It has been hard to be here in Shanghai during the Covid-19 outbreak, but I am hopeful.
Things have slowly started improving in Shanghai. The Tongji University campus supermarket is now open, and we can easily purchase food, drinks and stationery between 10am and 2pm. The number of new cases in Shanghai is reported to have subsided, and everyone seems hopeful that this epidemic will be over soon.
The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a global development strategy adopted by the Chinese government in 2013 that aims to develop the infrastructure and investments in nearly 70 countries and international organisations in Asia, Europe and Africa.
Although higher education wasn’t a direct focus of the initiative, the benefits for students living in the countries along the way is undeniable. China has seen an increase in the number of students from countries such as South Korea, India and Pakistan, as well as from a number of other smaller nations.
I started my university journey in 2011 at the University of Mostaganem in Algeria studying English language, literature and civilisation then moving on to an MA in applied linguistics at the same university, where I graduated in 2016.
After getting my MA, I was lucky enough to receive a scholarship to further my postgraduate studies in the UK. For someone who never had an exchange programme abroad, or study-related trips, it was an exciting opportunity.
As application deadlines for universities around the world approach these are the grammatical rules that international applications should double check to ensure that their personal statements are up to standard.
Many students used the wrong prepositions (for example, “for”, “on”, “at”) and many do not consistently use the correct verb conjugation for the sentence subject.
Applying to a British university can be a struggle, especially if you are not from the UK. The process, which is handled through a central admissions body called Ucas, requires you to submit, among other things, a personal statement and a reference letter.
The process may confuse not only you but also your parents. Yet rest assured that with some patience and care you can get through it all successfully, which will leave you feeling like you really can climb any mountains in your way.
When considering prospective universities, testimonials from fellow students can bear a significant weight on your final decision. After all, who better to evaluate an institution’s teaching, social life and amenities than the students who are experiencing it first hand?
This is for all of those students who are deciding and preparing to go on a year abroad.
It’s the kind of gap year in your degree that isn’t really a gap year. Universities will handle study abroad in different ways, but my university (University of Leeds) offers you three options: find an internship of your own choice, find a university and study, or work in a German school as a foreign language assistant in English. I chose the last one.
Studying abroad is one of the biggest things you can do as a student. But even though it can be a hugely positive experience, surviving your first year abroad isn’t the easiest thing to do. There may be language barriers, money issues, and differences in teaching styles that might make it harder to settle in. To help you through this difficult period, I have prepared a list of nine tips for surviving your year abroad.
1. Don’t miss a chance to make new friends
You could be mistaken for thinking that moving to Berlin would not be a radically new cultural experience from the UK. Like any other large, Western capital city, the English language is frustratingly prominent. And there is still an abundance of hipster-run coffee shops furnished with the same mismatched furniture. It’s basically the same place as the UK, just without those wholly unnecessary pleasantries we English preside over.