Massey c/o 2015

[alabastertree]

Hi- I've been accepted to Massey for a July 2011 start, and I was wondering if anyone else out there has been accepted, or if anyone who was attending might have advice for someone making the jump across the really big pond to NZ. I've got questions about pets, cars, housing, y'know, the usual things people panic about (or maybe it's just me) . Thanks, and kia ora ya'll

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[flyinggoat]

Congrats!

While I can't help much with the school thing, I did spend a fair amount of time in NZ several years back with my husband. I'm thinking of applying to Massey, because if we're gonna move, we're gonna move BIG!

Have you been to NZ yet? I've looked, pretty extensively, into moving there- not even considering school, so if you've got specific questions, I can try to help...

Good luck! Sooooo jealous.

 

[Whyevernot55]

No advice on Massey (congrats!) but I will say this about bringing pets - I THINK that importing animals to NZ is similar to Australia, and it's insanely complicated. I've been helping a client get her dog ready to go to Aus and it's making us both crazy. Certainly doable, but make sure you know exactly what you need and get all your ducks in a row. Don't rely on your vet to know what you need, because frankly they don't - I'm my clinic's resident expert on taking pets to other countries. Basically, do your research, know what's necessary, and make sure it gets done right!

 

[phaedraeos]

congrats on your acceptance to massey! i've also been accepted, although i'm not sure i'll be attending. i DID however look up the requirements to get a pet into the country, and this is what i found:

this site seems to be pretty comprehensive and accurate. it's too late now to start the process to bring your pet with you for july, but you should be able to get them over by the end of the year. you'll need the pet chipped, and to have a rabies titer drawn and sent out. then there are some additional vaccinations, and once in the country the pet will have to stay in a quarantine facility for 30 days, and then undergo additional in home quarantine. i estimate that each cat will cost around $2k all included (airfare, quarantine, shots, etc), with the price of the dog increasing with the size of the dog.

one thing that was very important to know for me, as a married woman, is new zealand's policy on pregnancy and staying in the country with a student visa:

1. if you are pregnant upon entering the country, you have to leave to have your baby. no excuses, no exceptions.

2. if you become pregnant in new zealand, and if your partner isn't a native kiwi with whom you can prove you are in a long term, committed relationship, you have to leave the country to have your baby UNLESS you have health insurance that covers pregnancy. none of the approved health insurance policies offered by massey cover pregnancy, so you'll have to get a supplemental policy prior to starting. this was extremely poignant for me to learn, as i realized that if i hadn't heard about it ahead of time, i could be forced - in the case of an unplanned pregnancy - to chose between my husband's child and my dream of becoming a veterinarian. not cool.

this policy was instituted a few years back to prevent a "drain on new zealand's resources" as people were coming in from other countries specifically to have their babies in NZ where the health care was good and free.

 

[LetItSnow]

Hi- I've been accepted to Massey for a July 2011 start, and I was wondering if anyone else out there has been accepted, or if anyone who was attending might have advice for someone making the jump across the really big pond to NZ. I've got questions about pets, cars, housing, y'know, the usual things people panic about (or maybe it's just me) . Thanks, and kia ora ya'll

Congrats congrats. I'm really jealous. I love NZ and wish I were young and didn't have family and had the opportunity to do what you're doing!!!!

(Well, ok, I don't really wish my family away, but ... you know what I mean.)

 

[alabastertree]

congrats on your acceptance to massey! i've also been accepted, although i'm not sure i'll be attending. i DID however look up the requirements to get a pet into the country, and this is what i found:

this site seems to be pretty comprehensive and accurate. it's too late now to start the process to bring your pet with you for july, but you should be able to get them over by the end of the year. you'll need the pet chipped, and to have a rabies titer drawn and sent out. then there are some additional vaccinations, and once in the country the pet will have to stay in a quarantine facility for 30 days, and then undergo additional in home quarantine. i estimate that each cat will cost around $2k all included (airfare, quarantine, shots, etc), with the price of the dog increasing with the size of the dog.

one thing that was very important to know for me, as a married woman, is new zealand's policy on pregnancy and staying in the country with a student visa:

1. if you are pregnant upon entering the country, you have to leave to have your baby. no excuses, no exceptions.

2. if you become pregnant in new zealand, and if your partner isn't a native kiwi with whom you can prove you are in a long term, committed relationship, you have to leave the country to have your baby UNLESS you have health insurance that covers pregnancy. none of the approved health insurance policies offered by massey cover pregnancy, so you'll have to get a supplemental policy prior to starting. this was extremely poignant for me to learn, as i realized that if i hadn't heard about it ahead of time, i could be forced - in the case of an unplanned pregnancy - to chose between my husband's child and my dream of becoming a veterinarian. not cool.

this policy was instituted a few years back to prevent a "drain on new zealand's resources" as people were coming in from other countries specifically to have their babies in NZ where the health care was good and free.

I was wondering about the pregnancy thing as well (not planning on getting pregnant during school, but stuff happens), thanks for clarifying. Evidently the health care plan doesn't cover birth control either (which makes no sense- end up getting stuck either way ), so I guess I'll have to stock up before I go? What I don't get is that international students aren't covered by the free health care, so how could we use it for pregnancy? Stupid...

 

[laurafinn]

Hi y'all,

I'm not on SDN all that much anymore, but if you have specific questions about Massey, I'm happy to try and answer them.

Usually, with housing, you get there and figure it out. It is very difficult to judge the housing there online -- photos can be very deceiving. If you want an idea of how much housing may cost, TradeMe.co.nz has the most ads. The region you want is Manawatu-Wanganui. A room in a shared house will run you about NZ$65-100 per week. Most students live in shared houses, usu 3-6 students per house. Most student houses have one bathroom and lack central heating. Space heater usage is usually strongly discouraged due to the cost of electricity. This can be significant because it does get down to freezing at night during winter. Make sure you know your potential flatmates' plans for heating in winter. Kiwis are willing to put up with a much cooler, damper and moldier indoor climate than most North Americans are.

As for the pregnancy thing, that is a massive problem and had devastatingly affected a couple of my classmates. We were not told about the pregnancy policy prior to enrolling. The handling of pregnancy in international students lends some insight into conditions for international students in New Zealand. Specifically, NZ wants international student money, but doesn't care much for the international students themselves. Harsh, but true. [I should add that I'm speaking of the attitude of society at large. There are some really nice, helpful people at the vet school, as well as a few who would like international students to disappear.] Also, the NZ government feels that its resources for pregnant women are spread so thin on the ground that it can't help pregnant international students, even if they are willing to pay all the costs associated with their pregnancy.

I don't want to be a bummer, just that forewarned is forearmed. I enjoyed my time at Massey, and think I emerged a good veterinarian, but as with any school, there are some definite downsides to going to school there.

All the best,

Laura

 

[alabastertree]

Laura, did any of your international classmates transfer back to the US? How successful were they at transferring (ie, how difficult was it?). I don't know if I'd do this, but it's nice to know options... I've also read a few posts by people a few years ago who seemed REALLY frustrated by the whole experience, which gives me pause. I understand every vet school has its issues (what school doesn't?), but they seemed particularly upset, esp about the support international students get. Is this a common problem? How often does tuition increase? (I noticed it went up about NZ6000 in the past year.. erp)
Thanks

 

[laurafinn]

None of my classmates transferred, so I don't know how easy or difficult it would be. A guy in the year after me did quit after the first professional semester at Massey and restarted as a first year at Penn the next year. I'm not sure how much his work at Massey figured into the admission process though.

I don't think international students get less support at Massey than domestic students. If anything, they get more since there is a faculty liaison (who is terrific) that is assigned to internationals. Also, every student at Massey is assigned a faculty mentor as well as vet student mentor. How much mentorship goes on is very variable, though. I think if you reach out, you will be rewarded.

The largest frustrations about Massey among my international classmates (as far as I ever heard) were: too much large animal/agronomy curricular focus, "She'll be right" attitude, disorganization, substandard housing, tuition cost differential between Kiwis and internationals. The "she'll be right" is a NZ cultural thing -- I'm trying to think of how to describe it. I guess it's a willingness to think half-assed efforts and unsafe conditions are OK (although not with regard to schoolwork -- most of my fellow vet students were very motivated).

I can't say much about tuition. It used to be that tuition was grandfathered; ie, the amount you paid your first year was the amount you paid every year. They did away with that. I suspect international tuition is set at whatever rate they think the market will bear.

HTH,

Laura