, and an unhappy companion will lead to an unhappy trip!
– Create a budget: By mapping out where you plan to travel, you can calculate how much you will have to pay for fuel; there are several fuel cost calculator online to help you budget. It is also important to think about where you will sleep; remember that the US doesn’t have many hostels, most stay in a hotel or motel and if you feel adventurous you can also try camping! Check out our recent blog on other alternative places to stay while traveling.
– Bring entertainment: Even with your favorite CD, listening to the same few songs over and over again may lead to boredom. Be sure to remember classics that everyone can enjoy!
– Try going off the interstate: US interstates are a great way to travel from one place to another, but with it comes all of the chain fast food restaurants. If you want something more unique, try going on local roads once in a while.
– Consider a GPS: While getting lost can be fun and often lead you to interesting places, not knowing how to get back to where you need to be when you need to be there can be stressful. Many smart phones today may have GPS, but if you are in a location where there is no cell phone signal, your phone may not work either. Don’t make yourself completely dependent on technology, bring an old fashion paper map.
– Bring food and drink: Stopping too many times to buy food will only takes time from your other activities so pack wise to maximize your time.
– Have fun!: Sure you should plan ahead, but you don’t have to plan the trip down to the minute. If you see something interesting on the road feel free to stop and take a look.
– Stay rested and don’t drink and drive! Remember that most states it is illegal to have an open container of alcohol in the car with you – that is even if you are not drinking it.
If you are a foreign national in the US, make sure that you have travel medical insurance coverage that would cover you nationwide in case you get sick or injured on your road trip. Don’t forget that you will also need to have a valid driver license in the US, and be sure to have auto insurance coverage for your rental car as well.
Do you have any other tips for taking a road trip in America you would like to share? Please leave a comment for us.
iPad winner revealed!
April 4th, 2011 by ahoontrakulAfter drawing the winner of the International Student Insurance Facebook Fan page iPad sweepstakes last Friday, we promised that we would be announcing the name of the winner today, so here we go!
Our winner is from Hong Kong, but currently studying Chemical Engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. Kui Lun Tze is an international student on an F1 Visa who is in his junior year and has been in the USA for 2 years now and has 2 more to go!
Congratulations to Kui Lun Tze! We will be sending him a brand new white iPad 2 and we hope to have a picture of him with his new iPad when he gets it!
Thank you for everyone who has entered for the chance to win. Stay tuned to our Facebook, Twitter and blogs for more fun and interesting stuff. As always we’re open to any suggestions on what you’d like to see posted and comments.
International Students in the United States are in Demand Among Public High Schools
April 4th, 2011 by Jennifer FrankelWith over 18 thousand high schools around the United States, trends are changing where both public and private schools are reaching out to international students around the world. While private high schools have historically hosted international students prior to gaining entrance to a higher level institution, public high schools are now realizing the advantage and changing their strategy.
Now, public high schools are looking to international students to create a mutual beneficial partnership. International high school students are being welcomed to study in the US with the opportunity of improving their English, gaining exposure to other cultures, and the hopes that studying in the US during their high school years will give them an advantage of gaining admission to a US college or university.
Students are not the only one gaining the advantage. Public high schools are finding a new market to increase enrollment (especially in struggling areas where students are moving out of the area), cultivate a diverse learning environment, increase local revenues, and improve their school’s statistics (i.e., exam pass rates, number of students taking high level class, college acceptance figures, etc.).
This is among the most recent trends among public high schools that typically cater to local students in their district. States like Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Ohio, Virginia, and Washington are looking to recruitment agencies to reach out to the international community in hopes of driving students to their local town to pursue their education. According to US visa requirements, students can only study at a public school for a maximum of one year. Because of this, many international high school students view this as a unique opportunity to learn in the US and improve their English and perhaps later transfer to a private high school or improve their chances of gaining college admissions.
The International Student Insurance’s iPad Sweepstakes Winner is…
April 1st, 2011 by ahoontrakulThank you to everyone who entered into our iPad sweepstakes. We really had a lot of entries. The entry form was open for three months starting in January; since then we have had more than a thousand submissions. After sorting through the entries we put each person’s name into a list (no one gains any advantage by submitting themselves multiple times) and assigned each person a number; we then used a computer random number generator to pick a winner.
Here’s the moment you were waiting for! We now have a winner! If you’re the winner, we’ve sent an email to you, so check your emails! If we don’t get a reply email from you by Monday April 4th, 2011 we will pick another winner. Once we have received the reply from our winner, we will post the name here on our blog for everyone to know, so check back often to see!
As always, we will continue to post interesting and relevant information about international student insurance, as well as fun facts for those who just like traveling. We are always open to any suggestions on what you would like to see just post in our blog, twitter or Facebook page, let us know what you want us to talk about, questions you have or suggestions for any fun activities we can do in the future.
iPad Sweepstakes – Ending Today!
March 31st, 2011 by ahoontrakul
Our official Facebook fan page launch sweepstakes is coming to a close. Today, March 31st 2011 is the last day to enter for your chance to win an Apple iPad from InternationalStudentInsurance.com. We will only be accepting new entries up to 11:59pm GMT-5, if you haven’t entered yet hurry before it’s too late – you only have 6 hours left as we write this post to enter!
Stay tuned to our blog and Facebook page in the next few days to find out who the winner will be!
Good Luck!
Thai International Student Health Insurance for Studying in the USA
March 25th, 2011 by ahoontrakulThe USA is a popular country for students from all around the world who want to study abroad, and for students from Thailand, it is one of their top destination choices. During the 2009/2010 academic year, over 8,500 students from Thailand came to study in the US. One thing many Thai students may notice is that the US medical system is very different when compared to the medical care you would receive in Thailand.
For those that have experienced the medical system in the USA, one thing that always sticks out to them is the high cost; in fact the cost of medical care in the US is the highest in the world! That is why it is very important to have adequate medical insurance, a simple doctors visit in the USA can cost you anything from $100 to $500 depending on the sickness.
While in Thailand it is also common to go to the hospital for both major or minor sicknesses and injuries – the hospital is your one-stop resources for most medical care. In the United States, however, this is not the case, hospitals are designed to be for emergency situations and when you are in need of very urgent care – you should not go to a hospital for minor injuries in illnesses, for that type of care, you should visit either a local doctor, or an urgent care center. If you need prescription medication after seeing a doctor you would also need to go to a drug store that is separate from the doctor’s office.
If you are planning on studying in the USA, most schools and colleges will require you to purchase an international health insurance plan that protects you and provides health insurance coverage in the event you get sick or injured. A popular option is the Thai international student insurance plan; this plan comes in three levels so you can choose whichever works best for you. You can also apply directly online anywhere around the world and it can start as early as the same day you complete the application. To check if this Thai international student insurance will work for your school, check out our school requirements page.
You can also call or email info@internationalstudentinsurance.com with any additional questions, our representative can also assist you in Thai. (เราพูดภาษาไทย)
Places to stay while traveling
March 18th, 2011 by ahoontrakulSo you are on your semester break and want to take a vacation somewhere, you’ve check the price for the plan ticket, now you need to find a place to stay. Accommodation is a major cost when you are traveling. Sure, you can stay in a hotel but many students are on a budget and hotels can be expensive.
Hostels are usually the first choice for a cheaper alternative to hotels. Two popular hostel booking websites on the internet are hostelworld.com and hostelbookers.com both have listings of hostels from all around the world and from my experience. You can also check out the listings on the InternationalStudent.com travel center where you can book youth hostels online also , as well as a number of other services.
But if you’re sick of hostels and don’t want to share a room with multiple strangers or sleep in a dirty bed (although many hostels are very clean and meeting random people can be a fun and rewarding experience) or just want a different kind of experience, you might want to take a look at airbnb.com. This site allows people to rent out a room or even sometimes an entire house. If you are traveling with a group of friends this might be a better deal than staying in a hostel. In most hostels you are paying for each person individually, but if you can find an apartment for 4 people and split the cost, you may end up getting a better/better place for less money.
If you really are tight on money or just enjoy meeting people, check out couchsurfing.com. This site is a community for people who have an extra couch or bed to connect with people who need a place to sleep for free. The website already has over 2 million members, and has been increasingly growing in popularity. Keep in mind that you’re stepping into a stranger’s house. While the site has some securities features, many of them are optional. You should always take precautions personally if you do decide to couch surf.
You may also want to consider Servas.org (similar to couchsurfing.com). This is a non-government organization with connections to the United Nations. The security procedure for Servas is more formal and includes an interview with an authorized Servas member.
Do you have other suggestions that are not listed on here? Leave a comment and share your secret!
