Opportunities for Bangladeshi students in New Zealand

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Mohammad Tofazzal Alam | Published: September 08, 2016 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

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With quality education, low cost of living and a welcoming environment, New Zealand poses as a great destination for Bangladeshi students. Every year Bangladeshi students fight for getting into a university in UK, US or Canada  where they face intense global competition. Unlike the situation in those countries, New Zealand does not have massive competition to enter the first year of a university degree. Moreover, the New Zealand government has invested heavily on university education over the years. As a result, New Zealand has more capacity to absorb students from other countries. Therefore, entry requirements are moderate compared with most of the top universities in the common destinations of Bangladeshi students such as USA, UK, Canada.
Although the competition may be low due to many factors, New Zealand still has a progressive education system with state-of-the-art facilities. Qualifications are internationally recognised. Educational institutions in New Zealand offer a wide variety of courses to the international students. The New Zealand government has put strong national quality assurance system, designed to help institutions maintaining the quality and consistency of training and assessment programmes. All courses and programmes offered by registered providers must be approved by a quality assurance body 'NZQA'.
Over the years, New Zealand has become a land of possibility for the Bangladeshi students. They can get permanent residency easily if they are ready to abide by the rules and regulation of New Zealand government. New Zealand immigration process is still easier compared to Australia, USA and Canada. Thus, there is better opportunity for Bangladeshi students who are considering to build a career in a developed country.
For having comparatively low population than the area of the country, New Zealand government approves residency to the eligible international students. Not only that the tuition fees are cheaper than any other country, students in New Zealand get 20 hours of job permit during their study to manage their daily expenses.
Eligible students can apply for visa by themselves. New Zealand Embassy in India processes the visa application of Bangladeshi students. However, as the visa and immigration process is complicated, a little mistake can affect the visa application process badly. It is important that students choose the right visa consultancy firm as there is no embassy of New Zealand in Bangladesh. Applicant has to verify his/her relevant documents by authorized Immigration Adviser or BNZEF (Bangladesh New Zealand Education Foundation ) which costs around 16-20 thousand Taka.
There are eight government funded universities providing undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes. A broad range of subjects are offered there. As the quality of a NZ university education is well recognised internationally, many NZ graduates have been achieving international recognition in their fields.   
The country has a comparatively low cost of living, abundant fresh food at reasonable prices and a wide variety of student accommodation options. Transport is also moderately priced, affording easy access to rivers, mountains, lakes, forests and beaches and the recreational opportunities they provide. As English is the day-to-day language in New Zealand, Bangladeshi students find it very easy to study, live and interact in New Zealand. Moreover, the New Zealand accent is easy to understand. New Zealand offers a safe learning environment. Bangladeshi students can easily consider New Zealand as their one of the top overseas education destinations.
The writer has completed the New Zealand National Diploma in Business Administration and Management (level 5 and 6), tofa25alam.nz@gmail.com