Student Travel Insurance: Everything You Need To Know

Heading off to study overseas can be an incredible life experience for many young Australians. It’s a way to immerse yourself in another culture, possibly learn a new language, and use the trip to leapfrog to other nearby countries.

The number of Australian students deciding to study abroad as part of their Australian university degree has grown fourfold over the past decade¹, with students viewing it as an opportunity to challenge themselves, improve future job prospects, and gain independence.

Student travel and the Australian government

The Australian Government is also actively encouraging students to study overseas. For example, there’s an Australian Government initiative called the New Colombo Plan², which provides opportunities for Australian undergraduates to study and perform internships in 38 locations within the Indo-Pacific region.

Whether you’re going on a short school trip, or an extended exchange program, it’s important to be prepared. Right up there with your passport, as one of your travel essentials, is travel insurance.

What is student travel insurance?

Student travel insurance is a policy designed for students travelling overseas for activities like a school trip or a longer-term exchange program. It usually covers things like healthcare while you’re overseas, replacing lost or stolen luggage, and repatriation costs in the event of an illness or injury that cuts your trip short and more.

Depending on your study plans, you may need to organise specific cover to satisfy the requirements of your host institution³. Your local school or university may be able to help you to navigate these requirements.

Why do students studying abroad need travel insurance?

There are many reasons why it’s a good idea to have travel insurance if you’re studying abroad. Let’s dive into some of the specific reasons!

• To cover your costs if you get sick or injured: Some countries have a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement⁴ with Australia which can cover basic medical needs, but it’s not enough to rely on this
• Repatriation costs: In case you get so ill or injured that you need to come home early, in which case your policy will cover your repatriation costs
• Lost luggage: In case your luggage or travel documents get lost or stolen
• Public liability: To provide public liability cover, in case you accidentally damage property or injure someone else while overseas

Factors to consider as a travelling student

When organising your student travel insurance policy, there’s some important details you need to check. For example:

• Pre-Existing conditions: Will you be covered for pre-existing medical conditions?
• What activities will be covered: All study and no play makes for a dull trip, so if you are planning on enjoying things like skiing or adventure sports, make sure you’re covered
• Your policies’ excess: Could you be better off paying a higher premium and having a lower excess? This is often a good choice for longer study trips where you’re more likely to need medical treatment
• Policy limits: Does your policy still provide cover if you travel to other countries on holiday during your exchange? Is the number of personal travel days limited during the exchange period?
• Additional leave: Are you planning on doing additional travel at the end of your exchange? Make sure that your policy doesn’t end while you’re still overseas

What’s does travel insurance not cover for students?

If you’re considering working while abroad, some restrictions may apply. For example, you may not be covered for humanitarian or missionary related work/travel/labour, as well as manual labour including (but not limited to) construction, installation, and assembly. It’s important you read your policy documents to ensure you have an appropriate level of cover.

Compare student travel insurance policies with iSelect

It’s easy to feel overwhelmed once you start looking for a travel insurance policy for your trip. There are so many policies, all with different inclusions, fee and excess structures, and don’t forget that they can even change depending on which countries you are going to.

Compare travel insurance policies online today with iSelect.

*iSelect does not compare all travel insurers or policies in the market. Travel insurance is only available through our website and not all policies are available at all times or in all areas. Not all policies made available from our partners are compared by iSelect and due to commercial arrangements and customer circumstances not all policies compared by iSelect will be available to all customers. Click here to view iSelect’s range of providers.

iSelect General Pty Limited ABN 90 131 798 126, AFS Licence Number: 334115. Any advice provided by iSelect is of a general nature and does not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. You need to consider the appropriateness of any information or general advice iSelect gives you, having regard to your personal situation, before acting on iSelect’s advice or purchasing any policy. You should consider iSelect’s Financial Services Guide which provides information about our services and your rights as a client of iSelect. iSelect receives commission for each policy sold.
Sources:
1. https://www.universitiesaustralia.edu.au/Media-and-Events/media-releases/More-Australian-students-see-the-value-of-study-abroad#.XI7viyIzaUl
2. https://dfat.gov.au/about-australia/visiting-australia/Pages/study-in-australia.aspx
3. https://smartraveller.gov.au/guide/pages/studying-overseas.aspx#check-your-travel-insurance
4. https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/services/medicare/reciprocal-health-care-agreements/australians/about-reciprocal-health-care-agreements