Given my case, is it possible for me to take the same path, without work experience or even a license from the PH, to work as an architectural draftsperson in AU - then save up for a masters while working in that position, and then get a license? or will working as an architectural draftsperson already give credit to licensure with the AACA? How many years should i be working in the position?
As a fresh grad with no personal/professional contacts in Australia and no work rights (which you can only get as a temporary or permanent visa holder), it would be very difficult to get work as an architectural draftsperson. Job postings on Indeed, Seek, Jora, etc. will show that companies are looking for those with "local experience," which translates to Australian work experience. And, as I've mentioned, companies would prefer not to bother with sponsoring work visas for overseas applicants when there's a pool of local applicants. Or unless you have solid work experience and expertise that they need, or the company is located in regional areas (cities outside Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane). I'm not saying it's impossible to get visa, just that the odds would be low (but then you can still try hehehe). The issue is not about whether you've got the architectural draftsperson skills or knowledge of local regulations (kasi matututunan mo naman yun on the job), but it's about whether you can get a visa to get into Australia and be able to work.
I'm not sure what the salary range is for architectural draftsperson, but studying and living in Australia is very expensive. The tuition for MArch from top architecture schools (USYD, UniMelb, UNSW) is around AUD 40k per year, excluding materials/tools. Sadly, scholarships specific to architecture is very limited, especially in these universities. I know UniMelb has a lot more scholarships than USYD, but it's not a full scholarship, maybe between 10-25% scholarship lang, and it's competitive.
To get registered in Australia, you need to pass the three parts of APE. Part 1 is the logbook experience (similar to apprenticeship in PH). Part 2 is the National Examination Paper (equivalent to board exam in PH). Part 3 is Examination by Interview. But I think in order for your work experience to count for Part 1, you need to be eligible for APE. So it's either you get an MArch and have AACA verify it, or do OQA Stage 1 and 2 (Stage 1 lang ang required for migration purposes, but Stage 2 is required for registration). Part 1 requires a minimum of 3,300 hours of work experience over the 15 Performance Criteria specified by AACA (just check the AACA website about APE), so that's roughly 2 years of work experience required. It's not just about meeting the minimum hours, but really gaining the competency and experience over different aspects of architectural practice.
Or should I first be working towards getting my license here in the PH and only then applying for work in AU as an architectural draftsperson? I’m interested in the working path rather than getting a masters in AU right away dahil mahal rin po ito.
Having the architectural license in PH doesn't mean anything in Australia. You wouldn't be able to call yourself an architect or architectural designer here if you're not registered in Australia (architectural draftsperson or technician lang pwede hehe). If your endgame is migrating to Australia and not practicing in PH, there's no point of getting licensed in PH. I'm not a migration agent, so this is just my opinion based on what I know about AU migration: get as many points as you can while you're still young. The minimum points you need to get an invitation to migrate is 65 points, but the trends show that people with 85+ points are getting invited first than people with 65+ points.
Personally, I would recommend you first do the accredited MArch in Australia, preferably in regional area. For skilled migration, if you are less than 33 years old you get 30 points, studying in AU for at least 2 years gets you 5 points, study in regional area gets you 5 points, work 1 year in AU in nominated occupation is another 5 points, etc. The MArch will get you a positive skills assessment from AACA and make you eligible for registration down the line. Also, if you are onshore, you would be in a much better place than if you are offshore, because you can gain industry contacts while you're here. Tutors in design studio are practicing architects, the school organizes events where students can meet architects/professionals, and you can get 20 hours per fortnight of work rights as a a student (which you can use to work part-time in design firms, thus gaining experience). In Australia, people get jobs based on who is on their network, bale parang word-of-mouth. If a friend works at Company A and there's a job opening, your friend can recommend you to apply there, and HR is more likely to put your application at the top of the candidate pile kung may kakilala ka. There's a huge hidden job market in Australia, which you can't access while offshore because you personally don't know anyone here. Of course, this is just my opinion. It is entirely up to you on what pathway to choose. I'm simply telling you how things work in Australia (which I wish someone told me before coming here hahaha).
Oh I forgot to mention, after you study the MArch, you can get access to the 485 Graduate Visa, which allows you to work full-time in any field (doesn't have to be related to what you studied). If you can't secure a PR by the time you graduate, you at least get 2 years extra time to get more points for PR and gain work experience.