gaz n family Posted March 5, 2011 Share Posted March 5, 2011 Totally agree, another ex service person with an agent who wished he had found this site before we made the decission. We had been to a couple of expos and briefs before we finally made the decission. At these they made it out that it was a complete nightmare if we were to go it alone (these were employees of state governments, DIAC and the Oz embassy) so we thought we were doing the right thing dispite the cost. Now i know more and to be honest i have felt its been me telling our agent about the changes and advising them when the information about the new regs is released. I will be willing to help anyone (especially anyone military) where i can to save them the money and pain we have felt. All this time we have been sat waiting for State Sponsorship, then waiting for a Case Officer, not once did my agent advise me i needed a document commenting on my discipline record, its only when its getting towards the end of the process i am told, dispite my explaning, my agent made no attempt to discuss this with our case officer, i was me that had to send an email (they had sent one but waited for a week before following this email with a second one, funny i emailed then that same night the CO replied). But having said that, i think some of the CO's are not aware that in the UK, the police checks do a check of the military records to see if any dicipline issue were relevant. The down side of this, the military have different rules on rehab of offenders than civ St, i saw on the Navy Forum some guys ACPO showed up a charge that occured in 1991 (some drunken night in Guzz). But also i do wonder, if we were civilians through and through how would we supply 24 years worth of conduct, i will be suprised if civilian companies keep any records after a few years of you leaving them. Thus no historical conduct. The lesson i have learnt. Get your CO/XO/DO or Troop Commander to write you a letter staing your overal conduct during your time in the military (while they have access to your Docs), if you have left, then get this document right at the start of your application, make sure the letter includes a statement about your conduct and makes reference to the dates you joined and left. Do you reakon we should all get out there, become MIRA Agents, then specilise in military Vias Applicants? It will be a doddle....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandk Posted March 5, 2011 Share Posted March 5, 2011 Another military family here. We cannot give notice until we have a visa and also have an Afghan tour pencilled in that my hubby will do. We are hoping that worst case scenario (or best case...) is that he would have to validate the visa in his R and R. Best case sceanrio is that we are able to give notice, do Afghan tour, come home safe and then finish posting off here and straight to OZ. I have started doing all the paperwork - sent off for skills assesment andd he sat his IELTS today. Hopefully should be able to submit state sponosored for either Victoria or Western Australia in about 4 weeks. However, we are worried as although he is skills assessed as Mech Engr his job has been Engr Manager. We hope that as they are both on the list and both are closely related we should be okay. I am in twists and we are only several weeks in.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brideycollette Posted March 5, 2011 Author Share Posted March 5, 2011 Another military family here. We cannot give notice until we have a visa and also have an Afghan tour pencilled in that my hubby will do. We are hoping that worst case scenario (or best case...) is that he would have to validate the visa in his R and R. Best case sceanrio is that we are able to give notice, do Afghan tour, come home safe and then finish posting off here and straight to OZ. I have started doing all the paperwork - sent off for skills assesment andd he sat his IELTS today. Hopefully should be able to submit state sponosored for either Victoria or Western Australia in about 4 weeks. However, we are worried as although he is skills assessed as Mech Engr his job has been Engr Manager. We hope that as they are both on the list and both are closely related we should be okay. I am in twists and we are only several weeks in.... Hi Sand Fingers crossed for you for the skills assessment ! I'm sure you won't need to worry about skill assessment , My OH is a Engineering Technician (Weapon Engineering)..but we went for electrician ( special class) more points for us . It was the closest to what type of job they said he did , although he is more qualified lol Goodluck ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandk Posted March 5, 2011 Share Posted March 5, 2011 Bridey me and 'the lucky one' met in Plymouth. He was serving with 59 Commando and I was at University there. VERY fond memories... is Captain Jaspers still there? I think at the moment we are just hoping they will not ask us to get skills assessed as a Engr Manager. The skills assesment for Mech Engr was just sending off his degree certificate but Engr Manager is a full CDR and he just is not around or able to complete one. But I could see form their point of view it might make sense to be skills assesed in the occupation you are caliing job experience in. the whole 12 month notice thing is hard as well. We could not give notice now as we have to be certain of a visa. No visa and the chances are we will still leave but will take longer to look around after he comes back from Afghan to find a job and a home - y'know the small things in life! Watching your application progress with interest especially as soon you will be looking at schools etc and I will be able to 'borrow' all your research! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest nodrog72 Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Hi Brides Firstly sack your agent! All the information you need is available to read on the DIAC website. And where you need clarity - you can get it this through PIO. I really see them as a thorn in your side. DIAC are normally much easier to deal with - they will tell you if your evidence is not good enough - without the second guessing from your agent! My records were accepted without question so I do not know why these agents are making extra fuss and stating that you cannot apply or these records are not sufficient. Proof is in the pudding "Met" on status page!!!! I thought it would be a good idea to tell you how I approached the issue of providing information in regards to your military service/ discharge and good conduct. As you will know the letter the CO sends you asks for your discharge information or if "still serving" a good conduct certificate. As I am still serving and have access to JPA I did the following: Scan and PDF my old parchment Certificate of Service form S459. Then I took a screen print of the following docs from JPA and put them into a word doc: "JPA Contracts: Termination Information, JPA Personal and Service Details summary" - Service Details Tab. "JPA Honours and Awards extra information" showing medals etc and good conduct award. "JPA Previous Disciplinary records exist:" extra information. Lastly I then went into "armed forces manager within JPA" (Anyone who is a Div Off can do this) and you can select "discipline records" within oracle and run "JPA Discipline History report" against your service number and it gives you a 5 page report. The report takes a few minutes to run and once it reports "complete" you can print the report. This report basically says (if you have been a good boy) no discipline entries found and no administrative sanctions found. I uploaded all these and within two days it said "met" on our online e-visa status page (Simples!!!). I would also say there is no need to have a special letter drafted by your unit CO stating your conduct as this is all provided in a much more formal presentation through the JPA printouts. Your CO/DO would have to use the JPA docs I have mentioned to prove this statement so you may as well just do it yourself! Previously I tried to have my service record printed and sent to me through the "JPAC helpline" but as I do not have a termination date they would not release the report. This infuriated me as it is clearly only a clerical administrative holdup. At the end of the day I am fully entitled to see a service history report about myself! I really hope this helps clarify your way forward and you to will have the "met" statement next to your online status. Best of luck! :biggrin:Gordon and Tanya:biggrin: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brideycollette Posted March 6, 2011 Author Share Posted March 6, 2011 Bridey me and 'the lucky one' met in Plymouth. He was serving with 59 Commando and I was at University there. VERY fond memories... is Captain Jaspers still there? I think at the moment we are just hoping they will not ask us to get skills assessed as a Engr Manager. The skills assesment for Mech Engr was just sending off his degree certificate but Engr Manager is a full CDR and he just is not around or able to complete one. But I could see form their point of view it might make sense to be skills assesed in the occupation you are caliing job experience in. the whole 12 month notice thing is hard as well. We could not give notice now as we have to be certain of a visa. No visa and the chances are we will still leave but will take longer to look around after he comes back from Afghan to find a job and a home - y'know the small things in life! Watching your application progress with interest especially as soon you will be looking at schools etc and I will be able to 'borrow' all your research! Hiya Sandk , Yup capt jaspers still there lol :no: not been there for years though . I'm so glad i have found ex forces and serving forces on here ...i was feeling like i was hitting my head against a brick wall ..with not many people understanding . Gordon and Tanya Thankyou ! I have pasted that to Krash to his ship .....:wubclub: Thanks to all you guys on this thread :notworthy: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandk Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Gordon and tamya Thank you so much for your detailed iinformation. My hubby works very well when directed!! I think he can access JPA and we do like the idea of doing it our selves as we do not want to let the system know before we have to. With our luck and his speciality we would end up with a second Afghan tour if they thought they had had to post us on from here only for a few months. If it is not too personal when did you inform the system etc as we are worrying that resettlement entitilement is so generous (i thnik he has access to 75 days) that we are going to struggle to fit it in. Not sure whether the courses are all worth doing but some must be - not least to make his cv a litltle more civillian as he has only ever been in the Army. We are all very nervous.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandk Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Gordon and Tanya Would you be up for a pm as I have a few questions but feel if I put them on here it would be very easy to add up all the clues and work out who we are!! My hubby wanted to know have you given notice yet or is your termination date very soon (and I think from what you say about not having a termination date it must be no). Out termination date is not until he is 55 (another 13 years away) so definetely do not want to give them that information!! Also this to BRIDEY and Co as well, are you using your graurity and pension money as part of your asets. we are going hell for leaather to clear the mortgage before we leave and hope to sell the house but if we cannot the only money we will have is the graurtiy and his monthly pension. Of course if we sell the house we will be fine.... SIGH so many variables. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brideycollette Posted March 6, 2011 Author Share Posted March 6, 2011 Also this to BRIDEY and Co as well, are you using your graurity and pension money as part of your asets. we are going hell for leaather to clear the mortgage before we leave and hope to sell the house but if we cannot the only money we will have is the graurtiy and his monthly pension. Of course if we sell the house we will be fine.... SIGH so many variables. Hiya sandk , the form for WA state sponser we did put down our graturity as an asset also our pension ......we added what we would expect we would get back from selling our house too . We are lucky enough we have nearly paid our mortgage off too . If we sale we sale if we don't its still an assest really . Hope this helps . With WA we didn't have to prove what assest's we had either not sure if other states are differant ! Hope this helps Brides x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest nodrog72 Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Gordon and Tanya Would you be up for a pm as I have a few questions but feel if I put them on here it would be very easy to add up all the clues and work out who we are!! My hubby wanted to know have you given notice yet or is your termination date very soon (and I think from what you say about not having a termination date it must be no). Out termination date is not until he is 55 (another 13 years away) so definetely do not want to give them that information!! Hi Yes happy to pm we will answer what we can. Tanya:wub: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lil Bev Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Got my OH to get a letter from his CO to send onto DIAC! Like Sharon said earlier they wouldn't expect civvies to hand in their notices before they get their visas! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz n family Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 OMFG, did i just read on here that JPA was handy, it provided all the records and reports you need........?????? Then also in the same post, that JPAC were very unhelpful....... Now the first comment i thought i would never ever hear, the second comment, well isnt that the norm:wink::laugh::arghh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest48800 Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Hi all, just spotted this thread, OH is RN, we're just at the start of our application process and made the decision a fortnight ago to use an agent as opposed to doing it ourselves. Theory was that we'd be 2 weeks into TRA by now (we need to get 176 app in by July). Agent we've decided to go with (lots of recommends on here, and gave us a good 'gut feeling') is saying that he needs clarification on whether military Aircraft Engineers need to provide a log book or need to hold licenses in order to pass TRA by new assessing body Vic Uni, he's got no joy from Vic Uni so has now gone straight to overall assessing body and is waiting for an answer from them. Should point out that we haven't paid anything yet, so he's doing all this FOC at the mo. We were under the impression that you didn't need to be civvy licensed? Or at least you didn't have to under the old ASCO criteria. Also RN AE's don't have log books, so how do we get round that? Obviously we're frustrated at the hold up as we need to get application for 176 in before July. Only saving grace at the mo seems to be that because we're applying for Vic SS we can submit applications for TRA and SS at the same time. Not sure if we're doing the right thing by waiting for the agent or should be pressing on ourselves. I know at least 2 of you guys on here are RN AE's, do you think the assessing criteria will have changed that much now it's moved to Vic Uni? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest48800 Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 I'll apologise now for repeating what i've also put in other threads, but would appreciate any advice! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest nodrog72 Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Hi all, just spotted this thread, OH is RN, we're just at the start of our application process and made the decision a fortnight ago to use an agent as opposed to doing it ourselves. Theory was that we'd be 2 weeks into TRA by now (we need to get 176 app in by July). Agent we've decided to go with (lots of recommends on here, and gave us a good 'gut feeling') is saying that he needs clarification on whether military Aircraft Engineers need to provide a log book or need to hold licenses in order to pass TRA by new assessing body Vic Uni, he's got no joy from Vic Uni so has now gone straight to overall assessing body and is waiting for an answer from them. Should point out that we haven't paid anything yet, so he's doing all this FOC at the mo. We were under the impression that you didn't need to be civvy licensed? Or at least you didn't have to under the old ASCO criteria. Also RN AE's don't have log books, so how do we get round that? Obviously we're frustrated at the hold up as we need to get application for 176 in before July. Only saving grace at the mo seems to be that because we're applying for Vic SS we can submit applications for TRA and SS at the same time. Not sure if we're doing the right thing by waiting for the agent or should be pressing on ourselves. I know at least 2 of you guys on here are RN AE's, do you think the assessing criteria will have changed that much now it's moved to Vic Uni? Hi This post will be based on my experience and the process I undertook. That is to say that the assessment may well have changed. Also I would not want my application to be reviewed off the back of this statement. You never Know! I also applied through the TRA and rather than try and prove my higher credentials opted to take the safe bet and apply as an aircraft engineer (avionics). In this case, I had loads of quals and experience. I actually put together a rather large pack of past reports, work history and experience, civilian and military qualifications (I had used my experience as an aircraft mechanic to gain diploma and certificate acreditation). I drafted a letter of work experience and character for my DO/ line manager which he duly signed (Obviously he agreed with the factual information I had provided). I think the important thing to remember is that all the information for what is required is out there in the public domain. The TRA will be explicite with what they want - there will be no hidden agendas. I somehow feel that Agents tend to complicate the process and mistify clients with lots of complicated TLA's, acronyms and info to make potential immigrants feel as though they need the agent. I have kept it simple and answered the questions. It does take some effort, delving and reading but you will soon notice that even with an agent you will find yourself doing this anyway. Best way to look at this is - at the end of the day you will be the one providing the information - knowone else knows it!! Like I say, things look as though they have changed. Have you checked out the Vic Uni website or the TRA website? You could contact them yourself. Agents do have a greater depth of knowledge and if you are in a particular position and know you do not conform to the regular 175, 176 etc applications then it is wise to use them. There advice could be invaluable! Saying that - I don't think Gaz has had much joy with his! All the best Gordon and Tanya:jiggy: Also I used the MoD police to certify all my documentation. This saved me a small fortune as we did not need to pay a solicitor at about £5 a sheet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz n family Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 As you know WOODSTER E&A i went through the process with an agent who i think at this point did help me as i would not have put in a half as in depth report/letter. Eventually i did about a 6 page work experience taking each draft one by one, giving an VERY in depth description of the tasks i performed (that related closely to their description of an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer AV) finishing each draft off with a list of all the tools i used, even down to the basic screwdrivers, spanners etc but included all the test equipment i required as part of these tasks. Then for the last three drafts i had my line manager from each write a letter (well i ended up drafting them) which described the same and listed the major tools and test equipment. Then had the line manager write this letter on headed paper with their contact details (the agent insisted that they must be able to be contacted as it was happening more and more that the TRA would contact them due to the increasing fraud they were experiencing) Then sent all of this along with my tiffs certificates, copies of apprenticship certificate, all my BTEC and City and guilds certificates, even the ones from baby AE training. Copies of triple trade certificates (i was one of the first 6 to undergo triple trade training at Portland so we were given certificates, well unless you believed the dock yard dandy, it was only two WRNS, Sandy and Toppsy........) On the reverse of my HND certificates it also lists the courses sat, including my individual scoce i.e. distinctions, merit, pass etc. so made sure that was included. And finally i sent through the certificates of the Herbet Lott, Tiff course book prize, LH course book prize and Top Tiff award. I know you're trying another state, but surly we must all me assessed on the same routine, afterall once the sate sponsorship obligation is over we can move elsewhere. The only time i needed to worry about licences was for the State Sponsorship, and all that was to prove i knew how to obtain these should i need to, but as part of that, the letter we wrote did include a statement that we didnt legally need to be licenced, it was only for specific roles. Again that worked. Told you, get to SA instead as we all managed it through them, planey of AEs going there. or do you not want to be so close to your big sis? Mind you, if Vic get to find out how he makes pass the parcel presents they might think again....:chatterbox::twitcy::twitcy: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest snowy10 Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Hi all, just spotted this thread, OH is RN, we're just at the start of our application process and made the decision a fortnight ago to use an agent as opposed to doing it ourselves. Theory was that we'd be 2 weeks into TRA by now (we need to get 176 app in by July). Agent we've decided to go with (lots of recommends on here, and gave us a good 'gut feeling') is saying that he needs clarification on whether military Aircraft Engineers need to provide a log book or need to hold licenses in order to pass TRA by new assessing body Vic Uni, he's got no joy from Vic Uni so has now gone straight to overall assessing body and is waiting for an answer from them. Should point out that we haven't paid anything yet, so he's doing all this FOC at the mo. We were under the impression that you didn't need to be civvy licensed? Or at least you didn't have to under the old ASCO criteria. Also RN AE's don't have log books, so how do we get round that? Obviously we're frustrated at the hold up as we need to get application for 176 in before July. Only saving grace at the mo seems to be that because we're applying for Vic SS we can submit applications for TRA and SS at the same time. Not sure if we're doing the right thing by waiting for the agent or should be pressing on ourselves. I know at least 2 of you guys on here are RN AE's, do you think the assessing criteria will have changed that much now it's moved to Vic Uni? I am an aircraft technician mechanical who left the RAF in Dec 10. I started the 176 process in Feb 10 without an agent. I did my skills assessment with the TRA (I don't hold a civvy aircraft licence but did do a 3 year apprenticeship at the start of my service). The cost for the TRA assessment was around the £200 mark. I have in the last month heard someone on Poms In Adelaide saying that you have to be assessed by Vic Uni and the price for this was close to 10 times what I paid if my memory serves me right. As for using an agent or not, it's personal choice, if you have to lodge your visa before July because of the new points system some people would advise using an agent, on the other hand if your application is straight forward it may be quicker to do it your self. Either way YOU have to find/supply all the paperwork/evidence required for each stage. The only difference being an agent will look at the evidence before submitting to make sure it is all good. If you can fill in an application for a passport then there is nothing more difficult to the visa application, download a paper copy of the application and see for yourself!! Like I say, I have got to the point of being allocated a case officer without having an agent. A colleague at my old camp started the process a couple of months ahead of me with an agent and has missed the boat now. I beleive his agent made an error with his state sponsorship (didn't submitt his CV) then there was the delay with the state migration plans, by the time his agent re-applied South Australia had closed the list for his trade as it had reached it's quota. Whatever you decide I wish you all the luck in the world, time is extremely tight for you with the changes due in July. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz n family Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 I hadnt realised everyones TRA application (or in the case of Aircraft Engineers) had to be assessed by VIC Uni. Woodster, have you posed this question on here in its own thread, i am sure there has been some recent Trade Assessment approvals, try finding them to see what their routine and timescales were? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz n family Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 Just found this, sorry if you have already seen it. Overview Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz n family Posted March 6, 2011 Share Posted March 6, 2011 To any prospective TRA applicants, have you looked at this? TradeSET I hadnt realised just how much its changed since we did our Skills assessment last March Basically if you write your job description using the 7 X Core and 33 X none core list, i know you can tick off most of these, it was similiar list that was available when i completed my paperwork, i used it as a guide to make sure i hadnt forgotten everything. That way you know when you apply its a complete as you can make it. The other advise i got off our agent, remember the people who assess it might not be Aircraft Engineers and certainly not military so try to use general terminology and civilian phrases, so sorry you cannot used "If its TU i will rip it out and PT 3 it" Or was that just pinkies? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest48800 Posted March 7, 2011 Share Posted March 7, 2011 As you know WOODSTER E&A i went through the process with an agent who i think at this point did help me as i would not have put in a half as in depth report/letter. Eventually i did about a 6 page work experience taking each draft one by one, giving an VERY in depth description of the tasks i performed (that related closely to their description of an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer AV) finishing each draft off with a list of all the tools i used, even down to the basic screwdrivers, spanners etc but included all the test equipment i required as part of these tasks. Then for the last three drafts i had my line manager from each write a letter (well i ended up drafting them) which described the same and listed the major tools and test equipment. Then had the line manager write this letter on headed paper with their contact details (the agent insisted that they must be able to be contacted as it was happening more and more that the TRA would contact them due to the increasing fraud they were experiencing) Then sent all of this along with my tiffs certificates, copies of apprenticship certificate, all my BTEC and City and guilds certificates, even the ones from baby AE training. Copies of triple trade certificates (i was one of the first 6 to undergo triple trade training at Portland so we were given certificates, well unless you believed the dock yard dandy, it was only two WRNS, Sandy and Toppsy........). Hi Gaz, thanks for busting our cover! :wink: 'A' has been putting together a detailed 'resume' based on your advice, he's got lists of tools, and work experience etc. He's got every certificate and/or award he's gained ready to copy. As he's going outside in Aug he's also been putting together his CV so he's done a lot of the background work already. After an initial speed wobble, I'm personally leaning more and more towards doing the whole thing ourselves! Told you, get to SA instead as we all managed it through them, planey of AEs going there. or do you not want to be so close to your big sis? Ever since we first talked about this over 8 years ago, we've always said Melbourne would be our first choice (bit like you and Perth). If the RAN thing had worked out we'd have also loved to go to Nowra. Have seen on other PIO thread that we're best to apply for VIC first, see what happens then if we have to, apply for SA or other afterwards, so we're going to stick with applying for VIC SS and see what happens. Another bonus of going for VIC is that we can apply for TRA assessment & SS at the same time, we don't have to have passed TRA before applying for SS, which given the fact that we've left it til 'last minute.com' isn't a bad thing! Hey if VIC doesn't work out, you may just end up with us on your bloomin doorstep! Mind you, if Vic get to find out how he makes pass the parcel presents they might think again.... Apparently that was all my fault due to a lack of clear and concise instruction!:laugh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest48800 Posted March 7, 2011 Share Posted March 7, 2011 To any prospective TRA applicants, have you looked at this? TradeSET I hadnt realised just how much its changed since we did our Skills assessment last March Basically if you write your job description using the 7 X Core and 33 X none core list, i know you can tick off most of these, it was similiar list that was available when i completed my paperwork, i used it as a guide to make sure i hadnt forgotten everything. That way you know when you apply its a complete as you can make it. The other advise i got off our agent, remember the people who assess it might not be Aircraft Engineers and certainly not military so try to use general terminology and civilian phrases, so sorry you cannot used "If its TU i will rip it out and PT 3 it" Or was that just pinkies? OH has just completed this online, so we've got it ready to go. Interesting point to note is that it looks like it may only remain valid for 2 weeks, after that your login expires and it states that "you may have to complete assessment again". Figure if we're still sat here in the starting blocks in 2 weeks time, there's not much chance of us getting 176 application in before end of June anyway! The civvie terminology thing is usual with CV's anyway (RN TLA's tend to baffle!) so he's tailoring his work descriptions accordingly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest48800 Posted March 7, 2011 Share Posted March 7, 2011 I hadnt realised everyones TRA application (or in the case of Aircraft Engineers) had to be assessed by VIC Uni. Woodster, have you posed this question on here in its own thread, i am sure there has been some recent Trade Assessment approvals, try finding them to see what their routine and timescales were? Another PIO member VickyMel suggested this too, but wasn't sure which forum would be the most appropriate, or how to start it off. Need to get moving now though, so think will start Aircraft Maintenance Engineer Assessment thread and see if there's anyone who can share their experiences of the new VIC uni route. Thanks, E. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest48800 Posted March 7, 2011 Share Posted March 7, 2011 Hi This post will be based on my experience and the process I undertook. That is to say that the assessment may well have changed. Also I would not want my application to be reviewed off the back of this statement. You never Know! I also applied through the TRA and rather than try and prove my higher credentials opted to take the safe bet and apply as an aircraft engineer (avionics). In this case, I had loads of quals and experience. I actually put together a rather large pack of past reports, work history and experience, civilian and military qualifications (I had used my experience as an aircraft mechanic to gain diploma and certificate acreditation). I drafted a letter of work experience and character for my DO/ line manager which he duly signed (Obviously he agreed with the factual information I had provided). I think the important thing to remember is that all the information for what is required is out there in the public domain. The TRA will be explicite with what they want - there will be no hidden agendas. I somehow feel that Agents tend to complicate the process and mistify clients with lots of complicated TLA's, acronyms and info to make potential immigrants feel as though they need the agent. I have kept it simple and answered the questions. It does take some effort, delving and reading but you will soon notice that even with an agent you will find yourself doing this anyway. Best way to look at this is - at the end of the day you will be the one providing the information - knowone else knows it!! Like I say, things look as though they have changed. Have you checked out the Vic Uni website or the TRA website? You could contact them yourself. Agents do have a greater depth of knowledge and if you are in a particular position and know you do not conform to the regular 175, 176 etc applications then it is wise to use them. There advice could be invaluable! Saying that - I don't think Gaz has had much joy with his! All the best Gordon and Tanya:jiggy: Also I used the MoD police to certify all my documentation. This saved me a small fortune as we did not need to pay a solicitor at about £5 a sheet. Thank you Gordon & Tanya, Must admit that we fell into thinking that we couldn't possibly do it ourselves and should really use an agent, we may still do so, as you say their advice and experience could be what get's our 176 in before July, but am gaining confidence in our ability to be able 'go it alone' should we have to. Our application seems pretty straightforward, good conduct etc. OH has served 25 yrs as AE so hopefully he shouldn't have any trouble meeting the TRA requirements, but unfortunately we can't afford to make the smallest mistake in our paperwork and incur delays resubmitting elements, so we're caught in a kind of limbo at the moment. We're trying to get everything together that we think the TRA/VIC uni might require (better too much info than too little is the thinking, given the tight timeframe). I've relayed your advice and that of Gaz and Snowy10 to OH, so he's got plenty to be getting on with! Being RN is an advantage in that we have the resources available to be able to back everything up, get write ups, utilise MOD police for certification etc. fairly easily...well before he leaves in August anyway! going on my own experience it's a completely different ballgame once you leave, but that's another story! We know we're dithering but are going to give the agent until Wednesday, to come back with clarification re. VIC uni requirement for licenses/log book, can't risk wasting any more time and miss out on our current opportunity. There is the slim chance of course, that we may benefit from the July changes (if OH gets his degree), but there's just too much uncertainty surrounding the changes for us to be 'comfortable' with just waiting to see. Thanks again. E&A. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest48800 Posted March 7, 2011 Share Posted March 7, 2011 The cost for the TRA assessment was around the £200 mark. I have in the last month heard someone on Poms In Adelaide saying that you have to be assessed by Vic Uni and the price for this was close to 10 times what I paid if my memory serves me right. Yes, unfortunately, it's more like £2500 now!:cry: Thanks for your advice, I've relayed it all to OH, his internet connection on base is diabolical (or so he tells me) so I have to do all the button crunching and internet searching and relay back to him, could of course be a cunning ploy! E. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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