Video summary
The video presents the study visa as a strategic "Plan B" for individuals seeking to secure employment and residency in New Zealand, particularly given the current job-based immigration requirements that make it difficult for those without local experience to enter permanently. The core argument is that obtaining a student visa allows you and your entire family to relocate together; while the primary applicant studies, their spouse receives an open work visa with full employment rights, and children can attend government schools at minimal cost beyond uniforms and textbooks. This approach effectively bypasses the disadvantage of applying for jobs from abroad by placing candidates directly in the local market with "boots on the ground," allowing them to network, understand the cultural environment, and demonstrate their qualifications to employers before even graduating.
Once the academic program is completed, graduates become eligible for a Post Study Work Visa, which typically lasts for three years depending on the level of the degree obtained, such as a one-to-two-year master's or a bachelor's degree. This extended period provides ample time to secure employment with an accredited employer, which is often a prerequisite for applying for skilled migrant residency after five years of residence. The video highlights that studying in New Zealand offers significant financial advantages compared to the United States, where tuition fees are substantially higher and degrees take longer to complete; conversely, New Zealand offers shorter programs like three-year bachelor's degrees and affordable master's degrees ranging from approximately $15,000 to $35,000 USD at various institutions including universities, polytechnics, and private colleges.
To further expedite the path to citizenship, the speakers emphasize the importance of aligning one's studies with occupations on the "Green List," which categorizes jobs based on government shortages and economic needs. Tier One occupations, such as teachers, nurses, engineers, and pharmacists, allow applicants to apply for residency immediately upon starting work in that role, whereas Tier Two roles require two years of experience before an application can be made. The strategy involves studying a relevant field or taking a conversion course, like a graduate diploma in teaching for non-teachers, to qualify for these high-demand jobs. By combining the flexibility of the study visa with the targeted nature of Green List occupations, individuals can create a clear roadmap to not only find employment but also achieve permanent residency and citizenship more quickly than traditional pathways.
Read the full video transcript
Here's one of the ways to get to New
Zealand that nobody really realizes and
it's one of the best and it's one of the
best that I would say 50% of my clients
I tell them that they need to make this
their plan B and for some of them their
plan A. It's the study visa. So let's
talk about the study visa. I am going to
overview it for you and then I'm going
to have my immigration partner come on
and go through it in a lot of detail if
you're actually interested. And it's a
great way to actually bring your whole
family in. The study visa isn't just for
you. So if it's if you one of you or
your partner come in under the study
visa, your whole family can go including
your children uh and they can go to
school there and your spouse or partner
can actually work doing whatever they
want. So it's an amazing option. A
couple highlights, you can work on the
study visa up to 25 hours. You can um
get a much cheaper education because new
you know the US education system is
quite expensive and it takes you a lot
shorter time. In New Zealand, a
bachelor's degree is only three years
and you can get a master's degree in 1
to two years. Now, here's the real
kicker as to why this is really
beneficial to you is because basically
once you're done with the the study
visa, then you move into a work visa
that's 3 years and then hits residency
depending on the um the actual thing
that you studied. And sometimes it's
quicker to get to residency, but in
general, it's 3 years to get to
residency. But let me tell you, it is so
much easier to actually land a job um
when you've actually studied in New
Zealand. You're already there, your
boots on the ground. It is way easier
than getting a job from abroad. Because
if you don't know, in 2023, New Zealand
immigration is now job- based. You are
not coming to New Zealand permanently
unless you have a job. And for some
people, that can be really hard. Even if
you're on the green list, it's really
hard because you are abroad because you
are at a disadvantage than anybody
that's in New Zealand that's looking for
a job. So, this is what makes the study
visa amazing. So, listen up as my my
visa partner highlights all the details
about the study visa.
>> It is really um the most friendly or the
most we've got the most welcoming visa
settings for people to come and study
and and work and live in New Zealand.
So, I'll talk a little bit today about
those options because I'm sure some
Americans look at coming to New Zealand
and they they want to come as a worker
in their profession, but it's hard to do
that if you don't have boots on the
ground. But once you you're on the
ground in New Zealand and you can get in
front of employers, that becomes easier.
And by coming to study, number one, you
can upgrade your qualifications so you
become more employable, but you can also
be in front of employers, understand the
local environment, network, and create
those connections to help you find a job
in New Zealand. Typically the students
that we talk to from America are early
or midcareer and they've taken a
bachelor degree and they're looking at
completing a master's degree in New
Zealand. And a master's degree in New
Zealand can take one year, one and a
half years, two years to complete. And
after that you're able to access a post
study work visa and post study work
visas are 3 years in duration. So at the
very minimum you can stay in New Zealand
for 4 years. So with with this um with
this road map you come and do your your
master's degree and while you've got
that post study work visa you can apply
for an accredited employer job. So let's
say for example you did a master of
management and then you obtained a job
in management in New Zealand then you
can apply within a to to become a
skilled migrant
>> um based on having that accredited job
um or from an accredited employer and
after 5 years of being a resident in New
Zealand you can become a citizen in New
Zealand. So there's some good
opportunities there.
um study in New Zealand work with a
whole range of universities, polytenics
and private colleges. Um in terms of the
investment,
universities are the biggest investment.
Polytechnics are in the middle and then
your private colleges are at the lower
end of investment. Um having said that
the price structure of university
in New Zealand is actually really
affordable and in many cases it's a lot
more affordable than studying in
America. Um instate out of state fees in
America. So if we think about um for
example University of Wicardo, you could
do a master of information technology
for $46,000.
Um that's New Zealand dollars. So that
translates to 26,000 or $27,000.
And at the very low end, um a private
college like Future Skills, you could do
a master of AI for $27,000 New Zealand
dollars. uh about $15,000 US or a bit
over that. And in the middle, those
institutes of technology, they're what
we call polytenics,
they go for around about $40,000
New Zealand, which is about $23,000 US.
So, it's really comparable. And a master
degree from any one of these
institutions is recognized by the
government. Um and it means you which
anyone with any one of these you can um
go on and have your post study work
visa. So it's really quite good. So it
it really is good value to study in a
country like New Zealand which is safe
and friendly and peaceful. And one of
the other great advantages of studying
New Zealand is that you can bring your
family. So you can come as a family unit
and let's say if if you were to come
with your partner and you were the main
visa holder as a student then um your
partner would be able to come with full
work rights which means that you could
do anything from the most basic job in
hospitality right through to a
management role. Um, so it it really is
an open work visa and if you do bring
children with you,
>> then those children can study at a
government school and government schools
here really the there isn't a tuition
fee. Um, basically you're just paying
for school camps, for uniforms, and for
your textbooks and textbooks you can buy
on Facebook Marketplace pretty
affordably. Um, so it's it's a good
situation because your partner can work
while you study and you can also work
while you study 25 hours a week and
full-time during your semester breaks
and then during that post study work
visa period your partner can also work.
So, at the very minimum, if you're doing
a mast's, your partner would have four
years of open work rights, and you would
have that first year doing part-time
work and a bit of full-time work, and
then you'd have another three years of
full-time open work rights. So, here's a
little diagram that just shows you um
I've talked about the masters having the
three-year post study work visa. If you
did a bachelor's, if anyone here was
doing a bachelor's, you also get up to
three years post study work. Why does it
say up to? Because some people might
come to New Zealand with some credit
from their previous studies. So they may
only do two years on a bachelor and then
they would get two years post study work
visa. So it would be commensurate with
the time that you took to study. Um
there's also graduate diplomas and
graduate diplomas are a bridging course
from an undergraduate degree to a
post-graduate degree or they can be a
conversion course. So I'll show you an
example of a conversion course in a
moment. Um, but with that graduate
diploma, you'll get a one-year post
study work visa. And you can, if that
graduate diploma is on the green list,
and we'll talk about the green list in a
bit, then you can also bring your
partner or bring your family with you as
an accompanying visa and have your
children go to school.
So here's a sample post-graduate study
plan and I'm using Oakland University of
Technology as the example on a master of
business management and um this one's 1
to one and a half years. The tuition fee
is almost $60,000 New Zealand but that's
$35,000
which is reasonable, very reasonable.
It's a downtown location with two
intakes. Of course, you can work the 25
hours a week and full-time during
breaks. It's a twin accredited business
school. I'm sure you'd all be familiar
with AACSB. That's a um you know,
obviously recognized um organization in
the US. And you can have your partner
and children come along with you and
then you have the post study work visa
for 3 years with the open work visa and
the work rights and your partner and
children accompanying you. So, it's a
it's a really, like I said before, the
visa settings for New Zealand are really
quite friendly. And then here's the
example of I guess what you'd call a a
conversion course. So, if you've
completed a degree in America, and it
doesn't have to be a teaching degree, it
doesn't have to be an education degree,
it could be something else. Um the
graduate diploma in teaching is
basically providing you a bridging
course between what you've studied and
to become a teacher in New Zealand. So
this gives you New Zealand teacher
registration and teaching is on the
green list and I've said that a few
times and I'll come come to it on the
next slide. Um, but this is a great way
of being able to
take either do a career change or add to
what you've already done and become a
teacher in New Zealand and you've got
the post study work visa for one year
and actually working in has a teacher
placement unit. So if there's anyone on
the call or you know anyone who'd like
to be a teacher in New Zealand, we have
a teacher placement unit that helps
people become teachers in New Zealand.
Um, and that's all over New Zealand, not
just the big cities. So, in rural areas
as well. And I think you'll know that
New Zealand's a beautiful place. So,
there's so many lovely places that you
could teach. [snorts]
So, the green list, I've mentioned it a
few times. Basically, the green list is
a list of occupations that the
government would like to fill um because
they either have a shortage in that
occupation or they want to develop that
part of the economy. And um tier if
you're in a tier one occupation from day
one of working in that role, you can
apply for a residence visa. If you're in
a tier 2 occupation,
then you'll need to work for two years
in that occupation in order to then
apply for the residence visa. Okay? Now,
most of the tier one occupations are
what we call white collar roles and the
tier 2 occupations are more blue color
roles where you get your hands a little
bit dirty.
So, here we go. Here are the um tier one
occupations. Um having said that you
know quantity surveyor and a
construction manager probably are going
to get their hands a little bit dirty on
the job. Um as as with the engineers but
teachers, pharmacists, nurse, doctors,
social workers, psychologists
um these are all on the tier one green
list and there's there's more
occupations particularly in in the
health area. Um so optometrists,
dentists, pharmacists all sit on that um
tier one list.
So the idea is that you could come and
study something related to one of these
occupations and then move into this
occupation, right? Or you could come
with your partner who let's say your
partner's a civil engineer and you could
come and study a master of management
and your partner who's a civil engineer
gets their boots on the ground in New
Zealand is and is then able to apply for
jobs in New Zealand. So really you're
using the the master's degree as your
ticket to exist in New Zealand and
create create opportunities for
yourself.
Um similarly
with you could do the same thing with
the tier 2 occupations. So if your
partner was a welder or a um a fitter
and turner, a panel beater, um any one
of these occupations,
you could come in and study and your
partner could apply for jobs in these
professions. So you use it as a way to
to place yourself in New Zealand and
create opportunity. So, I hope that was
really helpful and please let me know
any questions you have in the comments.
But if you didn't catch it, the quickest
way to actually get residency is to
choose a green list role, study for it,
and then you can land the job and the
residency quicker. It's an amazing
option, and it's a great way to actually
um move your family to New Zealand the
quickest and the easiest. So, I hope
that was helpful. You guys have a great
day.