ISA Study Abroad in Sydney, Australia

I looked at several program options for studying abroad in Sydney, Australia. I picked GlobaLinks because of two main factors: the Bridging Cultures Program and their 24/7 in country support.
The bridging cultures program was an orientation to the program. We went to Cairns for ours. While there we met all of the other GlobaLinks students going to Macquarie and learned about the country and culture. We also held Koala's, fed and pet kangaroos, visited the rain forest, went snorkeling and scuba diving, and had the option to go skydiving, bungee jumping, white water rafting, or horseback riding. It was an amazing four days and really helped to not only adjust to jetlag and homesickness but also make great friends who lasted during the program. Our group really bonded during the BCP.
I also loved that GlobaLinks had 24/7 in country support. They always had someone there if me or my parents needed to talk to someone. I also utilized the coordinators a lot to help plan trips or find things to do.
Macquarie is the only University with it's own train station. This was very important because it's a ride into the city. That was the only negative about studying abroad at Macquarie, however the price difference was well worth the transportation time.
Macquarie also had a nearby shopping center which included an ice rink and grocery store.

Overall my study abroad experience was one of the best of my life and I'm so glad I chose GlobaLinks Learning Abroad

I have an amazing experience. GlobalLinks Bridging Culture Program provided me a week of continuous fun and adventures. I was able to connect with other students and create memories to last a lifetime. When I arrived in Sydney my housing was set up for me and the process to get there was fairly simple.

Studying abroad in Sydney is everything I dreamed it would be. I loved the laidback attitude of the Aussies. I still hope to move back someday.

I recommend taking advantage of everything there is to do. Get involved, just like when you were a freshmen at your home Uni. Join a few clubs at the involvement fair. Go to trivia night at Sydney University Village (student housing). Go on one of the abundance of harbour cruises offered at the beginning of the semester. Go to the free concerts offered by University of Sydney.

Before your trip, get an idea of where you want to travel when you are there. Once you arrive, time flies and it can be hard to leave your home base city. I knew I wanted to do a trip to New Zealand and when my friends bailed on the idea I went by myself. I met people from all over the world and still had an amazing time.

If your into being active/outdoorsy I recommend going to a weekend long surf camp. There's also camping and hiking in the Blue Mountains. I joined the Sydney Uni Waterski/Wakeboard Club and got to go on weekend trips with them to wakeboard on the Hawkesbury River. Some cool hikes in the city are the Manly Scenic hike and the oceanside hike from Bondi Beach to Coogee Beach. The Sydney Bridge Climb is a must-do as well.

If your more of a city dweller, explore the neighborhoods of Sydney like Newtown and Surry Hills. Walk down George Street. Visit the malls at Darling Harbour and Bondi. Check out the nightlife at King's Cross.

Overall, just make sure your making the most of your experience. There are endless things to do and see and you won't regret draining your bank account as you watch the sunrise over Uluru in the Outback. Cheers.

GlobaLinks has been a great help in facilitating my move to the University of Sydney. The staff provided me with all the services I required, from offering advice on particular universities to helping me find a great place to live.

Sydney is a wonderful place to study. The university itself is excellent, and the Sydney has much to offer an ambitious tourist. It is altogether beautiful and lovely here. The people are friendly. The transportation is affordable and very reliable. It truly is an ideal place for anyone interested in serious study, and some great fun on the side.

My time at ICMS is priceless. The school is small enough that class sizes are small and you get the opportunity to really get to know your instructors. The instructors are highly knowledgeable, because they are working in the industry that they teach on. As a school of management, they are focused on the special programs and degrees they offer, and that focus is reflected in the quality of education. I participated in the Event Management program and got more hands-on experience in one term there than I got in 3+ years at my home university in America.

This particular school requires a uniform of business attire, provided through the school. If you have never been required to wear a uniform, you may be wary of this, but I found it to be a wonderful benefit. Everyone knows exactly what they will wear to class and what is expected of them. The goal of the uniform is to help you achieve a high degree of professionalism in your appearance to prepare you for the business world.

The student population in very diverse, with students from over 60 countries. While being immersed in the Australian culture, I got to experience other cultures on a daily basis through fellow students. The staff at AustraLearn and ICMS did a fantastic job with orientation and getting students acclimated to life abroad.

The living situation is quite good on campus. Room furniture is provided, along with housekeeping, bed linens, and laundry service for the provided bed linens, and a phone. Each floor has community bathrooms, which were kept clean. I happened to have a room at the top front of the castle, overlooking the ocean, which was breathtaking. Computer labs are conveniently located throughout the school to easily complete school work, or wireless is offered for use with personal laptops. Internet access is limited and must be paid for, if you go over your allowance. I had not trouble with this. I was able to complete my work and keep in touch with friends and family. I preferred spending time out and about. The food was also very good and the chefs did a great job catering to the diverse tastes of the international students. Eating everyday outside in the sunny weather was just lovely.

The fun never ends. Manly Beach is just a short walk down the hill. I went almost everyday to relax, swim, and surf. ICMS provides some sporting equipment, including surf boards, for students to use, and they offer a surfing lesson at orientation. Right by the beach is the Courso, filled with shops, restaurants, and bars. At the other end is the wharf, where you can catch the ferry to the heart of Sydney. Once there, you can walk or catch a bus or train to anywhere in Sydney, or take the train further for a weekend trip. The public transportation is excellent. It is clean, safe, and reliable. ICMS also has something going on almost every weekend in the way of excursions, for an extra fee, such as sky diving or surf safari. I went on the surf safari, where we went down the coast for the weekend to catch some great waves and get more surfing lessons. It was a great price and we had a great time.

Studying abroad anywhere is definitely different and comes with its own difficulties, but the overall experience is worth every penny and every moment. I had a little trouble adjusting to the grading in the classes. The grading scale is different and most classes offer grades for a minor project, major project, and a comprehensive final exam. They don't have all the busy work and quizzes and mid-term exams like American universities do. It is nice because it is less busy work, but difficult because there is less room for error on the few graded assignments. However, I found my professors were incredibly helpful and quite available to me if I had questions or needed help completing an assignment or studying for exams.

In the end, I ended up with memories and friends for a lifetime.

The International College of Management in Sydney is one of the best schools in the New South Wales area. Not only is the staff and faculty friendly and helpful, but the student body and its diversity in students and personalities guided me to some life's most important decisions: how to have fun! The academics are rigorous, but well worth it. In today's competitive work environment, I still mention projects and learnings from my class time at ICMS. The social scene is awesome since the college offers many extracurricular activities and school-wide outings. I would recommend this school to anyone who is looking for an academic and social challenge. Did I mention the housing overlooks Manly Beach?

I loved my study abroad program through AustraLearn.

The program itself was set up to make sure we, as students, were ready not only for the academic differences between American and Australian universities, but also for living in Australia.

We had "orientation" at the Great Barrier Reef. There we had the chance to explore Cairns and the GBR, learn to look right when crossing the street, and other cultural tidbits from people who have lived/are living in Australia.

UNSW itself was great. The classes were set up in a large class then a "tute" which had either the actual lecturer or tutor with a smaller number of students. This helped because I was not used to large class sizes; so I went to the first large class and then brought my questions to the tute where I knew I would get more personalized attention.

I lived off-campus in Coogee. It was definitely an amazing experience. Although I didn't feel as connected to as many Australians as my friends who lived on campus did, I still managed to meet and befriend a lot of people from Coogee and from UNSW. You just have to put yourself out there- Australians are super friendly.

Things: I loved about living off-campus in Coogee:

1. AustraLearn set up my housing
2. A great house with great people
3. Being a 1 minute walk to the beach
4. I felt like I was living in Australia- went grocery shopping, out to eat in my neighborhood, got to know my neighbors, had to take out my own trash, etc.
5. Just a short bus ride away from Sydney's CBD and the nightlife there

I really loved studying abroad in Sydney. I do wish someone had told me how expensive everything was (especially food and alcohol) but I feel that my money was very well spent. I traveled throughout Australia (as well as Fiji and Asia), met incredible people, and really felt like I became a part of Australia rather than just a traveler. I would definitely recommend this program.

...was to study abroad in Sydney, Australia. Although it has been three years, it feels like yesterday that I was boarding the plane and headed halfway around the world.

Ever since I was young I have had a desire to go to Australia. My cousin happened to study abroad at the University of Sydney, and after doing research I realized that was the place for me. Normally not a city girl, Sydney is one of the two cities I would ever live in (the other being Christchurch, New Zealand). AustraLearn made the application process so smooth - I still remember where I was when I got the phone call that said I was accepted into the program. When I tell people I remember every single moment of my journey, I am one hundred percent serious.

I highly recommend to everyone studying abroad to take advantage of the orientation week. It's the first time you get to relax and take in this fantastic chapter of your life. I met two of my best friends this week!

I was lucky enough to find friends that were more into traveling than going out to bars (since we were legal in Australia). One of my best friends and I decided to buy a three month train ticket that allowed for unlimited trips between Brisbane and Melbourne. What a perfect choice we made!! While most people in our program traveled north to the islands for spring break, we went south and ventured to Kangaroo Island (one of my favorite places to ever exist in the world). Additional trips included Fraser Island, a surfing weekend, Melbourne, Adelaide, driving along the Great Ocean Road, Katoomba and hiking in the Blue Mountains, skydiving in North Wollongong, I could go on for hours (literally).

My classes were wonderful - the professors were incredible and wanted us to experience the country as best we could. I opted to take classes that were designed for study abroad students, meaning we got to go on field trips (think rugby match, swimming competitions, plays - Billy Elliot was FANTASTIC, and a tour of the Opera House). Sydney University is a gorgeous school, and I miss seeing jacaranda trees and magpies on my walks to class.

The Australian people are some of the nicest I have ever met. Always willing to help or talk, they're kind and generous; there is nothing negative to say about the country or its people.

One thing I recommend to everyone is to do their research. My friends at I would park ourselves at Gloria Jeans and try to find the coolest places to go and things to do while we could. Also...don't be afraid to ask questions!! Most people would love to help you out! After debating where to go one day with our train passes, my friend and I ended up going right down to Sydney Central and asking the gentleman at the counter what we should do for the day (we ended up going to a beach in Newcastle). Another time we took the bus to Circular Quay and walked back to the SUV - hitting every travel agency we spotted trying to find our spring break trip. Why do what everyone else is doing when you could go somewhere completely new?!

I never once got homesick. Sure, I talked to my family once a week. I didn't stay holed up in my room video-chatting or going onto social networking sites. GO OUT AND EXPLORE!! I took over 6,000 pictures in Australia alone. I have a box in my room that has every memento from my trip (including the wrapper from the first Tim Tam I've ever had! Excessive? Probably. But I can't seem to throw anything away that has some tie to Australia).

I highly recommend the YHA Hostels for traveling. They're so clean and you feel completely safe in them. The people there are always more than happy to help you out.

After my study at the University of Sydney ended, I took a two and a half week trip to New Zealand with three of the friends I met (two from orientation). I bungee jumped (twice), sailed in the Bay of Islands, took a vintage car drive around Christchurch, dolphin watched in Akaroa, and cruised in Milford Sound. My five month journey concluded all too fast.

It has been one of my top priorities since I've returned to share my experiences with others who are interested in studying abroad. My five-month adventure was absolutely flawless and I want nothing more than the same for others who are thinking about going (GO!).

So basically...if someone were to only read the final sentence of this review, I'd say this:

There will never be a day that I do not think about my trip. I tell everyone - "I could leave wherever, whenever, dressed however, and be at the airport in twenty minutes to go back. No question."

Australearn helped set up an amazing program for me from start to finish. The University of Sydney is set right in downtown Sydney. Don't let that fool you though because the campus is big and beautiful and you do not even feel like you are in a big city until you look up and see the skyscrapers in the CBD. The nightlife in Sydney is world-class and there is always something to do. Not taking away from USyd's academics though, the university is world-class as well. Also, Sydney is centrally located on the east coast so you are only a plane ride from anything and everything fun in Oceania.

This semester I decided to study abroad at the University of New South Wales and it is a decision I absolutely do not regret! I would recommend this school for a few reasons; the main three positives I want to highlight are location, versatility, and pleasantness.
UNSW is in a prime location because on any given day, one can take a 10 minute bus ride from campus to the heart of downtown, take a scenic 20 minute walk down to the beautiful Coogee beach, or drive up north for about an hour to visit the breathtaking Blue Mountains and rainforest – all straight from campus! If you study here you’ll likely live in one of the adjacent neighbourhoods that would put you possibly even closer to these locations! (However, there are many, many available options such as living on campus, as I am doing and am absolutely crazy about.) Another great thing about the location is that no matter if you’re a small-town, simple-pleasures kind of person, or if you’re a hustle & bustle urbanite, you’ll be able to feel totally comfortable. The campus is right in residential areas where you can feel secluded and safe, like you’re at home, and really close to the busiest commercial area in Australia, where there is always some event going on and you’ll never run out of places to see and things to do. Personally, I love the mixture of both atmospheres because I come from an extremely small town in the Midwestern USA, but I’ve always craved the city life, so this location is prime.

A great thing about UNSW is its versatility. What I mean by this is that no matter what type of experience you want to get out of University life, you will no doubt be able to find it at this school and in the greater-Sydney area. The student population is extremely diverse and multi-cultural, so one is able to learn vast amounts about the special unique culture of Australia, as well as pretty much everywhere else in the world. I have personally met people from countries I did not even know existed, and by now probably have a connection with someone in almost every region of the planet. The social scene is very versatile, offering many student organizations and opportunities to meet new people, and if one sets their mind to it, it is very easy to search the internet on any given weekend and given countless activities hosted by the school’s various clubs and offices, as well as the myriad activities hosted by organizations in the neighbourhoods of Sydney. Academically, UNSW offers the most majors/fields of study of pretty much any school in Australia, and practically all the programs are top-notch. I am personally a Psychology and Communications major and I feel confident that even though I’ve been afforded the luxury of taking some electives and having an enjoyable class experience here, that simply having UNSW’s title attached to my résumé will be a great asset to my future prospective pathways. For the sake of this review, trust me when I say no matter what you’re into (or even if you don’t know what you’re into and what to find out,) that UNSW will allow you to continue enjoying it and explore it even further – academically, socially, and intrapersonally.

Finally, I thought I’d mention the pleasantness of studying here overall. While I must say after travelling some and meeting so many people that almost the entire population of Australia seems happy and agreeable, I believe this particular community of UNSW in the Sydney area has a certain enjoyability about it that I was never able to find back home. I have had the fortune of being able to live on-campus in a community full of internationals and about 90% native Aussies, and I have never felt more accepted and actively involved with my peers as I do now. I’ve learned so much about the people here & abroad just from making friends and they have pretty much gone out of their way to make sure that I enjoyed my time here. The community is great, and the natural geography is even greater.

In about 3 short months I’ve been in ocean reefs, on the sunny coastline, in the snowy mountains, in the desert, lost in an expansive bustling downtown, in the craziest night-clubs, in peaceful gardens, and so, so, much more. A lot of these opportunities were thanks to the specific location of my school, the specific people I’ve met here, and the unique trips offered by the offices of UNSW alone. I really recommend studying here, and going abroad overall, good luck!

There were definitely pros and cons to attending this program.

Cons:
• It was a little far from the center of Sydney, but there was excellent transportation
• Housing- Not a lot a Australians live in the Village. I went in hoping to live with people from other countries, but lived with Americans. They also completely ignored everyones housing requests, ie I asked to live with all girls, they put me in a house with two guys. Also the maintenance isn't good at all. However the housing is spacious and once you get over that it isn't the most glamorous of housing it really is a super fun place to live.

Pros:
• Great public transportation. With a train station on campus and busses going everywhere getting around is easy!
• Social scene. It's pretty easy to get involved on campus and meet people. I met my best Australian friends through the clubs on campus.
• Lifelong bonds. I can honestly say I got the closest I have ever been to my friends while abroad. Going through an experience like that together really bonds people and I know that I now have made lifelong friends.
• The city of Sydney! The city itself is massive, there is always something new to do or somewhere new to explore. The city is simply amazing.
• Airfare is cheap within the country! As amazing as Sydney is, you should make sure to travel while in the country. With convenient transportation to and from the airport and cheap airfare prices Sydney is a great place to study at if you want ot be able to travel too.

Things I found from AustraLearn.

• The first week orientation in Cairns was awesome.
• AustraLearn overcharges you for housing. Housing prices are also very expensive as it is, but you can avoid all these prices if you come to the school through an exchange program instead.
• If you live in Sydney University Village, expect to meet mostly Americans, the Australian students mostly live in on campus villages or elsewhere.
• Once you get to Australia and into the school, you don't really need the study abroad program. In fact you have little to no contact with them again.

That being said Sydney is a beautiful city, and the university is amazing. This is a great experience and a lot of fun. But I would suggest that this same experience would have been possible for a lot less money out of the pocket.