Hi everyone, I wrote two blogs earlier and shared my initial experience in New Zealand with all of you. In continuance, I wanted to share my journey. My Journey from India to New Zealand for a better and quality life.

I, Mamta, moved to New Zealand in July 2016 as a student in my thirties. Like many immigrants, I came here with lots of dreams and aspirations. I count myself blessed as I am settled here now. I got a residency in December 2018. I have a full-time permanent teaching position and became a resident in New Zealand within two years and four months.

I must say, there are lots of opportunities for hardworking people in New Zealand. You get rewarded in no time provided you choose a viable course/study related to your current profile – qualification and experience, moreover, which is based on your skills and strengths. There are various educational advisors who provide you many options to choose the course. However, the genuine advisor will work in-depth on your profile and support you to choose the right course wisely and make a plan for settlement further.

The foremost part which I considered most important in my case was the ‘faith in yourself’-getting out of your comfort zone and ‘trust on your advisor’ to take calculative risk. I did some research around who can provide me genuine advice. I chose and consulted a professional advisor who supported me throughout my journey for a better life. I took a two-year study leave from the college where I was permanently working as an Assistant Professor. My advisor worked on my profile and did an initial assessment of my case systematically. They suggested a course related to my skill set and made a plan. In the meantime, I secured 7 bands each module and got my educational transcripts assessed from the New Zealand Qualification Authority (NZQA) which takes two to three months. This whole process since consultation tested my patience as it took almost six months to get all the papers on board to file my case and get my student visa approved.

I did a Graduate Diploma in Teaching (Early Childhood Teacher)- Level 7 for one year and got registered as a qualified ECE teacher. The journey of being a student was also not easy. Though I faced many challenges in a foreign land. The first challenge, I faced finding a first part-time job. I did not get the first job related to my field. However, I accepted and worked to accommodate my expenses. I worked on most of the weekends. I did my training and study during weekdays. Secondly, Despite securing 7 bands in IELTS, it took some time for me to get used to and understand Kiwi slang. Moreover, about the weather in New Zealand, you can see all the seasons in one day – from windy, rainy and sunny.

I was allowed to work for 20 hours. Later on, I found the job related to my field at one of the Preschools as a casual reliever. I made networking at my workplace and in the local community. Sometimes, I could only work for 10 hours or less to understand and finishing challenging assignments. However, I completed my study in one attempt and without any resubmit. I should say, this all hard work paid off me well as I was able to work full time after finishing my studies. I took professional services of the licensed advisor to apply for a one-year job search visa as only licensed advisors can file all kinds of NZ visas. My Licenced advisor held my hand and supported me throughout my professional journey. My two years post-study visa got approved in two days after filing. After that, I got enough time to apply for PR. I consulted the same licensed advisor, they handled my PR application very well. After acceptance of my expression of Interest -EOI, Immigration Law Advice NZ Ltd. filed my PR application and I got a resident visa approved in less than two months. Many thanks for your support Vinay and Babita for your professional services and in helping me to reach this goal.

The writer is a research scholar from India and was working as an Assistant Professor in one of the affiliated colleges in India before moving to New Zealand. She got her New Zealand resident visa now. She is working as a registered and qualified Early Childhood Educator in New Zealand.

If you want to know more about studying or immigrating to New Zealand, please send your detailed CV to services@immigrationlawadvice.co.nz