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Thread: AUT v. University of Auckland

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
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    North Shore, Auckland from USA
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    Default AUT v. University of Auckland

    I've got a real tough dcision to make regarding attending university. I have been accepted to both Auckland University of Technology and University of Auckland for a Graduate Diploma in Teaching (Secondary.) I already have my BA in history from George Washington University in the US. My problem is I already owe US$20,000 in loans and AUT is several thousand dollars cheaper than UofA, but I will need to find a job in NZ right at graduation in order to stay in the country. My question is for any teachers out there. Is a qualification from UofA considered much better than one from AUT? Do you know if one or the other has any particular reputation, good or bad, in the education community?

    UofA is of course better known internationally, ranked in the top 50 in the world, but a teaching degree from there is still worthless in the US, so going to AUT won't change my future prospects if I return to the US in a few years. My concern is for getting a job in NZ or if nothing is available there, then in Australia. I've already checked and Queensland and Victoria accept NZ teaching degrees without need of assessment.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Waterloo, Lower Hutt
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    505

    Default

    I would doubt employers would view either programme as particularly different from each other.

    Some may have a slight preference for the more practical education background to AUT programmes and other people may have a slight preference to the more theoretical research based approach of UoA.

    So in short either programme should provide a good base to gain employment soon after your studies. I would favour the programme that provides the greatest opportunity to put your studies into practice and preferably at different schools, as this is more likely to improve your chances to gain employment.

    Shawn

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    North Shore, Auckland from USA
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    Default

    Thanks for the reply, I am leaning towards U of Auckland because it is better known in the world, ranked in the top 50. On the other hand though AUT has 16 weeks of practicum and courses taught straight from actual high school teachers in my field while UofA has 14 weeks practicum of which only 12 weeks are spent in actual classrooms, so its still a tough choice. I need to leave the door open to a return to the US so I want an internationally recognized degree, but the most important thing is finding a job right away in NZ because a student visa will only let me stay 6 months after I graduate. Oh what a conundrum!

    Also the US dollar keeps plunging and my tuition keeps going up as a result, the pound now buys US$2.10 last I checked!

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Waterloo, Lower Hutt
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    Default

    Both programmes will provide a good chance of securing employment.
    Other helpful factors to help your employability are the networks you have with the different schools and the subject(s) you have trained to teach.

    Depending how long you plan to teach in NZ, you could complete your initial training at AUT and complete further post grad studies at UoA.

    This will help you gain your key qualification at the lowest possible price and into employment and after gaining your PR you can complete further Post Grad papers with UoA to maximise International recognition.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    North Shore, Auckland from USA
    Posts
    112

    Default

    Thanks for the response eternalkiwi, but I'm afraid I accepted the offer from University of Auckland yesterday. I don't plan to get any further qualifications for a long while as I'll be drowning in debt after this degree, my student loan payments will be around NZ$400-500/month assuming the NZ dollar remains strong, if it collapses I'll have to leave because my loan payments are in US dollars. After talking with a couple teachers in the US they agreed an AUT degree would be near worthless in the US, because no one has heard of it. I hope to stay in NZ awhile but who knows what the future holds.

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