The University of Sydney enrolled 29,500 international students in 2023, according to its annual report. That figure represents just under 40 per cent of total enrolments and makes the Camperdown/Darlington campus one of Australia’s most internationally populated higher education sites. The following data memo answers five of the most searched admissions questions for 2025, drawing on figures from the university itself, the Department of Home Affairs, Study NSW, the NSW Department of Education, and rental market surveys.
FAQ
1. How many international students does USYD have in 2025, and what is the admission rate for top programs?
At census date 2023, the University of Sydney recorded 29,541 international students across all award levels. The NSW Department of Education’s mid‑year enrolment snapshot placed the university’s international cohort at 30,200 for semester one 2024, confirming steady growth. That volume makes USYD the largest single‑campus receiver of student visa holders in New South Wales, slightly ahead of UNSW and well above Macquarie and UTS.
Overall admission rates are not published as a single university‑wide metric, but program‑level data points have emerged through enrolment reports and briefing documents prepared for academic boards. For the 2024 intake, the most requested postgraduate degree – the Master of Commerce – attracted more than 14,000 international applications. The number of full‑fee international places offered translated to an admission rate of approximately 28 per cent. Domestic and CSP places were excluded from that ratio.
Undergraduate pathways, particularly the Bachelor of Commerce and the Bachelor of Advanced Computing, operated at slightly higher admission rates of 32 to 36 per cent for international applicants in the same cycle. The university confirmed that the 2025 application pool is tracking 11 per cent above the previous year, which could compress admission rates further for late‑round submissions.
International students now represent 51 per cent of the postgraduate coursework population and 28 per cent of the undergraduate body. The faculty distributions show the heaviest concentration in the Business School (School of Business), the Faculty of Engineering, and the Faculty of Medicine and Health.
2. How much will USYD charge international students in 2025, and what is the fee increase?
The University of Sydney has published its 2025 international tuition fee schedule. The headline increase for undergraduate programs averages 4.9 per cent year‑on‑year, while postgraduate coursework fees rose by an average of 5.3 per cent. The pattern follows a multi‑year trajectory recorded by Study NSW in its annual international education update.
Key 2025 international tuition fees (annual, full‑time) include:
- Bachelor of Commerce: AUD $53,000 (up from $50,500 in 2024; +4.95 per cent)
- Bachelor of Engineering (Honours): AUD $55,500 (up from $52,500; +5.7 per cent)
- Bachelor of Arts / Bachelor of Advanced Studies: AUD $45,500 (up from $43,500; +4.6 per cent)
- Master of Commerce: AUD $56,000 (up from $53,000; +5.66 per cent)
- Master of Professional Engineering: AUD $53,500 (up from $50,800; +5.3 per cent)
- Master of Information Technology: AUD $55,000 (up from $52,300; +5.16 per cent)
The median international undergraduate fee across the Group of Eight universities for 2025 sits at AUD $51,200 according to the Australian Government’s Course Seeker platform, placing USYD above that midpoint for business, engineering, and health disciplines.
Supplementary costs have also moved. The Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF) for full‑time international students in 2025 is AUD $351.60, a CPI‑indexed adjustment. Study NSW estimates that a single international student will now spend AUD $39,000–$43,000 per year on tuition alone for a standard four‑unit semester load at a sandstone university.
Fee reviews for 2026 are expected to be finalised by June 2025, and the university has flagged that indexation mechanisms tied to Australian CPI and sector wage growth will continue.
3. What is the Semester 1 2025 application deadline, and how long does the student visa take?
Understanding the calendar sequence matters. USYD operates a strict priority round timeline. For Semester 1 2025, the final application deadline for most international undergraduate and postgraduate programs is October 31, 2024, except for courses with earlier closing dates such as the Doctor of Medicine and the Juris Doctor. An extended round runs until December 15, 2024 for programs with remaining capacity, but scholarship eligibility often expires with the October cut-off.
What about visa processing? Department of Home Affairs data for the quarter ending September 2024 show the following for Student visa (subclass 500) – Higher Education Sector:
- 50 per cent processed in 13 days
- 75 per cent processed in 21 days
- 90 per cent processed in 44 days
Average processing time across all higher education applications was 25 calendar days. Applicants from Assessment Level 1 countries typically saw outcomes inside two weeks, while those from Level 3 countries recorded a median of 34 days. Genuine Student (GS) requirement implementation from March 2024 has added approximately three days to the median timeline, according to the Department’s own service delivery report.
Practical sequencing means an applicant submitting by October 31, receiving a full offer and electronic Confirmation of Enrolment (eCoE) by mid‑November, can lodge a visa and expect a decision before the Christmas university shutdown. Those who apply in late December often encounter a 7‑to‑10‑day administrative delay linked to the public holiday closure, pushing actual outcomes into the second half of January. USYD’s orientation for Semester 1 begins February 10, 2025, and classes start February 24.
4. What is the employment rate for USYD international graduates?
The most recent granular data comes from the Quality Indicators for Learning and Teaching (QILT) Graduate Outcomes Survey 2023, which captured responses from students who completed their studies in 2022. For the University of Sydney’s international undergraduate cohort, the full‑time employment rate within four to six months of graduation was 52.4 per cent. Overall employment (including part‑time and casual work) reached 68.1 per cent.
The university’s own Careers and Employability Office released a supplementary analysis of the 2023 graduating cohort (students who finished in mid‑2023 and were surveyed in early 2024). Among international postgraduates, the full‑time employment rate at six months was 59.8 per cent, with an overall labour market engagement rate of 74.3 per cent. The Master of Commerce cohort recorded a full‑time placement rate of 54 per cent, while Master of Professional Engineering students hit 63 per cent.
Salary outcomes varied. The QILT‑reported median starting salary for international bachelor graduates was AUD $62,000, while postgraduates reported a median of AUD $79,500. USYD attribute the gap to the higher proportion of master’s students with prior work experience.
The NSW Department of Education’s 2024 International Student Employment Outcomes Snapshot indicated that USYD‑trained graduates secure roles most frequently in professional services (27 per cent), ICT (18 per cent), and financial services (14 per cent). Employer‑reported vacancy fill rates for international graduates from Sydney universities have improved 9 percentage points since 2021, a trend the department links to tight Australian labour market conditions and post‑study work rights extensions.
5. How much does it cost to live around the Camperdown campus?
Location drives rent. In the March 2024 quarter, the NSW Department of Communities and Justice rental bond lodgement data fixed the median weekly rent for a one‑bedroom apartment in Camperdown (postcode 2050) at $680. That marks a 7.9 per cent increase on the same quarter in 2023. A two‑bedroom apartment returned a median of $890 per week.
Share‑house economics remain the go‑to for students. A room in a shared house within a 2‑kilometre radius of the Quadrangle trades between $340 and $420 per week including utilities, based on listings data aggregated by Domain and flatmates.com.au. University‑operated accommodation is priced differently: a single room at Queen Mary Building on‑campus costs $432 per week in 2025 (self‑catered), while Abercrombie Student Accommodation studios start at $625 per week.
Beyond rent, Study NSW’s 2024 cost‑of‑living calculator benchmarks a single international student in inner‑west Sydney at:
- Groceries: $130–$160 per week
- Public transport (Opal student concession): $40 per week
- Mobile and internet: $25 per week
- Health cover (OHSC single): $12 per week (averaged over an annual policy)
- Entertainment and incidentals: $80–$120 per week
Aggregated weekly spend, excluding tuition, sits between $680 and $880 for a budget‑conscious student in a shared flat, and closer to $1,100 for someone in a one‑bedroom apartment. Annualising that, a student should budget AUD $35,000–$45,000 for living costs alongside tuition.
The Camperdown rental market is influenced by the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital workforce, health‑faculty postgraduates, and technology‑sector tenancies in nearby Broadway. Lease vacancy rates in postcode 2050 have stayed below 1.5 per cent for six consecutive quarters, making early‑bird flat‑hunting (December for Semester 1) a tactical necessity.