Applying to study
Choosing to study in a new city and a new country is a huge leap, but there are steps you can take to make the transition easy
Applying to study in a new environment requires a whole lot of decision-making, filling out forms and ticking boxes.
To ensure the move to your new place of study and home is a positive experience, we’ve outlined a few key things to sort out first.
Choose your school or subject
First and foremost, start with deciding what you want to study and where exactly. Wellington’s education providers are world-class, so you are spoilt for choice. We have pre-schools (under 5s), primary schools (ages 5-12), highly-ranked secondary schools (ages 13-19), and our universities are ranked in the top three percent in the world.
If you’re looking at tertiary institutions, choose an area of study first and then look at which facility may specialise in that topic. Each of our universities is ranked in the top 100 in the world for one or more of their specialist areas – Massey is ranked 51st in art and design, Otago 66th in life sciences and medicine, and Victoria is 46th in law.
Start your search for courses, degrees and institutions.
Apply for your student visa
Once you’ve decided on what to study and where, you’ll need to apply and be offered a place by your chosen education provider. When you’ve accepted your offer of study, you can start your visa application.
If you’re studying a fulltime course in New Zealand for more than three months you can apply for a student visa, which allows you to study here for up to four years or for the length of your course.
The pathway student visa is another option if you plan to study more than one course in New Zealand. It allows you to study up to three consecutive courses for up to five years with one or more education providers.
Both visas will allow you to work part-time up to 20 hours a week while studying and fulltime in the holidays, depending on your course of study and visa conditions.
Look into scholarships
Once your visa has been approved you can look at making the move to Wellington. It’s a big investment but scholarships are a great way to help pay for studies and living expenses.
There are scholarships available for international students for a range of subject areas, schools and financial and family situations.
