To
The Visa Officer
Australian High Commission, India
My interest in accounting did not begin in a classroom, it began in my father’s clothing shop.
As a girl I watched him build a business he understood by instinct analyzing what his
customers wanted and what would sell each season, yet he struggled with the part that should
have been simplest, keeping track of his own money. Debtors went unrecorded and were
forgotten, money that was owed went uncollected, and at the end of a month he often could
not say whether he had made profit or not. I saw a hard-working man being let down, not by
his trade but by the absence of a reliable system. I pursued accounting because I wanted to
give people like my father that map, and the Master of Professional Accounting (Advanced)
at Murdoch University is my deliberate next step towards it.
My name is Sharmila Kharel, and I began my career in accounting with a three-year
internship (articleship) at Narula Gupta & Company in New Delhi (2016–2019). During this
period, I was involved in audits of various organizations, including service companies,
engineering firms, and non-profit institutions. Auditing taught me to look past a tidy
statement to the operations underneath it, it taught me the importance of asking questions,
why a figure was what it was, and whether it could be trusted. I completed my Bachelor of
Commerce in Accountancy and Finance from Indira Gandhi National Open University
(IGNOU) in June of 2021, and I went on to clear the Chartered Accountancy Final
examinations of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI), passing Group II in
May 2022 and my remaining group in March 2026.
After completing my articleship training in April 2019, I was focused on preparing for my
Chartered Accountancy Final examinations. During this period, my main priority was to
complete my CA examinations. However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted my academic
planning and examination schedules. Despite this delay, I remained committed to my
professional goal and continued my preparation, later I resumed my career at Kapil
Investment Pvt. Ltd. as an Accountant from July 2021. My role at Kapil Investment Pvt. Ltd.
allowed me to move from audit-based learning into the internal accounting environment of a
business, where I applied my knowledge in financial reporting, taxation, VAT compliance,
and corporate accounting. This experience helped me understand accounting not only as an
audit function, but also as an internal business tool that supports reporting, compliance, and
decision-making. I joined D.B. Business Consultant Pvt. Ltd. as a Consultant in July 2024
and eventually got promoted as a Senior Consultant, my role has become exactly the kind of
work that drew me to accounting in the first place. Alongside annual accounts and tax
returns, I prepared monthly profit-and-loss and sales-analysis reports that clients genuinely
use to make decisions, I verify stock and analyse inventory to find where value is tied up or
quietly slipping away, and I review the finance and accounting processes at clients’ branches
to strengthen their internal controls. In this role, I have grown from someone who simply
records numbers into someone who interprets them, helping businesses understand their
financial position, identify weaknesses, and make informed decisions. This work has also
helped me recognize the professional limits I now need to move beyond. Many of the
businesses I advise are growing faster than the financial systems that support them, they need
management accounting, dependable controls and real financial planning, not just clean
compliance. My training has given me a strong command of audit, tax and reporting but the
more advanced tools like management accounting, assurance, and strategic financial
decision-making are still lacking. To close this gap and broaden my professional expertise, I
chose to pursue a Postgraduate degree.
I did weigh my options carefully before deciding. Postgraduate programs in Nepal remain
largely theoretical, and when I compared international destinations, Australia offered the
combination I was looking for, an applied, industry-connected style of teaching, a
professional qualification that is respected worldwide, and a well-regulated, safe environment
for international students, with protections such as the Tuition Protection Service and
Overseas Student Health Cover. I chose Murdoch University because its Master of
Professional Accounting (Advanced) offers the right academic and practical pathway to help
me progress from compliance focused accounting, toward a more analytical and advisory
role. I need a course that can help me build on my existing experience while strengthening
my skills in management accounting, business finance, business valuation and research-based
business analysis. This two-year, 48 credit point degree with 42 credit points of required units
and 6 credit points of specified electives offered me just that. Its course structure connects
accounting with business decision-making, planning, performance evaluation and financial
analysis. This is the direction in which I want my career to grow. Further it is also accredited
by CPA Australia and Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand (CA ANZ). What
attracted me most is how it is taught, through applied, project-based units in which students
tackle real problems alongside real organizations. It ranks among top 4% of universities
worldwide. I was also encouraged by Murdoch’s strengths in student support and business
education, including its #1 ranking in Western Australia for social equity, five-star rating for
student support ([Link] and five-star
rating for skills development in Business and Management. Additionally, I have also been
awarded a 20% tuition fee scholarship by Murdoch University, which has made the program
more financially feasible and further strengthened my decision to study there.
After completing my studies, I plan on returning to Nepal. I want to grow from a senior
consultant into a financial adviser who specializes in helping small and growing Nepali
businesses build reliable financial systems, sound internal controls and decision-ready
reporting. Over time I intend to develop this into a dedicated advisory and assurance practice
of my own. Nepal’s banks, manufacturers, retailers and its new wave of fintech and e-
commerce ventures all need this kind of expertise, and advisers who can provide it well are
scarce, in such a role I expect to earn annual salary ranging from NPR 12,00,000 to NPR
18,00,000. Source: ( [Link] )
But the part of this future that motivates me most is far simpler; I want the businesses I work
with to make better decisions because I was in the room. My personal, professional, financial,
and family ties are firmly rooted in Nepal, and I am committed to returning after completing
my studies. I am married to Mr. Manoj Karki, who works as an Accounts Manager at AR
Enterprises in Nepal and will remain in Nepal throughout my study period. My parents,
extended family, professional network, and long-term career plans are also based in Nepal.
I am aware of the estimated cost of living in Perth and understand that, in addition to tuition
fees, health cover, and travel expenses, I must demonstrate sufficient funds for twelve months
of living, which is approximately AUD 29,710. Accordingly, I have arranged my finances to
ensure that these expenses can be met without difficulty. My education in Australia will be
supported by my family through an education loan of NPR 8,000,000, annual household
income of NPR 2,168,490, savings of NPR 3,000,000, and property valued at NPR [insert
property value]. These financial resources demonstrate that my study plan in Australia is
carefully planned and financially secure. At the same time, my family responsibilities,
property, and career prospects strongly reinforce my commitment to return after completing
my studies.
My goal is not only to earn an international qualification, but to return to Nepal as a more
capable accounting and financial advisory professional. The knowledge I gain through this
degree will allow me to support Nepalese businesses in building stronger financial reporting
systems, improving internal controls, maintaining better compliance, and making more
informed financial decisions. I am asking for the opportunity to study in Australia for one
practical reason; to become the kind of financial adviser that Nepal’s growing businesses
need, and to do that work at home. I have no previous immigration history, and I understand
and will fully comply with every condition of the student (Subclass 500) visa. Thank you for
considering my application.
Yours sincerely,
Sharmila Kharel