SUPPORT FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDENT

ZINZ is dedicated to providing high-quality and full support to international students to ensure they have a pleasant study experience in New Zealand.

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There are also various sources of useful information that students may find helpful in planning their studies in New Zealand.

The New Zealand government has created a website called NauMai to provide trusted information and help for international students studying or about to study in New Zealand. https://naumainz.studyinnewzealand.govt.nz/.

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Students are recommended to go to the Naumai website to look for useful information regarding studying in New Zealand.

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Legal Rights and Obligations

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While studying in New Zealand, students need to be aware that the laws of New Zealand apply to them.

The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) https://www.cab.org.nz/ is highly useful information that helps people know what their rights are and how to access the services they need in New Zealand.

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Publications of New Zealand legislation can be found at https://www.legislation.govt.nz/.

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Receiving Immigration Advice*

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Students should only be receiving advice from licensed immigration advisers. As suggested by the Immigration Advisers Authority (https://www.iaa.govt.nz/for-migrants/the-risks-of-relying-on-illegal-advice/), receiving illegal immigration advice or services can have many risks such as:

• Students’ visa applications will be returned by Immigration New Zealand (INZ) as INZ does not accept applications from unlicensed people acting illegally.

• Unlicensed people may not be honest with students or INZ. Lying on a visa application is a criminal offence and dishonesty may affect students’ future visas or jobs.

• Students’ applications may be declined because the unlicensed person has no immigration knowledge or skills.

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Immigration Advisers Authority also suggests that students should stay away from anyone who:

• Refuses to put their name on the student’s visa application.

• Claims to have personal contacts at INZ.

• Asks students to sign a visa application before it has been filled out. Students should never sign a document they don’t understand.

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Additional information regarding licensed immigration advice can be found on the Immigration Advisers Authority’s

website: https://www.iaa.govt.nz/for-migrants/guides-and-resources/.

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* The information in this section is taken from the Immigration Advisers Authority website under the Crown copyright protection.

https://www.iaa.govt.nz/for-migrants/the-risks-of-relying-on-illegal-advice/.

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How to Effectively Interact with People from Different Cultural Backgrounds

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New Zealand is a culturally diverse country, a quarter of New Zealand’s population was born overseas. Therefore, it is important for students to know how to communicate effectively with people from different cultural backgrounds.

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Keeping Your Message Clear*

Immigration New Zealand has an excellent guide on how to communicate with people new to New Zealand. Although this guide is not specifically designed for students who are new to New Zealand, they can still use this guide to learn how to communicate with other people who are new to New Zealand.

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* This guide is extracted from “Keeping it Clear” by Immigration New Zealand (on behalf of the Crown), licensed under CC BY 3.0 NZ.

The full guide can be found here: https://www.immigration.govt.nz/assist-migrants-and-students/keeping-it-clear.

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Building Friendship*

When students are new in a country, it is often easier to stick with their own culture and make most of their friends among people who are like them - from their own countries or ethnic groups.

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It is true that other newcomers can provide valuable support in students’ early days here. It is good to have someone to talk to who understands what they are going through if things become difficult.

Newcomers' networks https://www.newcomers.co.nz/ are a good place to find people who are likely to relate to students’ experiences.

But remember to also keep sowing the seeds of friendship with the wider community. Kiwis usually have a wide range of acquaintances and a small group of friends. This close group tends not to change much over time so students may need to be patient.

Students will find the balance in their circle of friends between other new arrivals and Kiwis will change naturally over time as they become more settled and their lives here evolve.

Students should start off by building up that circle of acquaintances and then see where that takes them.

* The information in this section is taken from the New Zealand Now website under the Crown copyright protection. https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/living-in-nz/tips-for-settling-in/meeting-people.

Other Useful Resources

Office of Ethnic Communities has an excellent and free Intercultural Capability eLearning programme that can help students increase their cultural understanding so they can better interact or communicate with people from different cultural backgrounds.

The programme is online-based and students can complete the programme at their own pace. The programme can be accessed at: https://www.ethniccommunities.govt.nz/resources-2/intercultural-capability/?fbclid=IwAR2yxKDzlovLnV00_znCUjU8rkweah2F2_HvXyAlkuRvyPPUY5KioG2a3II.

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Cultural Support

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At Zealive Institute, we support a diverse learning environment. We want to make our students feel welcome and comfortable expressing their religions at the institute. Students are always welcome to contact the institute’s support team if they have any religion-related requirements and we will try our best to cater to them.

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Information regarding religions in New Zealand, including Christianity, Hinduism, International Society for Krishna Consciousness, Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism, and where to find places nearby to practice these religions can be found at https://naumainz.studyinnewzealand.govt.nz/help-and-advice/life-and-culture/where-to-practise-your-religion.

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Community Support*

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There are a number of websites students can use to find organisations in students’ local areas for their ethnic groups or culture.

• The Citizens Advice Bureau website has a comprehensive directory where students can search for different community organisations in their area. Search by the type of community students want and include the place.

• The Office of Ethnic Communities has a community directory with links to ethnic groups, organisations for arts and culture, education, sport, youth, women, business, faith groups, and refugees.

• Multicultural New Zealand (Federation of Multicultural Councils) is an organisation for ethnic communities in New Zealand. Their website will tell students where to find their regional offices.

• Students can also visit their local Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) in person for more information. Check our regional pages for more information.

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* The information in this section is taken from the New Zealand Now website under the Crown copyright protection. https://www.newzealandnow.govt.nz/living-in-nz/tips-for-settling-in/meeting-people.

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GPs Near Us*

We understand that being far from home can be challenging, especially when it comes to health. General practitioners are typically the first doctors a patient sees when they are unsure of their condition or have a common illness or ailment. Walk-ins are available for some GPs, and here’s some important information about doctors near our campus:

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Local Medical Clinics

Auckland City Doctors
📍 Address: 415 Queen Street, Auckland CBD
☎️ Phone: +64 9-280 3555
🕒 Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM; Saturday, 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM

🔊 Languages: English, Chinese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese
💻 Website: The Auckland City Doctors – Your local, most trusted walk-in doctors clinic. (akcitydoc.co.nz)

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109 Doctors 

📍 Address: Level 3/109 Queen Street, Auckland CBD, Auckland 1010
☎️ Phone: +64 9-366 0109
🕒 Hours: Monday - Friday 9 am-5.30 pm

🔊 Languages: English, Cantonese Chinese, Mandarin Chinese, Hakka, Hokkien, Japanese, Malay
💻 Website: 109 DOCTORS - Cheapest Family Doctors | Auckland CBD (doc109.co.nz)

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The doctors Quaymed Britomart

📍 Address: 68 Beach Road, Auckland CBD, Auckland 1010
☎️ Phone: +64 9-919 2555
🕒 Hours: Monday - Friday 9 am- 5 pm, Saturday 9 am - 1 pm

🔊 Languages:  English, Cantonese Chinese, Mandarin Chinese, Vietnamese, Afrikaans
💻 Website: The Doctors QuayMed | Auckland CBD

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Caring Clinic Doctors

📍 Address: Floor 8/175 Queen Street, Auckland CBD, Auckland 1010
☎️ Phone: +64 9-222 2577
🕒 Hours: Monday - Friday 8.30 am- 5 pm

🔊 Languages: English, Cantonese Chinese, Mandarin Chinese, Malay, Hokkien
💻 Website: Caring Clinic Doctors - Auckland City, Queen Street, General Practitioner

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Emergency Care

For urgent medical issues, Auckland City Hospital is nearby:
📍 Address: 2 Park Road, Grafton, Auckland 1023
☎️ Phone: +64 9-367 0000