EDITION 4 MAY 2013

NEED HELP WITH AN ESSAY OR ASSIGNMENT? Visit a PASS Mentor on the 3rd Floor, Albert Coates Building for FREE assistance

Polly Pan: International Student Leader I come from Shenzhen, a major city in Guangdong Province, situated immediately north of Hong Kong. Shenzhen is China’s first and one of the successful Special Economic Zones.

I am studying Master of Professional Accounting and my plan is to become a successful accountant and run my own business one day. As I did not do any business course before, sometimes I find Accounting is quite difficult to understand, but I keep using one quote to remind myself that is “The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit always sweet”.

I am not really sure which country I will finally settle down. But no matter what is going to happen, I am ready to try my best. In the next five year, hopefully, I can be a good accountant, pass most of the CPA exams, have my own family, and start to travel around the world.

Who inspires you and why I get inspired by my uncle a lot. His is a successful business man and trader. He upgrades and develops himself all his life. As a father of three kids, my uncle pays extremely high attention to their development and education. Actually, it’s my uncle encourage me to have further education in Australia. Because he always believes education is the most powerful weapon to change one’s life.

A piece of advice for international students on campus about how to enjoy your study experience My advice to every international student is to prepare for the cold winter. Not only in clothing, but also in attitude. You have to be willing to make the effort and look for chances and experience new things. University of Ballarat has provides lots of service to support you. Having trouble of finding an accommodation? Talk to International student support. Need help with your resume? Go to UB CareerHub. Want some free legal advice? Just make as appointment with Student Advisory Service. What’s more, you are always welcome to join club and societies. UB have more services than I can mention. Please make sure you ask or talk to someone when you need help. You are not alone, we are always happy to help!

May edition full of opportunities for you This edition offers many FREE opportunities for students wanting to develop professionally, attend forums. We attempt to highlight the many and varied events being offered in Ballarat and surrounds that you and your family can enjoy for little or no cost….READ ON FOR MORE DETAILS

FREE Aussie Rules Footy Tickets

for ALL UB students! We understand being a student can be tough,

but it can’t be all work and no play…

So we have teamed up with GLoBALL to plan a

fun day out for all our UB students.

Sun 14th July

Essendon vs Western Bulldogs

@ Etihad Stadium

3.15 – 6.15pm

Transport to be confirmed but leaving approx. 1pm To be in Melbourne by 3pm (for the pre-game

special GLoBALL function)

To attend follow these 2 simple steps…

Register on the GLoBALL website for your

FREE footy ticket (Select Sun 14th July game) www.globall.com.au

E-mail Kate Toner to book your place

international.ss@ballarat.edu.au

EVERYONE WELCOME So bring your friends!

HAVE YOU RECEIVED A LETTER FROM YOUR SCHOOL? Don’t ignore it. It may affect your future study. Read it and discuss with your course coordinator

DO YOU WANT TO IMPROVE YOUR ENGLISH?

JOIN THE

COFFEE CLUB

IN THE

STUDENT LOUNGE

FROM

10.30 – 11.30

EVERY SECOND FRIDAY

(May dates are Friday 10th & 24th)

(Free Tea/ Coffee available)

International Student Committee Board members wanted Do you think that you could make a positive contribution to the experience of international students on this campus? If you do, then consider nominating to be a committee member on the International Student Committee.

Nominations are now open and close at 4pm Friday 10th May.

To obtain further information contact Kate Toner on 5327 9446 or for a nomination form call into the International Student Support Office or Student Experience Office, 1st Floor, Albert Coates complex

Star Pronunciations Is a Melbourne based company which offers an online program to help you will improve all of the areas of pronunciation that as an international student, you may find difficult. The on line training is self-paced, with step-by-step instruction, teaching and practice to make sure you succeed in correcting the areas you need to for clear speech. Course content is customised to the language background for most major language groups we have on campus

• Each course includes over 20 hours of video and audio training. • Training materials include streamed video, MP3 audio files and

written notes • The duration of the course is 13 weeks, this can be varied around

semester work. • Course lessons include quizzes and speech check recordings • Training also assists with job interview language and preparation,

improving listening skills, phone language, vocabulary and understanding Australian and English expressions.

• Students download a certificate on completion of the course. Student wanting to access better employment opportunities undertake an IELTS exam or just improve conversational English may want to check out http://www.starpronunciation.com/

Star Promotions Competition Or for a chance to win a Star Pronunciation 20 hour program tell us in no more than 100 words why you want to undertake this program and why you should be the winner. Email your entry to international.ss@ballarat.edu.au and include your name and phone number. Entries close 22nd May and the winner notified on 23rd May

Lakeside Farmers Market The Ballarat Lakeside Farmers Market is a true authentic farmers market. You will find "Victorian only" produce on offer, with most stallholders playing a role in the production process.

9am – 1pm

Saturday, 11th & 25th May

Windmill Drive, Lake Wendouree

Serious about finding a job? Join a Job Club. Job Club is individual assistance for students. You will be taken through all areas of gaining employment from writing a resume and application letter to participating in interview processes to sharpen your skills and put you ahead of other applicants. Register: contact 5327 9910 or email; studentcareerhub@ballarat.edu.au

Are your address details correct? A reminder to all students that it is your responsibility to ensure, that your address and other contact details are correct in my Student Centre. Three addresses can be stored in My Student Centre: Home address: For international students this cannot be an Australian

address - it must be an international address. Campus address: The address at which you are living while you are studying at UB. For international students studying in Australia this must be an Australian address. Mailing address: The address to which you

want all correspondence from UB sent. Often It will be the same as you campus address. For international students we recommend that you use your campus address as your mailing address. All UB correspondence will reach you quickly. To update your address information in My Student Centre go to Campus Personal Information>Addresses. You can also update other personal information, including your contact phone number, from this page.

FREE WORKSHOPS Student Career & Employment will be running FREE fortnightly workshops to assist students with job hunting. Workshops will cover things like resume writing, writing cover letters, interview techniques and we are happy to take suggestions for other workshop ideas based on your needs.

Next Workshop: Thursday 2nd May Position Descriptions - What are THEY all about?

Room: F311, Mt Helen Time: 2.00pm

To book log onto http://careerhub.ballarat.edu.au view the events section and book into the workshops you wish to attend .

Final Year Career Health Check!!! Are you in your final year of study? Would you like advice on your resume and job applications? Book an appointment with one your Employment Consultants in the Student Careers & Employmet Office today so that your ahead of the competition before you finish your degree. To book log onto http://careerhub.ballarat.edu.au view the events section and book into the workshops you wish to attend .

Funding for Groups Would you or your group like to organise an event that;

• promotes awareness of UB’s global population

• celebrates a special day /festival

• celebrates international food

• brings different student groups together

Funding may be available to assist. Enquiries to Kate Toner

International Student Support

(1st Flr, U Building, above café)

International.ss@ballarat.edu.au

May Cultural Calendar

2nd Twelfth Day of Ridvan (Baha'i)

12th Mothers Day – Australia

14-16th Sharuot (Jewish)

20th Baddha Day (Buddhist)

23rd Declaration of the Bab (Baha'i)

25th Vesak Day - Buddha's birthday

(Buddhist)

26th National Day of Healing

(Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander)

Do you want to attend the

2013 CISA Conference? UB will sponsor

two international students

to attend the 2013 Conference.

Applications are now open and close

Friday 17th May.

To obtain a nomination form contact International Student Support or Student Experience Office, 1st Flr, Albert Coates Building or email international.ss@ballarat.edu.au

CISA Conference – Sydney 2013 The Council of International Students Australia (CISA) is the national peak student representative body for international students studying at Australian Universities.

‘Changing the Tide - through half a million stories' has been selected as the theme of the 2013 conference to highlight the importance of the "Australia - Educating Globally" report in properly implementing some of these recommendations to enhance ‘student experience’. Thus ensuring that Australia remains as a top Quality education destination.

The highlights of the 2013 national conference will be inclusive of the following:

Launch of CISA’s Project “I am not Australian, but I have an Australian Story”

CISA International Student of the Year Award

Student Response to the IEAC Report “Australia – Educating Globally

Conference workshops focusing on training students on leadership, employment and visa rules

Student led panels and discussions

Free Sport & Recreation throughout May UB Social Badminton Mt Helen, Brown Gym @ 2:30-4PM, Every Friday

Free & Fun for all! Racquets and equipment provided. Just bring yourself!

UB Squash Club Social Comp Every Tuesday from 5PM @ Mt Helen Courts

$5 Memberships available get access to games and social events for the whole season. All levels welcome.

Women’s Basketball Mt Helen, Brown Gym @ 12:30, Every Monday

International students encouraged to attend. No experience necessary, if you are keen to shake off the winter chill & enjoy some free practice sessions (coached by Nya Mason from the Ballarat Rush) with some other female students, come along!

Canoeing & Boating on Lake Wendouree It’s really enjoyable taking a boat out on the lake. There is an opportunity for students to enjoy Ballarat’s iconic Lake Wendouree, with some free canoeing sessions being offered by Student Connect & School of Human Movement. Exact times TBA, but it will likely be Thursdays and Sundays throughout may. To register, email a.sawitsch@ballarat.edu.au or drop into the International Student Support Office.

Marathon & Distance Running Any UB staff or students interested in (or already registered for) running the 10k, half or full marathon?

UB Student Connect is organising a team to compete at the world famous Melbourne Marathon on October 13th, which is an official Australian University Sport Distance Running Championship event.

As well as having some team mates to train with, there will be a bit of other support and incentives that UB can assist participants with.

Any interest, Please contact a.sawitsch@ballarat.edu.au