14 Development

Thursday 18 March 2010 www.baladnaenglish.com

The struggles and rewards of studying

It is the dream of many young
Syrians students to study
abroad, to learn a language
and boost their career pros-
pects. But for all the benefits,
the process takes time, dedica-
tion and hard work, as Youssef
Mourtada will testify.

JOANNE LISINSKA, BALADNA

Youssef Mourtada, 27, is a Syrian
and newly welcomed Australian
citizen. After completing high
school in Damascus he travelled to
Lebanon where he gained a bach-
elor of commerce degree from the
Beirut Arab University in 2003.
After he returned to Damascus,
Youssef worked in accounts at
the Kuwaiti company ‘al-Wazzan’
but after two years made a life
changing decision to continue
his higher education in Australia.
He now holds a Masters in pro-
fessional accounting from the
University of New South Wales in
Sydney.

What was the deciding factor to

travel?
To live in a country as great as
Australia, to get a strong Master’s
degree and Australian citizenship.
Why did you choose to
migrate?
Economy, the high ranking of the
country according to the Human
Development Index and better
higher education quality.
What difficulties did you have
adjusting?
When I first arrived everything
was new and interesting, from
how to catch a train without push-
ing ahead, meeting people from
different cultural backgrounds,
and trying to make new friends.
It was challenging for the first six
months.
Change is never easy. Part of that
was starting to build new connec-
tions and friends, while missing
family and old friends.
I got involved in many volunteer
activities at university and made
lots of friends that way.
Youssef (third from the left) and his friends enjoy a sunny day at Sidney’s infamous beach
Another challenge was studying
in a different language, but I got
used to it very quickly.
I got a part time job which helped
a lot in understanding the job
market and a full time job in the
finance industry straight after
graduation.
I always keep in touch with my
parents; they are a driving force,
my courage and my strength.
Did you integrate immediately
or were most of your friends
Arab?
I adapt very quickly to most situ-
ations and for the first year I had
only non-Arab friends who I met at
university and through university
activities and that made it easier to
adapt to the culture.
Tell us about your course and
why you chose it?
The master of professional ac-
counting provides an introduction
to business with a focus on ac-
counting and enables students to
obtain recognition by the two peak
professional accounting bodies in
Australia: CPA Australia and the
Institute of Chartered Accounting
in Australia.
After graduation I worked for the
State Street Financial Services and I
now currently work for JP Morgan
in Sydney, one of the world’s
leading investment banks.
What did your family think about
you moving so far?
They were always supportive and
my brothers are now planning join-
ing me here.
How was your English when you
arrived?
I studied English as a second lan-
guage at school and went to the
British Council in Damascus for
some English courses before I pre-
pared and sat the International
English Language Testing System
(IELTS). I managed to get the score
required by the university and the
department of immigration.
Explain the process you went
through in selecting a school
in Australia and the paperwork
necessary to gain admission.
My choices were the UK, Australia,
Canada or the USA. I did a research
on the countries and different uni-
versities. I liked Australia as a coun-
try and UNSW offered the course
that I wanted.
In the beginning I had to do a lot of
extra research, contact the univer-
sities and gather all the documents
required for admission and the
Australian embassy for the visa.
It took me a while because I was
doing the research on my own due
to the lack of study abroad educa-
tion agents in Syria, but in the end,
I got the from the university and
started from there to apply for the
visa. I paid the first instalment of
tuition fees and got a confirmation
of enrolment, then I applied to the

www.baladnaenglish.com
and working abroad
Australian embassy in Beirut for
the visa and I got it within a couple
of months.
How long did you study for?
Two years full time.
What were your requirements?
They required a bachelor degree in
commerce, good marks and IELTS
score of at least 6.5 overall not less
than 6 in each component (the full
mark is 9).
How different is the education
system to that of Syria?
Totally different. In Syria the
assessment method is based on
memorising rather than concep-
tual learning. In Australia there
is ongoing assessment through
research assignments, projects,
quizzes, class participation, home-
work, online assessment, real life
case studies and the final exam.
What was the process for
completing your studies to
acquiring a
permanent Australian
residency.
I graduated in 2007 and got a
job straight away with State
Street Financial Services where
I worked for two and a half
years.
I arrived to Australia in July
Why Australia?
People
Australians are renowned for their friend-
ly and easy going nature. In a multicul-
tural country like Australia, people easily
accept others and highly respect others’
beliefs, differences and backgrounds.
Education
Australia ranked first in the United Na-
tions Education Index in 2008.
In 2008 The University of New South
Wales (UNSW) received the maximum
Development
15 15
2005 on student visa and ap-
plied for permanent residency
after four months as a skilled
migrant.
The application process took
around nine months after which
I was granted a permanent resi-
dency. After being a permanent
resident for two years I was eli-
gible to apply for citizenship
and I got my Australian citizen-
ship and passport on Australia
Day, the 26 January 2009.
After immigrating how long
did it take you to return to
Damascus?
I had to stay in Australia for two
years before I visited Syria for the
second time in order to finish the
two year requirement to gain
citizenship.
When I returned to Syria, I felt so
many things changed. I realised
how fast I was moving forward in
Australia and I started to feel the
gap getting bigger.
Will you ever move back?
Australia is home now. I only really
miss my family and old friends. I
find that my future is here. I made
some great friends in Sydney who
have become my second family.
Do you miss Arabic food, music or
traditions, which ones?
I do but it is available here too
among the Arabic community, but
definitely not as good as my mum’s
five-star rating for nine key performance
indicators.
Australia ranked ninth in ease of doing
business and third in the ease of starting
a business according to the Doing Busi-
ness 2010 report, 2009.
Lifestyle
Australia ranked second in the Human
Development (HDI) Report 2009 and
third in 2007 and 2008. The Human De-
velopment Index (HDI) is an index used
Thursday 18 March 2010
dishes!
How do you describe in your
own words the Arab community
in Australia?
Syrians form a very small commu-
nity and I didn’t have the chance
to mix with many. The major-
ity of Arabs are Lebanese. Around
180,000 Australians claim a
Lebanese ancestry and they make
up 2.3 per cent of Sydney’s popu-
lation. I met a few Syrian families
and some Syrian friends at uni-
versity but most of my friends are
non-Arabs.
What do you love most about
Australia?
The people, the respect for the
law, the organisation of urban
life, the life style, the nature, the
beaches, the weather, respect,
peace, safety, social security, the
health care system and outdoor
activities available to all.
Any words of advice for other
Syrians dreaming to study in
Australia?
Do it. Study hard, migrate, inte-
grate, and have fun along the
way, achieve your goals and most
importantly achieve them with
happiness. Let Syria and Australia
be proud of you.
Do you feel Australian?
Absolutely. Aussie, Aussie, Aussie:
Oi, Oi, Oi!
to rank countries by level of human
development, across life expectancy,
knowledge and education, and standard
of living.
Sydney ranked 9th in the ‘World’s Most
Liveable Cities’ list in The Economist
magazine 2008 report.
Working in finance
Sydney is the headquarters of 90 banks
and more than half of Australia’s top
companies.