Not on a permanent basis but, I will be in Britain (Cheltenham) from mid September this year till Jan 2013. I'm moving there to study for my MA in Journalism. Course is only a year long, which does favor a 29 year old like me 
I had initially intended to go to Australia (forgot the uni name) but the cost of fees + cost of living was too much on the high end. The course in itself was a dream post graduate media course which seemed like it would be a lot of fun. Part of their MA course requirement involved making your own mini film/documentary to be presented and critiqued at an amateur film festival. Anyway, when that was out of range I then settled for the U.K, and got a place at the University of Gloucestershire (which really is a mouthful when you are from my part of the world).
Getting the UK visa was the hard part and I'm really glad I got it. A visa application is normally meant to be a straight forward process. However, some Kenyans have a tendency to go abroad on a student visa and end up doing stuff that really doesn't go down well with immigration. I mean, I could give loads of examples but I digress. To sum it up, that history of some no good Kenyans makes it hard for the genuine folks to get to countries like USA or the U.K.
This particular Uni offered me an academic bursary worth £1,500 coz they liked my B.A qualifications. I had intended to apply for a scholarship as well but I couldn't beat the deadline. Anyway, I really don't know what to expect while I'll be there but it should be a nice experience *knocks on wood*. I guess there is the anxiety of 'will it won't it be a memorable experience?' I've only been to Britain once and that was on 24 hr a transit visa. All I did was roam London and eat a massive pizza with a friend. I've lived in Germany and South Africa, I had super experiences in those two countries. I'm hoping that I'll be adding Britain to that list.
So, besides the super weather
, any tips about living in Britain (or Cheltenham in particular) would be super.
I had initially intended to go to Australia (forgot the uni name) but the cost of fees + cost of living was too much on the high end. The course in itself was a dream post graduate media course which seemed like it would be a lot of fun. Part of their MA course requirement involved making your own mini film/documentary to be presented and critiqued at an amateur film festival. Anyway, when that was out of range I then settled for the U.K, and got a place at the University of Gloucestershire (which really is a mouthful when you are from my part of the world).
Getting the UK visa was the hard part and I'm really glad I got it. A visa application is normally meant to be a straight forward process. However, some Kenyans have a tendency to go abroad on a student visa and end up doing stuff that really doesn't go down well with immigration. I mean, I could give loads of examples but I digress. To sum it up, that history of some no good Kenyans makes it hard for the genuine folks to get to countries like USA or the U.K.
This particular Uni offered me an academic bursary worth £1,500 coz they liked my B.A qualifications. I had intended to apply for a scholarship as well but I couldn't beat the deadline. Anyway, I really don't know what to expect while I'll be there but it should be a nice experience *knocks on wood*. I guess there is the anxiety of 'will it won't it be a memorable experience?' I've only been to Britain once and that was on 24 hr a transit visa. All I did was roam London and eat a massive pizza with a friend. I've lived in Germany and South Africa, I had super experiences in those two countries. I'm hoping that I'll be adding Britain to that list.
So, besides the super weather
, any tips about living in Britain (or Cheltenham in particular) would be super.
