nikopol

Yeah I've checked the dates - I could even prove I was paying tax over 4 years before hand and had a contract of work from that time (I came well equipped!). I had a 457 initially which was a 4 year one then got PR within 2 years of being on that. It could be the fact this has been flagged that is causing this to lag for such a long time (but by this point, even with the computer's miscalculations of when I arrived, I'd be within even their version of the 4 years). Should I be doing a FIO or trying to contact them directly?

A question re: those who had the test - I sat the test in April 2018. There was an odd issue where they claimed the dates didn't add up to the full 4 years (which was incorrect) so they let me sit the test and "don't worry. You'll hear back from us". So it's now almost 6 months later and I've heard absolutely nothing. No email, no change on immi website. I'm not even sure if I should contact them to avoid making things worse. Anyone else heard anything this far down the line. Worth poking the hornet's nest? ? addit: I did pass the test in case anyone is wondering that's the reason why.

So in applied in October 2017, got an email late month and passed the test. However during the interview the assessor asked if I was applying for an exemption for the time spent in Australia (I wasn't) since the computer was telling her that I hadn't spent enough time in the country to apply (Incorrect). Anyway, luckily I had evidence for having been employed and having a tax number in Australia in the month I arrived (I'm on the paranoid side so I took loads of random documents with me) but even that may not have cleared me. They let me sit the test but the entire process is still awaiting official approval because of the computer system suddenly incorrectly deciding I didn't have enough time in Oz. I thought you couldn't even apply without the right amount of time on the clock? I'm still waiting for an answer for the outcome over the last month but nothing so far ?

Mine was also stuck at received since October but just got the email today for a may test and interview. Not sure why some are getting confirmations and others aren't though...

Likewise - applied end of Oct 17 and got a call today as they were looking through my form (I've moved state in between so they were wondering if I wanted a NSW test and ceremony instead of a VIC one which I was glad they offered - I didn't want to ask myself in case it meant I went to the back of the queue!). I asked if they knew how soon and they seemed to think that it should be in May.

And yes - do pester them. They are freaking useless at times. I emailed my person (for my transition from general registration) thrice asking them if they need anything more for my application. No answer - no out of office reply - nada - zip. I stay patient for a week after my third email and then call up. Nice (but very junior) person whom I have to explain the complexities of my application (they've recently removed my limited registration status and all links and forms for it on their website meaning that they can't remember how to deal with them). Solution to not hearing from him: send him another email. I politely but firmly at that point asked how it would be any different this time around. I was then passed on to my man's supervisor who accepted that he should be answering emails (good!) but he hadn't been and my file had just been gathering dust for the last month or so. Cue promises from them to deal with the next stage immediately (which they did) and my file was sent to the AMC pronto. Then when I had to add the AMC letter to my application, I was told by the person who was asleep on my file for a month, that my supervisor's report was quite some time in the past (now 3 months due to them doing nothing with my file!) so I may need a new one. I don't tend to lose the plot and once again failed to stand up for myself, smiled, said that's fine and walked away. Thankfully they didn't request it and then let me sail through with no further issues.

My CV is a doctor's one if that's of any use? I can PM it to anyone who needs to peruse it (it wasn't rejected by them - but that doesn't say much).

No worries! I just though of some further stuff I did. One thing I'd consider doing is thinking of topics and jotting down a set of points that you'd make. It doesn't really take long but it's a good exercise to make sure you can do it on the day. So for example off the top of my head: Globalisation: has it got more positives than cons? Immigration: same foreign travel: same people living for longer: curse or panacea? governmental subsidies for cultural activities: waste of money? etc etc I found that forcing myself to spend 5 minutes planning out what I'd write was not exactly easy but with some rigor I think I was better prepared for the day. Another thing to bear in mind is the length of time you have to write the essay and the expected length. Getting used to the timing of it is essential and on the day, it will all feel quite different and more compressed time wise. The initial idea blitz is a crucial skill to hone but the timing and length of essay is equally so.

I sat it late June and found that probably the most taxing part was the written test if you're a native speaker (as I am supposed to be - I was brought up in France by British parents meaning that for the Australian Medical Council I had to sit the IELTS exam). The oral part was quite straight forward and I don't think I particularly did very good answers but remained fluent throughout and managed to crack a few wry comments. (IIRC the theme was about national holidays in your own country - I discussed the issues of blind nationalism, the fact that it does have good community building elements to it but that younger people probably don't find it too relevant and prefer online hangouts). The written gives you enough time to plan a little so I'd spend a few mins jotting down the points you want to make (pros and cons if that's the overall question being asked) and have a simple but clear structure in paragraphs. This is where my French education kicked in - every essay needs an introduction where you set out the problem and explicitly tell the reader you'll be first exploring the arguments against/for then the arguments for/against (the last part should always be the side you are arguing in favour of). Then a short synthesis and a conclusion.The description of the graphs (I was doing academic) was actually slightly trickier and I felt required more planning to make sure you don't miss any comparison (I think it was part one of the written part). So all in all, I think if you're a native speaker the real banana skin in the written part - it doesn't matter how grammatical your English is, if you head down the wrong alley answering the question incorrectly, you'll struggle to get a good score on it. FWIW, I got 9.0 in all sections though I think I was slightly lucky on some on the listening and written answers as some were delightfully difficult to answer and if you thought too much about it you could make yourself believe that two of the answers were equally valid and depended slightly on your point of view (not on your understanding of the English language).