Nidhi from India shares her journey of achieving her goal of studying in Scotland. The rest just falls into place..

Setting goals

Life has a lot of surprises in store for you, my life filled with a handful of the beautiful and thrilling. At fifteen years old I walked up to my parents with my plan to study an undergraduate course in the UK. One thing was very clear I had a solid plan with a complete analysis of how I will complete my degree, what professional courses I can pursue, what jobs I can expect and finally how I would get to my dream job.

Family support 

My parents confessed that they were completely unsure of how to answer me when I had come up with a plan that already had most of the parameters analyzed and the “what if” analysis completed. Today from where I stand 2 years later I salute the courage it took for my parents to say “If you get into University we are with you. We will try our best.” This was the moment, those few supportive words from my parents that brought out the undying courage in me to face any circumstances that came my way. It was a hard task to deal with everything at the one time. I was going to college, helping my parents with their business, managing the finances of my course and following my passion for blogging at the same time.

Organisation is key

Organizing made things easier, planning out the changes and discussing it with my family. When you realise that your parents treat you like an understanding individual whose opinion is valid and take your thoughts into consideration you start thinking wider and strive to do each time. Beginning with the UCAS application it was upon me to decide which universities I decided to apply to. I attended a variety of career fairs organized by IDP to meet university representatives and ask about the courses I was interested in. I then started researching further opportunities and professional accreditations and student reviews.

Good news

I was worried about how I would fund my course. That was when I got a phone call “based on your marks in 12^th grade you have been promoted to the second year of the course.” I couldn’t believe it, most of my problems were solved.

Peperaring for the move

I had a hard time getting an education loan letter in a format valid for my visa because every bank has its own terms and negotiating with them was on a parallel with my preparation for the Common Proficiency Test in Chartered Accountancy. I had finished my visa application and had completed my interview. The most difficult phase started right then, I was perplexed as my decision taking longer, with no further communication from UKVI. I was supported by my Personal Development Tutor during the induction week while I was still waiting for my visa and on the evening of 6^th of September, I got a call informing me that my passport had arrived. It was a Friday and my first class was on Monday.

Securing a job

Scotland welcomed me with a cold breeze and some of the most welcoming, warm and friendly people I have met at the airport, in the university and on the streets as well. However, there was one thing I was worried about – getting a job! It would be weird for any employer to employ a 17-year-old with little experience from extra-curricular activities and family business, but wait here’s the twist. When I matriculated at the university, it was brought to my notice that I was granted a Saltire Scotland Scholarship I had applied for and I was also offered to do a role as International Student Ambassador as a part of the scholarship. I could work part-time at the university, I couldn’t be happier!

Every dream was coming true except for one..

“It barely snows in Edinburgh!” my heart broke when I heard that line from a local. A part of me also wanted to come to Scotland because it is cold and I love snow. The cold winds swept through biting me to the bone, tattering teeth and frozen feet, all these factors puzzled and irritated me at the same time. I begged like a kid would, “Please let it snow!”

A white Christmas 

On the night of 25^th December 2017, I was watching a movie at my friends flat and I could not believe my eyes when I looked out. It was snowing! I told my friends, “Guys, it's snowing outside” for a second they’d thought I said it was raining and one of them said “ok”. But they realised I said it was snowing and not raining and everyone was like “Wait… What?” All of us were so excited so we headed out to enjoy it for a while. Christmas couldn’t get better! Chocolate ice cream, cheese and garlic pizza with an amazing movie and the snow.

Thanks Edinburgh for fulfilling every dream I came here with, I can’t wait for more!