In his quest for full-time work as a student, 25-year-old Henry Laurent Khosasih (pictured above) sometimes applied to 10 companies every day. But his efforts went unrewarded, and he relied instead on a network of casual jobs to sustain him while he completed his degree at Swinburne University.

For many, life as an international student in Australia is precarious. Khosasih, from Indonesia, managed day-to-day life by juggling a range of jobs, but when he needed to find $6000 to pay for thyroid surgery, his illness and recovery was affected by stress about his finances.

Full-time youth employment rates among international students are low. According to the most recent GOS study, only 41.6 per cent of international students were employed full-time compared to 68.9 per cent of domestic students. Students face a range of barriers to employment, including their lack of contacts, expertise and experience as well as language barriers, which reduce their capacity to work in local companies.

But life in Australia is expensive, and as Khosasih discovered, unforseen costs can take students to the brink.

This photo essay captures intimate details about international students’ lives and living spaces, their challenges and triumphant moments, and their  motivation for working several jobs. It offers this brief glimpse of their experience, often unseen, which was made far more difficult through the COVID-19 pandem and lockdowns.

While completing his Masters in Information Systems, Henry Khosasih worked through a range of jobs, including food delivery and building maintenance in his apartment complex. Some of the repetitive work of changing door batteries for the tenants caused minor injuries.

Khosasih managed his recovery from recent thyroid surgery alone,  as all of his family is far away in Indonesia. He only took a two-week break after the surgery before reassuming all of his casual employment, because little support or assistance is available to students when they are at their most vulnerable.

Vanessa Chan, 21, lives in student accommodation in Swanston street, in a room that is just 9 square metres. She’s had several poorly-paid publishing internships and volunteer jobs, hoping that they will at least contribute to her resume. “Working as a volunteer at this magazine helps me hone my journalism writing and editing skills, and maybe it will help me get a full-time career in the future.”

Chan with some of her published work; her ambitions have helped her remain strong and focused in the face of adversity. “I always have a dream to be the editor of ABC news and I am proud that I get to publish something with my name on it.”

Febal Siby is a 24-year-old international student, originally from India. He is pursuing a Master’s degree in Business Analytics at Deakin University, while also working at the deli department at Woolworths to cope with the surging inflation and rising cost of living. He is labeling cheese while looking out for customers.

Siby’s main duty is to serve customers freshly sliced meat and cheese in the deli department. He typically puts in 15 hours each week, earning a part-time wage of $23 per hour.

Because he typically works at Woolworths during the day, Siby  must complete  assignments or study for exams at night. He prefers to study in the public kitchen on level 9 as his room is small, but it can be noisy and difficult to concentrate. He has no choice, however, as this student accommodation is the most cost-effective choice for him for now.

Sachin K Shajil, from India, is studying for a Masters of Physics at the University of Melbourne. Now was employed at the University of Melbourne as a casual physics tutor, he had first applied unsuccessfully for the job in 2021 and had then worked as a casual at Dominos Pizza, The 24-year-old tutors for about six hours a week of work and earns $52 per hour. “It is very difficult to survive as an overseas student since, unlike local students who receive Centrelink payments, you really don’t have a money backup to fall back on. Additionally, it keeps us on our toes and forces us to work continuously to feed ourselves.”

Shajil feels that right now, it is particularly difficult to find full-time work as an international student. Even though he hasn’t formally applied for any full-time jobs yet, skimming through the job description makes it seem as though it will be challenging. But he believes that, with effort, he will make it one day.

Gandhi is his role model and he keeps a poster of him nearby for inspiration. Gandhi advocated using non-violence to address the most violent issue at the time. According to Shajil, Gandhi’s never-give-up spirit is what pushes him forward. “Physics can be challenging, but persistence will get you there. Despite knowing I had failed to secure the position of tutor at the beginning of 2021, I persisted in applying. My grades went up, and all of my efforts eventually paid off. It is all thanks to my hero, Gandhi.”