University of New South Wales (UNSW)

[blitz]

Rob Valdez sent me here.  (He said to let you know that.)

Anyway, I had a favor to ask of the Australian members.

I have been contacted about a position in the Civil Engr. Dept. at UNSW. I was looking for some information about the school from our Australian posters. Has anyone graduated from UNSW , and Civil Engineering in particular? Any information you can provide would be much appreciated. What's the vibe at the school? Quality of students? Quality of professors? Are students cooperative or cut-throat? (I've seen both. Cut-throat isn't pretty.)

In addition to being really good dirt bike (KTM) riders, my two early-teenage daughters are good sailors, and the proximity to the ocean is appealing. The transition from here to there might be difficult for them, but sailing and motorcycling opportunities may temper that a bit.

I have no idea what the position pays, but can anyone comment on cost-of-living comparisons between Sydney and cities in the U.S.? That might help frame this inquiry as well.

Thanks very much in advance. I appreciate this very much.

blitz

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

All,

blitz is a BMW rider on Boxerworks.  I am pretty sure we have a few members in the Sydney area, so I suggested he post here, as well!

[ambrose78]

I currently live about 10 minutes from said university.  

I can't comment from first hand experience as to the academic side as I attended a different university. My girlfriend and her flatmates graduated from UNSW. They all seem to have positive stories - even if they were from different departments - (HR, Medical and Social Work).

I can comment on the social side - They have an excellent Scuba Diving club run by UNSW for when you feel the need to take up another hobby in our relatively warm water we have here. And there are bar nights and other events that go on from time to time.

As for sailing - There is a lot of sailing oportunities here.
There are numerous yacht and boat clubs all around Sydney and most have sailing series on throughout the year. My Cousins are heavily involved at Pittwater with the Royal Prince Alfred  yacht club and royal motor yacht clubs in the northern part of Sydney. I've sailed there several times and it is always a lot of fun.

Moving to the central area there are several sailing and boat clubs in Sydney Harbour/ Middle Harbour/ Parramatta River area. Moving further south there is at least one on the Georges river that I know of based in Sans sousi.

Moving further south again to "The Shire" there are some clubs around Wooloware and Cronulla that I know of.  Probably best to find a close one to where you end up living when you arrive. All the clubs I have been sailing with have been friendly and passionate.

As For dirt biking - I'm not an expert on the topic but I not aware of anything close by UNSW. That said there are some decent places about an hour's drive.

Cost of living - from a laymans guess - more expensive here. Some things will be cheaper. Some things more expensive. But to quantify work out what you lifestyle costs - eg income, taxes, housing, clothes, fuel. Then do a comparison of prices here.

That said we do enjoy several awesome riding roads in the adjacent areas to sydney.

Good luck with it.