emmaff

The days of going to Australia for a medical degree are over. Do NOT to go Australia for medical training for any reason. I have posted a warning previously (a year ago), but is appears my posting has been taken down for unknown reasons. Going to Australia for medical training has previously been an attractive option, but things have drastically changed. Australia, particularly Queensland, has significantly increased the number of medical school seats for nationals (they have every right to do so), and this is having serious implications on international students who have spent incredible amounts of money on their degree, graduating with overwhelming debt and having no job. In no way am I trying to dissuade you to become a doctor, but graduating from a program with massive debt and no job is not a wise decision. The government has implemented the CMI program for a number of years, but now that there is a surplus of Australians graduating from medicine (and again, I am not suggesting this is wrong), there is a serious problem finding a job and the CMI program is largely inadequate. If you are Canadian, you may think there is a good chance you will secure a position in Canada, but your odds are 1/10 for international positions and you are competing with an incredibly competitive market. If you look at the data, UQ charged $50,000/year tuition not long ago and had a large international cohort. Now they have a small cohort and charge $70,000/year to make up their losses. There is a good reason for the large drop in international students. Of course UQ is not an isolated example. There are an excess of medical students in NSW and Victoria that have come to QLD for jobs in the past, but now that QLD have increased their numbers, people are getting stuck with a medical degree and no job. At $70,000/year for tuition, you will most certainly spend $100,000/year all up (tuition, housing, expenses, etc) and you are looking at a minimum of $400,000 for a degree in which case some people have no job. Despite the fact of whether your parents have the money to pay for your tuition or not, I can tell you it is not worth it. I would also like to add that the Australian Federal government is planning (technically only in discussion, but likely proceeding) to restrict permanent residency for medical trainees which would remove the possibility of specializing in Australia.... so unless you are one of the few that secure a job in the country in which you are coming from, you would be stuck working as a resident for a very long time with low wages.... your $400,000 debt would take you about 40 years to pay off at best. Please take this information and think before making any impulse decisions.