Emigration

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haha, I'm not "AfraidToAsk" this, but I wanted some incite anyway.

I turn twenty this February (as I'm sure anyone who has seen my profile, and can subtract could know).

Let me run through some personality facts:

1: I have wanted to be a teacher since 1st grade. I was a student Aide during high school. I am taking education classes in college. I volunteer for teachers for education service hours. I love teaching, and Pretty sure, at this point, it shouldn't be changing. I've explored other fields, and taken classes in them, and have always returned to teaching. (gotta explore before you decide)

2: I've always wanted to live outside the United States. Not some fancy European country, but pull a Canada (or other English country), or something. Just to be a little more rounded, and to be honest, I'm kinda disgusted with the US Government. (young, inexperienced: College liberal bastard) :smile:

3: I finish my Associates in Arts (with emphasis in Education) this spring.

Through talking with some internet friends (yeah, grain of salt), I became interested in Australia.
I've bought and read numerous books, and requested boat loads of information.
I found a program where I can get an Aussie student visa, work 20 hours a week, still use US federal loans, and even get Australian grants to become a teacher.
The culture intrigues me immensely, the weather sounds lovely, and except the abundance of human killing animals, sounds wonderful (again, grain of salt).

I've read a lot of negative things, however, none of them seem to have turned me off from the idea.

I've read books by Australians, by American immigrants to Australia, and gotten educational info.
I have a liaison I've been in contact with, helping me through the process, and if I continue, I could start school in Canberra, Australia in July, seeking a degree in Middle School teaching (which qualifies me for K - 10th grade)

Teachers in Australia make around 48k USD starting (almost 20k more than American Teachers)

Also, cost of living in Australia is only 76 cents for every American dollar (according to the CIA World Factbook) (that means cheaper)

My great grandfather left home from Sweden in 1915 at the age of 17. Shouldn't I be ready?

My main question is:

Is this a sweet deal, the opportunity of a lifetime I've always wanted?

Or am I just some stupid inexperienced brat, ready to toss away his life for a silly dream?

I wanted to add, I've been looking into and working with this liaison for almost 4 months now.

well, I'll have a few years to ring that up.The information I've read, is that it's only hard if you're proficient in a field they aren't needing. Student Visas are relatively easy to get, because they like having your money, and residence visas can be given for teachers willing to teach out in the bush for a few years.And I'm asking for a few reasons.1: it's a hard decision, and I want to make sure I"m doing it for the right reasons.2: I've been ingrained with that "You're too young to know what's best" attitude

well, you've already helped.At least it wasn't a blatant shut out of the idea, which is basically what I'm hoping for. Either offhand help or at least some support.

Indeed you do have to decide, and it sounds like teaching is right for you.I'm actually surprised that more people from the US don't study in Australia, since you guys have to pay substantial fees anyway. I would urge you, though, to check up on where you are going to study. Australia now gets a lot of international students - education is now a large export industry - but some small dodgy colleges have opened to try to cash in on it. Stick to the universities - at Canberra that means the Australian National University or the University of Canberra. (Both of these are relatively small, BTW - Canberra is not a big place.)The weather depends on where in Australia you are. Tasmania is cool temperate. Melbourne is cool and drizzly in winter and very changeable in spring. Brisbane is always fine and sunny and pleasant in winter but hot and humid in summer. Darwin is tropical. Canberra gets cold and windy winters. There aren't a lot of lethal animals, really - the main ones are the snakes and they usually won't touch you if you leave them alone. The culture is probably more laid-back than in the US but apart from that pretty similar.That starting salary is too high. It was probably based on when the Australian dollar was about US$0.95 - it has tumbled to US$0.80 over the last two weeks. It depends on what degrees you have and which state you teach in. If you have a bachelor's degree in education, it's around AUD$50,000 which is now US$40,000. (NB Different states have somewhat different qualification requirements.) The cost of living depends a lot on where you are living: fresh food is cheap but houses are expensive, especially in the major cities. Accommodation is cheaper in the bush.It's easy to get a student visa (you just need to have been accepted into a program, and show them you have enough money to live in Australia), but a student visa doesn't qualify you to stay on after your program has finished. However there are some special schemes for professions that have a shortage, and I assume you've done your homework correctly (I don't know a lot about these).I don't think you should worry about the "You're too young" comments. At your age you are supposed to be making decisions. Getting some experience outside the country is a good thing. So I say, "Why not?".

Yes, I've been looking into University of Canberra.
ANU doesn't have an Education degree.

I choose Canberra because a very close friend is going to attend ANU and if I'm goign to be in a new country, I'd like to have a bit of support.

As for money, I've been working and plan to work full time until I leave, and sell my pick up as well. (I should get about 5k out of it I think) Hopefully, by the time I leave, I should have about ten to fifteen thousand dollars stashed in a non-bankrupt American bank.

I figure though, wages, location, and prices I'll try to worry about after I finish my education.

I think that sounds like an exciting idea. There is just one thing I think worth mentionning. Since you haven't been to Australia you really can't be sure that you will want to stay there after school or if you can. It might be worth checking to make sure that the credentials you would earn there are useable to get a teaching job if you decide to come back to the U.S. I'm sure the degree itself would be fine, but the requirements for teaching may be different.

They are, however, I already have 2 years toward an American bachelors education degree.I imagine that 4 more years of specific educational education would be easily transferable, given I join the correct federal associations and obtain state credentials.

You might get some advanced standing in Canberra - perhaps up to a year, though I'm not sure how that would work with the classroom placements.Because summer in Australia is December-February, the academic year in Australia coincides with the calendar year. Therefore, if you are starting in July you will be starting in the second semester of the Australian academic year. Some programs are so organised that this isn't a problem at all, but in some others, though they take a mid-year entry to accommodate students coming from the Northern Hemisphere, the mid-year entry works less well. It's worth checking this out.

Already have. My liaison informed me that it's no problem.