University of New South Wales (UNSW)

The University of New South Wales, known as UNSW or UNSW Sydney, is an Australian university founded in 1949. Its main campus is in Kensington, Sydney, in New South Wales. It is one of the options in our guide to studying in Australia from Nepal and our list of universities in Australia for international students.

This profile is for Nepali students considering UNSW for a bachelor’s, a master’s or a UNSW College pathway. It covers why students choose it, where its campuses are, what it costs, when courses start, work rights, scholarships and a few courses open to international students. The courses open to you, with level, length and campus, are in our UNSW courses guide. Entry requirements, documents and the application steps are in our UNSW admissions guide.

Why do Nepali students choose UNSW?

Nepali students look at UNSW for on-campus degrees in Sydney in IT, engineering, business and health, with a clear route through UNSW College after +2.

• IT and data. The Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) suits you after +2 study, and the Master of Information Technology suits you after a bachelor’s. A bachelor’s in another field can enter that master’s through a graduate certificate route.
• Engineering and business. The Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) (Civil) and the Bachelor of Commerce are both taught at Kensington, and so is the Master of Professional Accounting.
• A pathway after +2. UNSW’s list doesn’t accept Nepal’s school results for direct entry to a bachelor’s. UNSW College, fully owned by UNSW, has its own Nepal grades for its diplomas and Foundation Studies.
• Sydney. UNSW says Kensington is about 12 km from the Sydney CBD. It also warns that the rental market can be competitive, so plan your rent early. Our guide to the best cities in Australia for Nepali students compares it with other cities.

Where are UNSW’s campuses?

UNSW’s main campus is at Kensington in Sydney, where most courses on this page are taught, with other campuses at Paddington, the Sydney CBD and Canberra.

UNSW also lists regional campuses and UNSW Bengaluru in India, so choose a campus in Australia on the course page if you want a student visa. We found no partner-run campus teaching UNSW degrees in Australia. UNSW College is UNSW’s own pathway college, next to the Kensington campus, and it uses provider code 01020K.

UNSW’s provider code is 00098G; check it and your course’s code on the CRICOS register before you pay. Overseas partners also have articulation agreements with UNSW, so check the register if your college in Nepal or abroad says it has a link.

How much does UNSW cost for international students?

Most UNSW course pages list a first-year fee of about AUD 47,000 to AUD 63,000 for international students, for tuition only.

That is roughly Rs 43 to 57 lakh a year. To see what these amounts are worth today, use our AUD to Rs forex converter. UNSW sets tuition by the subjects you choose, and its fees page says the course finder shows indicative fees only.

Examples of the published annual fee: Bachelor of Commerce AUD 56,500, Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) AUD 61,000 and Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) (Civil) AUD 61,500. The Master of Information Technology is AUD 63,000, and the AGSM MBA is the exception at AUD 87,500, roughly Rs 79 lakh.

You also pay an AUD 150 application fee, which is non-refundable, the Student Services and Amenities Fee, and OSHC. UNSW suggests budgeting about AUD 1,000 a year for books. UNSW College fees are separate: its fees page lists diplomas at about AUD 45,000 to AUD 56,000 and Foundation Studies at about AUD 43,000 to AUD 49,000.

You pay a deposit to accept your offer, and the amount wasn’t on the pages we read, so check your offer letter. UNSW’s refunds page says a student who drops out before finishing a first term is charged 50% of the deposit. It doesn’t set out a visa refusal rule, so ask UNSW in writing before you pay. If you worry about refusals, read our page on Australia visa success rates for Nepali students.

Living costs come on top. For the student visa, Home Affairs asks you to show AUD 29,710 for a year of living costs. You also show first-year tuition and AUD 2,000 for travel; the Australia student visa requirements page explains how. See the total cost to study in Australia and the cost of living in Australia for a full budget.

When are UNSW’s intakes?

UNSW teaches in three terms, starting around February, June and September, but not every course takes students in every term.

Offer rounds and closing dates change for each term, so check UNSW’s international admissions page. Term 1 applications from overseas usually close around November, and UNSW says some courses reach capacity. Apply early, because places are given on merit and depend on what is available.

The Bachelor of Commerce and the Master of Information Technology list Terms 1, 2 and 3. The Bachelor of Psychological Science and the Master of Data Science and Decisions list Terms 1 and 3. The Bachelor of Medical Science and the AGSM MBA list Term 1 only.

UNSW is also moving to a new flex-semester calendar with two main semesters, and it says the length of your studies may change depending on when you start. Ask about this before you plan your budget.

Aim to apply 6 to 9 months before your start date, so there is time for the offer, the CoE, OSHC and your visa.

If you track document dates in Bikram Sambat, our Nepali date converter turns B.S. dates into A.D. dates. For the full calendar, read our guide to Australia intakes.

Can you work while studying at UNSW and after you graduate?

Yes. You can work up to 48 hours a fortnight while your course is in session, with no limit in official breaks. Many graduates can then apply for a 485 visa.

You can’t work until your course has started, as UNSW’s student visa page explains. Our guide to working hours for students in Australia covers the fortnight rule, and Home Affairs sets the 485 rules:

• Degree graduates can look at the Post-Higher Education Work stream, usually 2 to 3 years.
• Diploma and trade graduates can look at the Post-Vocational Education Work stream, up to 18 months, if the qualification matches an occupation on the skilled list.
• For both streams you must be 35 or under, and the fee starts from AUD 5,750.

No course gives you the visa automatically. UNSW says only that you “may also be eligible” for the 485 after studying on a student visa. Your course must be CRICOS registered and meet the study rule, so check its code. Our Australia 485 visa page explains each stream, and our guide to part-time jobs in Australia shows common student work.

Which scholarships can Nepali students get at UNSW?

Nepal is on the eligible country list for UNSW’s International Student Award, which pays 20% towards your tuition fees for each year of your program.

How the main award works:

• Amount: a 20% contribution to tuition fees each term for your whole program.
• Who can get it: new full-time students from eligible countries with a UNSW offer. It covers UNSW diploma, bachelor’s and coursework master’s programs, but not AGSM, UNSW Online, UNSW Canberra or Foundation programs.
• What you have to do: upload a personal statement of up to 500 words in the UNSW Applicant Portal.
• When: the award is offered for set start years, so confirm the current ones on the award page and read its terms and country list.

The International Scientia Coursework Scholarship pays full tuition or AUD 20,000 a year, and you must apply for it. Australia’s Global University Award pays AUD 10,000 once, and the UNSW College Award pays AUD 10,000 once to high achievers in Foundation Studies. Our guide to scholarships in Australia for Nepali students lists other awards.

What do you need to get into UNSW from Nepal?

A master’s usually needs a bachelor’s with about 65%, a bachelor’s after +2 usually starts at UNSW College, and most courses ask for IELTS 6.5 to 7.0.

UNSW’s accepted qualifications list says it does not accept secondary qualifications from Nepal. It may accept the first year of a 4-year bachelor’s at a recognised university. UNSW College’s Nepal entry table asks for a GPA of 3.0 to 3.2 in Year 12 for Foundation Studies and 3.4 to 3.6 for most diplomas. To see where your +2 grades stand, convert your NEB GPA to a percentage with our NEB GPA calculator.

UNSW’s English page asks for IELTS Academic 6.5 with no band under 6.0 in engineering, science and design. Business asks for 7.0 with no band under 6.0. PTE Academic is 64 or 65 with no skill under 54. Compare these with our page on requirements to study in Australia from Nepal.

You may also hear that a university is “level 1”. Home Affairs doesn’t publish evidence levels for providers or countries. Read our page on level 1, 2 and 3 universities in Australia instead of relying on agent lists.

What can you study at UNSW?

UNSW lists more than 400 degree and double degree options across business, engineering, IT, science, health, law, and arts and design.

The cards below are a selection, each read on UNSW’s own degree pages. Other choices include the Bachelor of Data Science and Decisions and the Master of Public Health.

We did not find a nursing degree in the UNSW degree list we read, so see our guide to nursing courses in Australia if that is your plan. For other course types, see our guides to IT courses in Australia and the MBA in Australia. UNSW also describes itself as part of the Group of Eight universities, if you are comparing research universities.

Program Details

Where do UNSW students live?

UNSW has residential colleges and apartments on campus, and many students also rent in private student housing or share houses near Kensington.

UNSW’s fees page gives indicative weekly rents. On-campus apartments cost AUD 365 to 580, and on-campus colleges AUD 435 to 630 with food. A share house is about AUD 290, and a one-bedroom unit AUD 470 to 830. See UNSW Accommodation and our guide to student accommodation in Australia.

UNSW suggests booking 2 to 4 weeks of short-term housing first, so you can inspect a place before you rent it. Its Sydney housing guide also warns about rental scams on social media. For a wider plan, read our guide to how much money to carry to Australia.

Our counselors in Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Chitwan, Itahari and Pokhara can look at your marks and budget with you. Get in touch with a Goreto branch if you want a second opinion on UNSW.

Official University of New South Wales links

• International students at UNSW
• How to apply
• Find a degree
• Entry requirements
• UNSW College fees
• Find a UNSW agent

Frequently asked questions about University of New South Wales