My Journey as an International Student

#3 Can you remember how you felt when you first stepped off the plane in the UK?

I remember thinking it was cold. It was my first time travelling abroad and I arrived in Newcastle in January (which was mid-winter). Everything was new to me. The weather, the people, the language (accent), the city, it took me at least six months to get used to things. It’s not an easy journey to come to the UK for higher studies and get settled in.

I left my family and travelled 10,000 miles away, so homesickness did kick in after a few days and it took six months to deal with. It also took me three months to find a part-time job to help me fund my studies.

#4 Did you feel supported when you first arrived?

I had a friend who was an alumnus of Northumbria University, so he was able to help me. I also had my sister living in Cambridge, so I used to visit her whenever I missed home.

On campus, I attended a few of the Students' Union events where I met some good friends. They kept me busy and helped me to forget my homesickness. I used to spend most of my time with them.

#5 How different was it studying in the UK?

The assessments and teaching system were completely new to me, but because I had experience in the field, I was able to cope. I can imagine it would be harder if you joined straight from your undergraduate degree.

#6 What do you love most about being in the UK?

The people here are kind, polite and friendly. I met a lot of nice people and made some good friends. Being able to work with them has been the best thing for me. I've got to learn about people’s backgrounds and cultures, which has been great.

On a funny note, I started eating more cake after coming here!

#7 What do you think was your biggest struggle?

Dealing with homesickness was my biggest struggle. Because of it, I went through a lot of mental health struggles, and many postgraduates go through the same. It doesn't matter whether your university is a few miles from your hometown or on the other side of the world. Moving to a new city, away from family and friends, can be very daunting.

Also, managing my studies alongside a part-time job was not easy. On the positive side, I’m much more organised now.

#8 Was the culture shock as ‘shocking’ as you thought it would be?

I had zero knowledge about the English culture before coming here. I struggled to understand people at first because of their accents. I even struggled to cope with the traffic rules while crossing the roads.

The Students’ Union helped me by organising diverse events. This is the main reason why I organised the Diwali and Holi festivals when I was a sabbatical officer. I wanted to break down those cultural barriers and give space to Indian students to meet people.

A bit of culture shock is completely natural, but it disappears. I now feel really comfortable living here.

#9 What are some of the common misconceptions you’ve come across that UK students have about international students?

There are quite a lot of misconceptions UK students have about international students:

• We enjoy the English food – Not all international students are comfortable with English food.
• We understand and speak English well – It takes time for us to understand and speak fluently, especially when accents are involved.
• We can stay in the UK forever – Home students are not aware of international students’ immigration rules.
• We pay the same fees – Home students aren't always aware that international students pay double the amount of tuition and are not eligible for university hardship funds.
• We all have the same welfare issues – International student welfare issues are a bit different from those of home students. For example, we struggle with isolation, homesickness and coping with the new education system. There’s also the pressure of getting a sponsored graduate job or achieving enough credits to progress, otherwise we have to leave the UK.
• We celebrate the same holidays – Home students are not aware of Indian, Chinese and African cultures like festivals, food, entertainment etc.

#10 Would you recommend studying in the UK?

I would recommend Northumbria University and Newcastle. The quality of education is great, the city is cheap to live in, there’s a huge international student population, and it’s easy to travel around.

#11 What advice would you give to someone thinking about studying in the UK?

Choose a good course that matches your area of interest and experience and also has a good scope of employability in the UK. Speak to people and organisations and get all the necessary information before you decide on the course and university.

Most importantly, apply for a student loan so that you won’t have as much pressure on your finances. You can clear the loan once you get a job after graduating.

Raj has fulfilled his goal of expanding his information technology knowledge and has joined Strive Gaming as a Software QA Engineer (similar to his previous role at Amazon). He says his success is down to the valuable transferable skills and experience he gained as a sabbatical officer which he can use for the rest of his life.

You can read more about Rajkumar’s experience as a sabbatical officer in our Postgrad Awards interview. His homesickness campaign was Highly Commended in our Outstanding Contribution to Student Wellbeing category.