New Zealand extends work rights to more international students

New Zealand has extended work rights to more international students. The New Zealand Minister for Tertiary Education, Skills and Employment, Steven Joyce, and Immigration Minister, Michael Woodhouse, announced that international PhD and Masters by research students will have unlimited work rights.

The minister also said that all tertiary-level international students enrolled in a course of at least one academic year will now be able to work full-time during each scheduled semester break. All international students enrolled in an English language course of at least 14 weeks duration at a high-quality provider will be eligible to work up to 20 hours a week.

“Today’s announcements will allow more Indian students to gain valuable work experience while they study in New Zealand,” says Education New Zealand’s Regional Director South Asia Ziena Jalil.
 

As well as helping with living costs, working part-time while studying means students can gain work experience that will give them an edge over other graduates when they finish studying. The changes announced will come into effect from January 2014.
 
The New Zealand Government also announced that Immigration New Zealand will no longer grant visas to students seeking to enrol at institutions rated Category 4 by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority.