Our six month visa for New Zealand allowed for attending up to three months of school without a separate student visa. After discussing our different options for our New Zealand experience, Jack & Aleah decided that attending school would be their next adventure.
We researched schools that accept international students and found that most public high school/colleges had programs already in place for international students, including staff. We toured a few schools and talked to the staff regarding class selection and application process before deciding upon Orewa College.
We quickly gathered medical information and the forms needed to transfer funds from overseas. While our visitor visa allows participation in school, it does not allow for funded school, only the lack of needing an additional student visa. We scoured the rental pages to find a furnished rental in the greater Orewa area, signed a lease, and were ready for international students orientation beginning January 29, 2025.
Our student fees for the term covered all classes, rental uniforms, and administrative costs. We knew there would still be additional costs, including electronics for class, field trips, and transportation to school. Our rental was close enough to school that we decided to buy some second hand bikes and have the kids ride those to and from. For electronics, our kids already had iPads, so we bought separate keyboards and that satisfied the school requirements.
Orewa College has a three day international student orientation that begins before the first day of term 1. The students all meet each other, have a tour of the school, take an English test for placement purposes and learn about the class offerings on day 1. Day 2 is more get to know you and Orewa College time, uniform fitting, plus class selection, while day 3 is a fun day at the local regional park with a hike and dedicated beach time. Those three days were on a Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Monday morning was the first real day, but not completely. On Monday each international student met with their assigned student ambassador. This was a student in their grade level and form class (homeroom) who would show them around that day. The international student actually went to all the student ambassadors’ classes that day and learned the school schedule and rotation from them. Tuesday was the day to be on their own, in their own classes and finding their own way. Never fear, their student ambassador was always available to help them with any questions and spent time in form class at the beginning of the day ensuring that all questions were answered and directions given.
Here they are, ready for a term of school!
