The Cost Of Education And Childcare In Australia

Taken from an article written by Swati Iyer for Instarem

Childcare & Education

Formal childcare costs in Australia vary from state to state and provider to provider. A long day care centre would charge between AUD 70 and 185 per day, while a family day care centre (home-based early childhood education) costs between AUD 7.5-16.8 per hour, depending on location and services offered. Hiring a live-in nanny would cost a parent between AUD 17 and 25 per hour, while a live-out nanny would cost AUD 17-35 plus agency’s fee. A trained au pair would cost AUD 200-300 per week + agency fee.

On the education front, the average cost of schooling in Australia is higher than Germany or New Zealand but much lower than the UK. Getting a child into preschool would cost between AUD 45-80 per day. Overall, education from Prep to Year 12 through a public school can cost on average AUD 66,000. Schooling at a private establishment would cost a lot more – about AUD 475,000. These figures would include tuition fees and expenses for transport, clothing and extracurricular activities. Schooling costs are a bit lower for regional Australia – AUD 50,641 for public schools and AUD 347,572 for private schools. Sydney and Melbourne are the most expensive places in Australia for children’s education and Hobart is one of the cheapest.

Higher Education

Thanks to a number of world-class universities offering high-quality education, Australia is a very popular destination for international students, second only to the USA. Course fees can vary depending on the course type, institution, location, etc.

The table below gives the average tuition costs in AUD that international students may expect to incur:

• Vocational education – AUD 4000-22,000
• Technical and further education (TAFE) – AUD 4000-22,000
• Undergraduate (Bachelor’s) degree* – AUD 15,000-33,000
• Postgraduate (Master’s) degree* – AUD 20,000-37,000
• PhD – AUD 14,000-37,000
• Foundation courses – AUD 15,000-32,000

*Not including veterinary or medical courses (which cost a lot more).

As with many other countries, education is cheaper for domestic students than for international students. They are also eligible to apply for a number of government loans and scholarships which are not always open to international students, bringing their costs down even further.