Mohammad Left High And Dry By Visa Changes
Illawarra Mercury
Tuesday January 29, 2008
FOUR years, a bachelor degree and $65,000 in course fees later, Mohammad Ali is now worried that his pathway to permanent residency has hit an obstacle.
Mr Ali, 22, arrived at the University of Wollongong from Pakistan in 2005 and has completed a three-year Bachelor of Arts majoring in sociology and philosophy. He said the September changes to the visa laws meant he now had to work in or further his studies in a skills-shortage area to avoid missing out on the 120 points needed for permanent residency.Mr Ali opted to stay at the university because he was aware of the difficulties of finding work as a holder of the 485 visa."It is difficult because these companies don't want to employ you and I have just 15 points to get to have my permanent residency," he said."I had to re-evaluate what I wanted to do because, if I wanted to stay here, I needed to find a sector where they wanted me to be in and also a sector that would benefit me in the long run."Now I have opted to do a Masters in International Business."I prefer doing things that are much more humanity based and community and socially based, rather than monetary and banking. "I have never been inclined to that side and I am only making this choice because I have to."I have to give up a little bit of my life so that I can maybe have a future here."
© 2008 Illawarra Mercury
