International Student Program News
News
The last fortnight since our last newsletter marked the beginning of ‘Homestay Visit Season’. For an international student to be granted an international student visa from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP), each student must show that they have someone to be their Welfare Provider (to make sure they are safe, attending school and making sufficient academic progress) and also that they have appropriate accommodation. Not everyone has a Mum or Dad, or a close blood relative, who can move to Australia to take care of them, so most MGC international students ask the Department of Education to be their legal Welfare Provider.
This means that our school is officially ‘Mum and Dad’ for 50 of our 64 current international students! In theory, our Principal Ms Money represents the Department as Welfare Provider, but you can imagine that her busy day doesn’t allow her to look after all of the one million and one things a teenage student needs in her daily life! So MGC has the International Student Coordinator (ISC) to be ‘Mum’ for those 50 students under our welfare provision.
The MGC International Student Program team, comprised of Lluani Williams (ISC), Jielei Cui and Lily Pham, together make sure that each student under our welfare provision can live with an ‘MGC approved’ homestay family. We meet with each family to match the student with the family, and to make sure that every student continues to be safe and respectful of the MGC homestay policy, we make two subsequent visits per year to each homestay; one in term 2 and one in term 4.
On Wednesday April 19th the year 10s went on camp to Phillip Island. Our International Student Program Assistant Jielei Cui went along for the ride, with 11 year 10 international students. They spent three days exploring Phillip Island, and they did activities like Team Rescue, Raft Making, Canoeing, High Ropes and a Trivia Night. Everyone had a great time, and Jielei said that she’d never been on school camp during her own time at high school, so it was a first for everyone!
Student Profiles
Margaret LIU
Hello everyone!
I'm very glad to introduce myself to you all. My name is Margaret Liu. I'm an international student and I'm from Panjin, China. Panjin is a small city, but it's beautiful and four distinctive seasons. I had a wonderful childhood there. Until I was 15 years old, I decided to study aboard when I was in middle school and my parents also supported me. I came to Melbourne in January last year. At the beginning, I studied at language central for five months. It was the first place where I studied English. To be honest, I learned a lot of new knowledge since I came here, they improved myself and let me adapt better for life here.
Moreover, I enjoy dancing in my spare time. Actually, I always wanted to learn dancing in China, but I didn't have enough time. However I can make the most of the time to do something I love to do now. I started to learn dancing from last year in May. Fortunately, I joined a dance group--' I AM Crew ' in March this year. I was so excited about that, and I was very grateful to my captain. Because she gave me such a chance let me see myself better and make me more confident. I'll cherish this opportunity and keep it up. Meanwhile, I'll also work hard and try my best to achieve my goals.
Thank you!
Our group name is I AM Crew. And here's our dance video.
This is our performance video.
Luna LIANG
Hi everyone. I am an international student in Melbourne Girls ' College. My name is Luna Liang. I am in year 11.
I come from Shanxi, China. I came to Melbourne just 9 months. Actually, I went to Australia to study because of a trip. My mom with me had a trip to Australia when I was 15 years old. We went to Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne, of course. I love the city because of its culture and beautiful views at first time. When I come back again for studying, I find out there people are friendly and warmth. I went to Hawthorn language school and stay in a homestay. My high school also cared of me. Lluani is just like a mother for me in a strange city.
Time passed, l learned a lot about everything. I learned how live without my parents by myself. I learned how be more polite to people. I learned how to cook.
In Melbourne Girls' College, I really have a good experience and environment to study.
I am in such an honour to own your time for reading, thank you.
Call for Story Tellers
We are all part of the Melbourne Girls’ College community, so we would like to hear the stories of some of the people that make up our diverse and colourful community.
We’d like you to share your story; where did you come from, where have you been? If you have a family member, particularly a grandparent or older relative, who is a particularly good story teller, we’d like to invite them to tell us a story at school! Please let us know!
League of Homestay Champions
If you are interested in hosting one of our fabulous international students, please contact Lluani Williams via the College number: 9428-8955, or by email: lluani.williams@mgc.vic.edu.au , or you can pop by my office in room 302. We are always looking for new Melbourne Girls’ College homestay families!