Quoll

I think you'll find that Aus Unis are incredibly woke, just like UK ones which is lovely if you're into CRT, radical feminism, climate change etc and drugs and alcohol are still at the core of most social interactions. There is also a lot of group grading - if you happen to get into a group with a load of students who don't speak English or who are so stoned they can't be bothered to go to lectures and you want a good grade then you either have to do all the work yourself for group assignments or just accept lower grades. Remember too that honours degrees are going to take you 4 years as opposed to 3 in UK so the road to honours is a longer journey.

If you are on a temporary visa though, apprenticeships aren't available - you didn't say if your visa is temporary or permanent.

ADHD doesn’t qualify as a disability in most states and doesn’t attract any additional funding so it’s probably not going to be an issue but you do need to honestly answer questions about any concerns. It’d be worth running it past one of the agents who specialise in medical issues along with all assessments (which they will probably ask for) of cognitive ability, skill levels, adaptive behaviour etc.

Are you coming on a temporary visa? If so you might want to consider what your older teen might do - 16 this month would make them the very youngest in year 11 this year and year 11 is already part way through so they'd be better waiting and enrolling in year 10 this year then have the full 2 years leading to VCE. However if there's a chance you'll be returning to UK, let them stay with family or friends to get through GCSE and A levels by which time the rest of you will have decided whether to stay or go and they can consider where their best Uni options would be. Does the 200k include superannuation? That would reduce it a bit if it does. As for leaving early to get to work and leaving early to get home - it'd probably be leaving home early and leaving work late and hopefully parking is included in that deal too. Which side of the city is he going to be working in? That'd be something of a deciding factor as to which side to look. $200k is around twice the national average wage at the moment so if you're living on twice the average wage or more in UK you should be good - most families these days are two income to make ends meet but 2 average salaries would be the family income. On the plus side rural rentals tend to be cheaper than urban ones but if you want a job, there may be fewer local options in tiny places.

Yup, getting a bit of a bad rap at the moment LOL

With teenagers - how old are the teenagers? I only ask because of the VCE - you wouldnt want to be moving a kid who is 16+ because it would be hard to get into a senior school program which would give them a good Uni entrance score. Just as an aside - you'd really have to think about educational implications You could do much worse than Ballarat. I believe the train service is now pretty good - no longer the old bone shakers they used to have and I think if you were commuting into Melbourne you would really want to look at the train. Driving in would be a nightmare and though it would be an hour to the Tullamarine turn off it could be another hour into the centre. There are some excellent private schools in Ballarat as well (no idea how many genders are de rigeur at the moment though). You could look at stops on that rail route to see what else looks OK. My in-laws live in Lara which is a town just outside Geelong and they are very happy there - our nephew commuted into Melbourne by train every day to Carlton and thought that was fine. He went to school in Geelong before that.

Some of them out at Fyshwick do. But there's a lot on the local buy nothing pages

After Uni your kids could go anywhere - what would you do if one chose Canada and the other preferred Spain? There's no guarantee they'll stay in Australia. HECS Help https://www.studyassist.gov.au/help-loans/hecs-help

And check out FB for a Buy Nothing group for the town too.

They probably didn't have registration with AHPRA either which is always going to be a barrier

There was nothing wrong with my skills and I did very well, thank you. Fortunately never out of a job but the experience of many of my acquaintance was that over 50 was over the hill for finding a new role. The retirement age has diddly squat to do with it - I know quite a few who had to engage retirement well before they wanted to. Currently supporting a lady in her mid 50s trying to get back into work - previous public service history, had to quit to care for her sick mother. Now no mother and not much money - skills perfectly fine, aiming for positions well below her capacity - crickets. It's always much easier to get a new job when you're in a job. Like Marisa I was surprised to be offered 3 jobs - 2 of them skill based and one because I was a nice friendly person - without applying for any back in UK - where I didn't want to work anyway. The DH was only offered a couple!

It's hit a gddy 7.6 here in Canberra but, they say, and I believe them, feels like 2.4!!!!

There are plenty of op shops and you'll often find Buy Nothing groups who will give you a hand until you can get stuff you like. Furnished places aren't that common for rent.

Ah, but.... Tasmania!!!!!

62??? Oh dear. As has been said, Australia is very ageist and if they can get a 20 year old to do the job they will pick them every time. Dont fancy your chances unless you are in an incredibly niche market that nobody else in Australia is skilled enough to do. Over the hill at 50 here.