For Chinese graduates

A New Zealand master's that leads somewhere

Study a taught master's in New Zealand, work for up to three years afterwards on an open visa, and step onto a residence pathway through the Green List. It does not have to be a university: an institute of technology teaches the same level 9 degree for roughly half the money, and the visa outcome is identical.

3 years Post-study work visa for a level 9 master's

Up to 25 hrs Work a week while you study, if your visa is granted with work rights

180 Green List occupations a master's can lead to

See what you could study

Tell us about your degree, your grades and your English, and we will come back with the programmes that fit, what each one costs, and where they lead.

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NZ$24,600 A year for a level 9 master's at an institute of technology, against NZ$55,485 at the University of Auckland

27 Taught master's programmes across 15 providers, from institutes of technology to universities

174 Of them on the Tier 1 straight to residence pathway

24 mths Work required before residence on a Tier 2 Green List role

Why New Zealand

What a coursework master's actually gets you

A coursework master's is a structured programme of taught courses at an advanced level, usually finishing with a project or an industry placement rather than a thesis. It is the type to aim for, and in some cases it will take you into a different professional area from your first degree.

It does not have to be a university

Immigration New Zealand grants the post-study work visa on the level of the qualification, not the type of provider. Wintec teaches a level 9 master's for NZ$24,600 a year and Unitec for about NZ$30,415 per 120 credits, where the University of Auckland publishes NZ$55,484.50 for 120 points of engineering. Same visa outcome, roughly half the money. Engineering is the exception: no institute of technology here teaches an engineering master's.
Some of them are built for a change of field

Wellington's Master of Software Development requires a bachelor degree that is not in computer science. Auckland's Master of Engineering Studies accepts an approved bachelor degree rather than an engineering one on its 180 point option. AUT's Master of Computer and Information Sciences takes graduates from adjacent disciplines. Crossing over is the intended route, not an exception you have to argue for.
A project or placement, not a thesis

Wellington's Master of Building Science ends in an industry project or practicum. AUT's engineering and computing master's are taught with a project. That is the kind of work that turns into a first job offer, and it is also why a coursework master's is open to you when a research master's is not.
Up to three years of open work rights afterwards

A level 9 master's qualifies for a post-study work visa of up to three years, with no employer sponsorship needed to start. Australia gives a coursework master's two years. The United Kingdom gives two years now and eighteen months from January 2027. That runway is the reason to come here.
Up to 25 hours a week while you study

A student visa can be granted with rights to work up to 25 hours a week during term and full time over scheduled holidays. Full time in the holidays needs a course worth 120 credits, which a master's comfortably meets. Check the conditions on your own visa, because the hours are a ceiling that is granted rather than an automatic entitlement. It takes real pressure off, though it will not fund the degree and the visa still requires evidence you can support yourself.
The Green List is the whole point, and it is mostly health

Immigration New Zealand lists 215 occupations with a defined residence pathway. We list the 180 a master's can lead to, and leave out the 35 trade and apprenticeship roles it cannot. Of the 180, 174 go straight to residence. Be clear eyed about the shape of them: 129 are health and social services. Engineering has 28, ICT 12 and construction 6. Read the requirement on the role you are aiming at, because several engineering roles ask for an accredited undergraduate engineering degree or an Engineering New Zealand letter, and a master's does not supply either.

See the Green List occupations

Compare

What you can do after you graduate

How long you can stay and work once you graduate, how much you can work while you study, and what the route to residence actually is.

Criterion	New Zealand	Australia	United Kingdom	Canada
Post-study work rights	Up to 3 years for a level 9 master's	2 years for a coursework master's, 3 for a research master's	2 years if you apply on or before 31 December 2026, 18 months after that	Up to 3 years for a master's, even if the programme was shorter than 2 years
Work rights while studying	Up to 25 hours a week in term, full time in scheduled breaks	48 hours a fortnight while the course is in session, unlimited when it is not	Depends on the course. No single figure is published	Up to 24 hours a week off campus during terms
Pathway to residence	The Green List: 174 of its 215 roles go straight to residence with a qualifying job offer, and the rest after 24 months of work. Otherwise the Skilled Migrant Category, which needs 6 points, and a level 9 master's is worth 5	Points-tested skilled migration. The Skilled Independent visa is permanent, but you need 65 points or more and an occupation on the skilled occupation list	No occupation list route. You must usually have lived and worked in the UK for 5 years, normally on a Skilled Worker visa	Express Entry, a ranked pool. Experience gained on a post-graduation work permit feeds the Canadian Experience Class, and the highest ranked are invited to apply

New Zealand from immigration.govt.nz, Australia from the Department of Home Affairs subclass 189, 485 and 500 pages, the United Kingdom from gov.uk, Canada from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Checked 18 and 19 August 2026.

How it works

From first enquiry to residence

Seven stages. We are with you for all of them, and the first one costs nothing.

Free assessment

You tell us your degree, your grades and your English level. We tell you honestly which universities will take you, and which will not.
Choose a programme

We shortlist coursework master's programmes that fit your background and are relevant to a Green List occupation, not just any offer.
Application and offer

We prepare the documents, handle the university, and manage the conditional and unconditional offers.
Student visa

Funds evidence, medicals, police certificates and the application itself, prepared by a licensed adviser. The fee starts at NZ$850.
Arrival and settling in

Accommodation, bank account, IRD number and the first few weeks on the ground.
Post-study work visa

On graduation, up to three years of open work rights while you find a role in your field. The fee starts at NZ$1,670.
Residence

A Tier 1 Green List role means applying straight away. Tier 2 means 24 months of work first. Either way it needs a qualifying job offer, not just the degree.