The Carltons Posted September 13, 2017 Share Posted September 13, 2017 Hi everyone, We are new to this forum ......... Exciting news for us, our visa's have finally arrived!! Can anyone give me any advice on how to find a good school in melbourne? We have decided to find the school and then a place to live and work around that!! I have one child going in to Year 9 and one will have just finished GCSE's so moving to year 12 to commence A-Levels, but how does the system work? I only appear to be able to find schools prep-12 or 9-12 etc.! My daughter will be starting her first year in University so need to find that once schools are sorted!! We only have a limited time too, we are leaving in August next year, with the house going up for sale in the next few weeks! All help appreciated and welcome, thanks in advance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemesis Posted September 13, 2017 Share Posted September 13, 2017 Ozzie schools don't do A levels, its a very different system but I'll let someone more in the know fill you in on that. Similarly, has your daughter been accepted at a university? Melbourne is huge though, do you have any idea where you will be working? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Carltons Posted September 13, 2017 Author Share Posted September 13, 2017 We want to be near the coast but also cafe's, restaurants, to enable us to spend as much time outdoors as the weather allows. I have read that the West side of Melbourne is probably not the best side to live. We also want to be within commuting distance to the CBD as my husband will probably need to work there as a senior manager in logistics and supply chain. I can work in any maternity hospital. We wanted to try and secure the school first, and then look at the nearest "best" University and then look at a place to live and work around that! It's a minefield! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted September 13, 2017 Share Posted September 13, 2017 You might be better leaving your A level child in UK to finish A levels. Australia is a foreign country with different education systems and the year levels don't exactly match up. Kids start year 11 when they are 16 (give or take a few months) and do the final two years of schooling to get a yr 12 cert which gives them a Uni entrance score. You can't do part of the course and expect it to turn out well especially when scores might be converted from some UK exams. Much easier to just let them do A levels and be done with it. A levels travel well to Australia in terms of Uni entrance conversions. Most people go about finding where to live the other way! Find the home in a suburb you want to live in and the schools generally reflect the suburb and will fall into place. Look at the things that are going to be important for the rest of your day - access to work, obviously, access to other facilities, transport options, cost of rentals, availability of rentals etc - then worry about the schools. "Best" schools and Universities aren't really what happens. If you really want "Best" you should be looking at Melbourne Grammar or Scotch or Geelong Grammar but they cost mega bucks. ""Best" Uni is usually Melbourne Uni but you need the scores to get into the course you want and they all have their little specialisations - if it's something technical then RMIT might be the one to go for but you never know until you check the course you want 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Carltons Posted September 13, 2017 Author Share Posted September 13, 2017 Thank you , this is really helpful information. Leaving one of the children at home isn't an option though, we are a very close family and need to move together ...... he's a very clever young man so hopefully should manage. I was looking at Melbourne University, so I'll have a look at the areas around there thank you ....... my daughter wants to study Law and is predicted good A-Level grades so she should be ok getting into a good Uni. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevsan Posted September 14, 2017 Share Posted September 14, 2017 As mentioned, you're kinda going about this the wrong way. Work out where you want to live first and then work out the other elements from there. Melbourne is similar in physical size to Greater London to give you an idea. Melbourne Uni is rated as a law school in the top 10 in the world, but the main campus is at parkville so thats not really beach territory, but nearby brunswick has a good set of bars / restaurants etc. RMIT campus is mainly in the CBD, but if you want Law, then aim for Melbourne Uni. Its pretty easy to commute by train as long as you live close to a rail line. - The law school is a quick walk up elizabeth st from Melbourne central station which is on the city loop, so you can live pretty much anywhere and get in easily. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skani Posted September 14, 2017 Share Posted September 14, 2017 19 hours ago, The Carltons said: Can anyone give me any advice on how to find a good school in melbourne? When looking at academic results this guide may help - VCE results (Victorian Certificate of Education - years 11-12) for previous years. Some may be selective (an entrance exam) and most (all?) state schools may require you to live in their zoned area. https://bettereducation.com.au/results/vce.aspx Re distances: Melbourne is actually more than 6x the size of Greater London so factor that in your planning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Carltons Posted September 14, 2017 Author Share Posted September 14, 2017 Thank you for the advice, how affordable is Brunswick and do you know how far it is from the nearest beach? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevsan Posted September 14, 2017 Share Posted September 14, 2017 you're probably looking at St Kilda or Sandridge beach for the closet to the CIty. About 30 minutes drive from brunswick as its on the opposite side of the cbd. If you want the beach, you're better looking at suburbs down the bay, east or west and then work out what other amenities/travel times/costs are involved. Check out realestate.com.au for prices of buying/renting properties. in terms of brunswick affordability are you looking at costs of housing, or everything else? if you want a family home, you'll have to go over $1m i expect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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