Thank you Cloud Cutter, your post was very helpful.
I have two other questions that came to mind during this thread:
1) Is it necessary to have a university degree to apply for say, Air New Zealand (as it is in the US)? I would most probably get a degree in any case but none the less I would like to know.
2) I am currently deciding whether to finish my A-Levels here in the UK or to go back to Italy (I am actually in Britain for a student exchange but don't know whether to stay another year and complete my secondary education here or to finish High School in Italy). My question is whether staying in Britain would raise my chances of getting accepted in NZ, both from the government (immigration) and from universities (and possibly on a social level?)?
I would like to visit New Zealand (and possibly Australia) next summer (well, your winter) to get a better idea of how I like the country/ies. I would also like to get an idea of the state of the industry there compared to the EU/USA. So if someone could give me a taste of what the industry is like and where to go to get a good idea about it that would be appreciated.
Marco