The article is written by Jane Churchill
LANGUAGE BARRIERS
Darren (Hong Kong): One thing I wish I knew before coming to Australia was that the English I knew was not the English many Australians speak (particularly young people)! I really struggled to understand people when I first arrived because almost every sentence has a slang word or strange expression in it. I wish I knew more Aussie-slang before I came so I wouldn’t have felt so confused!
Ingrid (Sweden): One thing I wish I knew before moving to Perth was how sarcastic the humour is here; I never know when people are joking or being serious! Australians will insult you- but they mean it in a nice way (this is a way they express their friendship). I have learnt that it is best to assume if an Australian says something rude, they are probably just joking!
INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIANS
Isabel (Sweden): Before coming to Australia I really did not know anything about the Indigenous Community here. Indigenous Australians are a big part of Australian culture and I think if I had done some research before moving I would have understood some of the issues like Australia Day a bit more. Also, Aboriginal traditions and culture are just really interesting and very different to Sweden obviously! I would encourage everyone to learn about Indigenous Australians before studying here.
GETTING A JOB
Ligia (Colombia): I wish I knew how hard it was to find a job. As international students are limited to hours we can work, it was hard in the beginning to find a place that would hire me. As most Australian students also work part-time, there is much competition, especially in areas close to universities. I found that applying for jobs online was really a waste of time and that the best way is actually to just walk around and hand in your resume in person.
PUBLIC TRANSPORT
Darren (Hong Kong): Coming from a place where public transport is so good, I really struggled to adapt to how (bad) the public transport system is here (Perth). In particular, the buses. They are never on time! Sometimes they just don’t even show up. I have learnt to always have a backup plan and to allow extra time when using public transport…
CONVENIENCE
Emma (United States): I wish I knew that America is the land of convenience and that the rest of the world doesn’t operate in the same way. 24-hour food is just not a thing in Australia! There are only a very small amount of McDonald’s which are open 24 hours. I was also shocked to find out that many grocery stores close at 7pm, with the latest being 9pm (even in big cities). Before you move to Australia, learn to plan ahead! Even restaurants and cafes that are open for lunch and dinner will close in the early afternoon between 3pm-5pm.
