@Ed510
Not sure if Master in Engineering is what you need/want, maybe also look into Master of IT? Anyway, check the curriculum nalang on which one appeals more to you and would contribute to your career goals talaga.
Regarding offshore SV processing, it's a case-by-case basis. As I've mentioned, mine was 3 weeks lang, but that was 2 years ago. This time, onshore processing ako and yung given timeline is 4-9 months din. Applying for SV is relatively easy as long as complete yung documents mo and naka-enroll ka na. I think a lot of unis are opting to stay on the online delivery of courses, at least until the end of 2020; not sure if this trend will continue until much of 2021, so just be prepared to study online if you do get into a uni and get a SV.
Australian education is really expensive, whether VET or higher education (one of the highest in the world, like USA). That's excluding cost of living pa, kaya usually required ang SV applicants to show that you can fund your students without having to completely rely on funds from working in Australia. I know of an Indian classmate who took out a loan from their home country to be able to study in Australia (to pay for both tuition and living expenses), so it really depends on you on how you figure out payment for the fees. You really have to weigh your options (pros and cons, as well as risks) before you pursue your studies here, as well as do your due diligence on how much you are willing to spend to study. Will you spend more money to get a master's degree, but be able to apply for Post-Study Work Visa (more time to recoup your money spent on the tuition fees), or just take a Diploma/Advanced Diploma but have less time to work?
You can look into this website regarding Destination Australia: [https://www.education.gov.au/destination-australia](https://www.education.gov.au/destination-australia)
If I understand correctly, how it works is that educational institutions apply to the Australian government for scholarship funding, so that they can award students (domestic and international) some funding to encourage them to study in regional area. If they are successful, you can apply to the education institutions directly and see if you can get some partial scholarship for your education. It's a relatively new scholarship, so I don't know all the details.
The difficulty of the master's degree really depends on what you're studying and your own skills/knowledge. Personally, I enjoyed my studies even though may mga mahihirap na subjects and assignments (partially my fault yung mahihirap na subjects kasi kumuha ako ng electives na mahirap talaga). My top tip would be to get started on assignments early para hindi masyado cramming, baka maging low-quality ang output mo at mahihirapan kang mameet yung deadlines lalo na kung sabay-sabay sila. In terms of balancing full-time study load and part-time work load, it depends on what you're studying kasi, like kung may basic experience ka na or knowledge. For me, I was studying new things but much of the terminologies were familiar so I only spent minimum amount of time studying and doing assessments, and the remaining time were spent on volunteering and extracurricular activities (I didn't do paid work back then though).
If you will be traveling to Australia by yourself, it'll be difficult to pay for your university tuition fees just by part-time work. Generally the 40 hours per fortnight x minimum wage can cover your living expenses lang, not really tuition. Pag may breaks (Christmas, school holidays, summer and winter vacations), you can work more hours, but it's not a guarantee that you will be able to pay for your full tuition fees entirely from working there. If you'll be studying at vocational institutions that have really low fees, baka kayanin ng income.