Study in Australia

Although Australia is quite familiar to the United States, there are differences you should be prepared for. The following list provides a few examples of these cultural differences, but many subtle differences will become apparent and will add to your experience as a student in Australia. If you have any problems adjusting to your new environment all campuses have a counseling office available to students.

Social customs and everyday interactions

Drinking

The legal drinking age in Australia is 18 not 21 as in the US. Wine, beer and liquor are popular in Australia and there are many opportunities to learn about fine wines especially in the wine regions of South Australia, Western Australia and New South Wales. Each state also offers a selection of locally brewed beers.

Conversation and Making Friends

Australia is a warm and welcoming country. Australians are usually very friendly and are generally quite happy to meet new people and make new friends. Give relationship-building time and commitment and you will find long and valuable relationships will be formed. Australians generally address each other by their first name; however it is always wise to be sure that this is acceptable to a person who is older than you or in a position of authority. The appropriate behavior will depend on the context of the meeting and the position of the person you are meeting.

Titles do not automatically command respect in Australia. You have to earn the respect of others, and this is done by showing what you know and can do, but doing it in a very quiet and unassuming way. Australians tend to downplay their achievements. However, do not let this fool you into believing that they are not high achievers.

Many Australians say “G’Day”, but you must remember that this is a fairly familiar greeting, not used often in formal situations. Australians would prefer you not to overdo the use of “G’Day”.

Formal Interactions

In contemporary society Australians are well educated and sophisticated. It is often said that Australians are very casual people, however this varies enormously from person to person. The visitor might well enjoy the friendliness and the seemingly enormous amount of effort people put into their leisure time. However, the workplace may seem different. The sophisticated environment of big business and the complex political environment of universities and colleges have a high level of formality. While on the outside university life may seem friendly and casual, in reality students are obligated to study and perform well. Much emphasis is placed on formal interaction and achieving high marks in school.

Interactions with lecturers and professors

Australian teachers appear to be much more relaxed and casual in their manner than in the U.S. Although your teachers can be very friendly, and spend time socializing with you occasionally, it does not mean that they will be any more generous about grading your work than anybody else. In fact, teachers at Australian universities are known to grade with expectations that papers are well researched and carefully referenced. Exams are often graded according to carefully laid out criteria. Where possible, you should make sure you listen carefully to tutors and lecturers who may give you all sorts of hints and advice during class.

Dining

Australia has a fantastic variety of food which is drawn from all over the world. Australia’s top quality meat, fish, fruits and vegetables are exported to markets all around the globe. There is a large range of fruit and vegetables available at Australian produce markets. You should have no difficulty in finding the foods that you are used to at home. You can sample almost every type of cuisine available throughout the world in our many restaurants including Italian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Lebanese, Greek and many others. What is characteristic of contemporary Australian cuisine is the way it reflects and blends the cuisines of many different countries. This is the sort of thing that gives vitality to new societies like the U.S. and Australia. The adventurous may also want to try some of our 'bush tucker'.

You may find that Australians are very relaxed about eating out and that they are prepared to put a lot of time into the meal.

Quite often what you are accustomed to in your own town or city in the U.S. may be served slightly differently in Australia. Examples are: a pizza or pasta with a marinara sauce in Australia, means a seafood sauce not a tomato sauce. A Napoli sauce will be closer to what U.S. students are accustomed. A “main course” is an entree in Australia while an “entree” is an appetizer.

Australian		US
Breakfast		Breakfast
Morning Tea (10am - 11am)		-
Lunch		Lunch
Afternoon Tea (3pm - 4pm)		-
Tea		Dinner

Achievement orientation

There was a time in Australia’s history when it was believed that Australia would never be troubled by inadequate resources or shortages of work. After 1945, however, Australia was desperate for a work force. Australia could not get enough people to fill the need for workers on the land and in the factories. Hundreds of thousands of people were encouraged to migrate to Australia from all over Europe. The European workers, after surviving the Second World War, came to Australia with the ambition to start a new life benefiting their families and children.

More recently Australia changed its focus towards neighboring Asia, the fastest growing economic region in the world. Immigration from Asia particularly since the 1970’s has been strong.

Until the 1970’s, Australia developed a centralized government that provided funds to the state governments and a centralized wage fixing system. The employment climate appeared to be stable, Australia’s resource potential (wheat, wool, coal, minerals, sugar cane) were in high demand, and daily life had some certainty about it. There is no doubt that for many years Australia was the ‘lucky country’. This is not to say that people did not aspire to higher positions within the organization for which they worked. The politics of Departments of Education, Community Services, Defense, Social Services, and Social Security indicated the intense jostling for powerful positions. Everyone wanted a chance to prove their own value and success.

But by the 1970’s it was becoming increasingly clear to every Australian that Australia was no longer in a position to rely solely on its own resources, nor was it in a position to separate itself from its regions or the rest of the world. Achievement became even more important and showing one’s worth was critical. By the 1980’s the Australian government was no longer in a position to offer funding support as in the past and started to encourage the growth of the private sector and big business. Large corporations took over small businesses that had no experience in withstanding the fierce competition from large multinational companies such as Safeway and McDonalds.

The concept of achievement has undergone rapid change. The corporate environment now plays an important role in the country’s economic success and competition in the world market. The home market has also placed very strong emphasis on achievement related to economic and financial success.

Class, culture and social position

It is often said that Australia is a classless society. The truth of it is that values and attitudes in Australia make class very hard to gauge. Although there are people who have been very successful financially, the Australian cultural history leads many Australians to view financial success less highly than personal and family success. Australian cities are not subject to the crime and poverty common in crowded cities elsewhere, so it is possible to live moderately well.

Lifestyle goals

To many, Australia has been a land of freedom and of opportunity. For others it has been a place far from the horrors of war and poverty. Many migrants had and still continue to have the opportunity to set up a safe, happy and prosperous lifestyle. The typical Australian dream is to have a family and own a home.

Humor

As a whole, Australians have a great capacity to laugh, especially at themselves. You will detect an underlying sense of wry humor and a willingness to laugh and to offer a comment that makes fun of something. In the Australian culture it is very important to be able to “take a joke”.

Gifts

If you are visiting someone’s home, it is normal to bring a gift. A bottle of wine, especially one produced in the U.S., is a popular gift when visiting. When you offer the wine, do so in an undemonstrative way. Do not be offended if your host accepts your wine and then does not offer it at the table. This will not be a judgment on your choice, but will rather be an indication that the host has already decided which table wines will be appropriate for this meal. If you do not want to bring wine, then chocolates or flowers are also a good choice. Beer is not often brought as a gift to a dinner party but is appropriate to bring to a party or a BBQ.

Australians’ views about Americans

Since the Second World War Australians have come to think of Americans as allies, partners, and as a country with a lot of similarities to Australia. A lot of Australian television programming now comes from the States, and Australians see a lot of American movies. Australians also read a lot about the United States in newspapers and are therefore familiar with the U.S.

You may find that Australians react to you in some or all of the following ways:

You should not take these things personally as Australians love to tease. What you should do is take the opportunity to set the record straight. You will not achieve much in a direct confrontational argument, but you will find that by quiet persistence and by personal example you will make an impact.

Safety

Although Australia is known to be a place of relative safety, sensible precautions are worth taking. In most cities it is reasonable to assume that you can walk alone after dark or travel by train or bus at night. However it is advisable to walk where the city is full of people and in areas that are well known as safe areas. When traveling by train after dark, it is best to travel in well lit train carriages with other people and as close to the guard’s carriage as possible. It is never a good idea to hitch hike.

Generally, living in Australian cities or country towns is a great experience. Observation and awareness of your surroundings will ensure that the experience of living in a country other than your own is a joyful one.

Electrical voltage

Electricity in Australia is 220-240 volts. In the U.S. it is generally 110 volts. Transformers are required for any U.S. electrical item taken to Australia; however it is generally easier and more cost effective to purchase small electrical items, such as hair dryers and electric razors in Australia as transformers do not always work efficiently. Australian plugs also have three prongs as apposed to the two prong American plug so a plug adaptor is required. This item can be purchased in most large department stores or at the airport.

If you have a laptop computer you will probably find that the transformer that comes with it automatically adjusts to 100 or 240 volts. You should make a point of checking this before departing the U.S. If it is able to cope with both currents you will still need an adapter for the Australian three-pin system.

Telephones

Australia has a modern telephone system. Many private households now also have internet access. Public telephones are available at all Post Offices, shopping centers and are often situated on street corners. Public pay phones accept a variety of coins and Phone cards. Phone cards are pre-paid for use in public pay phones and can be bought at a large number of retail outlets in denominations of $A5, $A10, $A20 and $A50. Credit phones take most major credit cards such as American Express, Visa, MasterCard and Diners International and can be found at international and domestic airports, central city locations and hotels.

Cultural Adjustments