Australian government today announced a new Skilled Occupation List (SOL) proposed to come into effect from 1 July 2010. The current SOL has more than 400 occupations. The new list of occupations, which was announced by the Australian Government, includes only 181 occupations.
The proposed SOL has excluded occupations such as Cookery, Hairdressing and community welfare; these were the courses that have been very popular amongst the Indian students because it offered an easy pathway to permanent residence in Australia upon completion of 2 years of studies in these fields.
Commenting on the change of list Mr Naresh Gulati, CEO, Oceanic Consultants says, “The increased demand of these courses had earlier led many new education providers to set up the shops purely because of the ever increasing demand of these courses. A large number of private colleges had mushroomed in Australia to cash on growing demand of these courses. Such institutions are likely to feel the heat of this change as they would not be in demand anymore. The decline in demand of courses offered by such institutions would pose serious cash flow crunch to such institutions and a large number of them would be forced to go out of business.”
The new SOL will effect all students who have been granted student visas on or after February 9, 2010 and were aiming at obtaining Australian permanent residence upon completion of popular courses such as Cookery, Hairdressing and Community Welfare would no more be able to get the permanent residence if they wish to obtain permanent residence using such qualifications.
All the students who were holding the student visa before February 8, 2010 have been given a big relief as these students would have time till 31 December 2012 to complete their studies and apply for the permanent residence or Skilled – Graduation [Temporary] [subclass 485] provisional visa. Any student who fails to apply for these visas before the stipulated deadline would lose the chance for obtaining the permanent residence as there are no further extensions possible in any case.
Advising the students, says Mr Gulati, “The students must choose the courses that are in line with their career objectives as the SOL can change anytime. By opting for the courses that are only in sync with the migration policies the students risk their future as the list is subject to change anytime. By opting to undertake professional courses that are in sync with their individual career aspirations, the students can be sure of obtaining world class education and building a truly international career.”
Mr. Gulati further said “Skilled professionals seeking migration to Australia without using the education pathway can apply under the current SOL before 1 July 2010 as it does not come in effect until such time.”
About Oceanic Consultants:
Established in 1996, Oceanic Consultants Private Limited has over a decade of impeccable record of providing consultancy to aspirations of overseas education. The head office of the company is in Melbourne and Network Offices are located in various parts of the Southern Hemisphere, UK and India. Oceanic provides consultancy for Australia, New Zealand and United Kingdom. Oceanic has an extensive network spread over 20 cities, to provide world class service near you. Moreover a fine blend of centralized and decentralized operations help the clients save on both time and costs. Oceanic provides consultancy on all aspects of overseas education. A highly dedicated team of seasoned professionals provide customized solutions to every client.
With a very high visa success rate in the Industry, Oceanic has gained a place of significance in the overseas education industry. Oceanic is also the recipient of the Australian Business Award for two consecutive years in 2008 and 2009 and is listed as the 32nd fastest growing company in Australia by Business Review Weekly (BRW) in the year 2008.
