UEA International Student Ambassadors

Designed by Freepik I am here writing on 31st December - aka my second favorite day in the year (first is my B-day) - and wondering why this is the first time I don't have a long list of wishes. My year was so crazy with me quitting my favourite job, trying to save money to come to UEA, applying for scholarships, keeping a long distance relationship with the imminence of living together here in Norwich. Phew! I am glad I have survived. Anyways, I feel some time should be spent thinking about how I can make 2019 easier to deal with and hopefully very successful not only in my studies but personally. I found this list that really made me feel big changes just need small steps to make you engage to it. PHYSICAL 20-minute yoga 15-minute stretching routine Drink a warm cup of lemon water Go for a walk Drink  green juice / antioxidant fruit smoothie Have 2-3 glasses of water upon waking up Do deep breathing exercises  (reduces stress, increases energy l...

Hi everyone, It has been really interesting to see the cultural differences regarding the way people in England and people in Brazil celebrate Christmas. Here are some differences that stand out so far: They wear Christmas jumpers everywhere...and Christmas dresses!  They really love Christmas and they love to show it. You will find small children, elder people, young people going to the supermarket and to the pubs wearing the cutest festive patterns. It is lovely and brings people into the Christmas vibe. The food is quite distinct as well They have turkey like we Brazilians do but forget about Bacalhoada, Tender and farofa. Here they have the Christmas pudding and Christmas cake. Christmas crackers and people wearing crowns in restaurants Christmas cracker is a tradition  segmented  cardboard  tube wrapped in a brightly decorated twist of paper with a prize in the middle that is pulled apart by two people. Inside it, ...

Hello, everyone! I am a Brazilian student living for the first time abroad and it never occurred I would miss my home country food so much! After 3 months living in Norwich there are 3 main dishes that made my stomach cries: - Farofa: a typical Brazilian dish made with manioc flour mixed with chopped onion, garlic, eggs and bacon. Very exotic and delicious! -Pao de queijo (brazilian cheese balls): small cheese bralls made of white manioc powder. the texture is very different from anything you've seen and it tastes like heaven - Feijoada (black beans stew) - the most famous Brazilian dish, a black beans stew with different kinds of pork meat that you eat with white rice, farofa, and sliced kale. In order to solve my "problem" here are a few possible solutions for that: - Go to the Lusa Café, a Portuguese café, and shop, based in Norwich city center. There you can find many Portuguese items and a few Brazilian ones such as tapioca and Polvinh...

You've had an exhausting day of lectures from 9-5. You trudge into your flat, wondering how you will complete that group project for next Tuesday, while studying for the test on Monday. Oh, and there's that 2,500 word essay due in in two days time. Your tummy rumbles and you go to look in your kitchen cabinet to figure out what to make for dinner. There they sit in the corner of the cabinet, staring at you seductively. You know you shouldn't, you've had the same thing four times this week already. Finally, sighing miserably, you take out the packet of pasta and can of tomato sauce and turn the stove on. If you're a university student like me, you know exactly what I'm talking about. Pasta - boil for 10 minutes, mix it up with some ready-made sauce and you're done. It's not bad honestly, but it's not great either. Well, I'm here to bring you good news: you don't have to live this way anymore. "Hold up.", I hear you say. "No m...

You're probably reading the title of this blog and thinking what is this even about, well let me tell you, as a Norwegian and someone with a bit of a travel bug, Norwich isn't too far from home and quite central contrary to popular belief. Like another blogpost, a lot of people have never heard of Norwich, nor do they know where it is, but believe it or not, there's an international airport just 20 minutes outside of the city centre and a busy train station just 10 minutes away. With a train station in the neighbourhood the opportunities are endless. Fancy a quick day trip to the bustling capital, London? Hop on the train for just under 2 hours and there you are. I'm not quite sure exactly how many trains go to London from Norwich a day, but there tends to be a direct train every hour if not bi-hourly, but there are countless connections a day that might take a little bit longer, but do end up being cheaper in some cases! If you plan on using the train often then ...

Hi everyone! Christmas is now just around the corner and I'm sure everyone's very excited for it. Sooo, just thought I'd share with you this blog post I published on my personal blog, The #OOTD Files, about my favourite things to do in Norwich, including some of the best places I've been to! Check it out by clicking on this  link . Eda Sansel USTUN Turkish Student Ambassador

Internships - shape you FUTURE!  Getting Internship over summer is quite IMPORTANT  Whether an internship is paid, for credit, unpaid or not-for-credit doesn't change its value. Internships are investments in your future. Often, students do not want to do internships because they worry they'll be stuck doing menial tasks like getting coffee or making copies and let's face it- no one wants to work for free. The truth is, although not all internships pay, they do pay in other ways. Internships will help you: -  Real world experience: Joining a company as an intern gives you the opportunity to work hands on in a professional environment. Internships help by teaching you more about the career path you are pursuing. They help you to test whether you would like to work for that particular company or do that particular job you did or saw/ shadowed someone doing.  -  Networking: Internships often give you the opportunity to attend meetings and events. By ...

Finding a job after graduation as an international student is probably one of the most frustrating things to think about. A lot of organisations would prefer to not have to deal with applicants for which they would have to sponsor for a work visa. In that case, it's a lot easier to just give positions to UK citizens and permanent residents. This makes it a lot more difficult for us foreigners because only a handful of organisations are willing to sponsor successful international applicants. The fact that as an international student, you are limited in where you can apply for is bad enough but no one mentioned THE APTITUDE TESTS. As an international student, you are on a Tier 4 (General Student) Visa which allows you to work for a maximum of 20 hours per week during term time. The visa typically expires in October and if you haven't managed to secure a job or further education, you would need to return to your home country. The biggest piece ...

December is coming soon and it means the deadline for essays and presentation are getting closer😅  I prefer to study at a very quiet place with a big table.  My favourite place is the UEA library. It's 24/7 and with all kinds of equipment (Charging / Coffee / Books....).  If you fancy studying at a cosy place with some sound like a cafe, Scholar Bar and Union Cafe might be your best choice. Find your favourite place, bring your laptop and book and enjoy studying  🙋 Taiwanese Student Ambassador Jung-Sheng Wang

BRU WHATT?? WHEREEE??? As an international student studying here in the UEA, the most common question I would get from everyone was what my name was followed by where I'm from. Being from a small country like Brunei, the most common reply I would get is "what? where's that?" or "I didn't even know that place existed..." I'm here to tell you exactly where Brunei is, the hidden treasures that can be found in Brunei and what it's like living in a small country like Brunei.  Brunei on the Map Brunei Darussalam (pronounced as bruu-nai-dah-ru-sa-lam ), meaning the Abode of Peace, is a small nation located on the Island of Borneo in South East Asia. Brunei has a rough area of 5,765 square kilometers of land with an estimated population of 434,076 as of October 2018, 0.05% of the population of London. Brunei is divided into 4 main districts which are Brunei-Muara, Tutong, Belait and Temburong, and these different districts are accessible vi...

When I first came to the UK for university, one of the things that would make me homesick is the food. It's safe to say that British people don't eat rice every day, or have siumai or dimsum on the ready every where you go.  However, the good thing about Norwich is that there are loads and loads of choices of restaurants for Chinese food, so it makes the homesickness a bit better! Not only are there lots of options for Chinese, there is also Asian cuisine on campus at INTO! I bet you didn't realise that!  There's a pretty common misconception that only INTO students can use the INTO cafeteria, but everyone on campus can use it. For £4, you can get a main meal and two sides - I'd say that's a great deal, and it will definitely fill you up!  Luckily, Norwich is quite a multicultural city, so there are lots of food options. The types of Chinese cuisine are endless here, from dimsum to hotpot. You can even buy your own hotpot ingredients and do it yourse...

A Quick Mama Noodle w/ Egg Recipe! [Self-made] Wondering how to make a quick simple meal which tastes good and reminds you of home? Don't look any further because this could be the super trick that will boost your university experience. During my time in Thailand, if I ever needed a late night meal when it was difficult to get food or having the dreadful experience of opening the fridge and realising that everything has gone out of date, I would eat mama noodles. Appreciating the fact that I bought the 10 pack a week earlier. This is the one of the main reasons I am able to get through my degree so far! It is very simple and shouldn't take longer than 5-10 minutes. Prep Time: Non-existent Cooking Time: 5-10 minutes Ingredients:  Mama Noodles (Creamy Tom Yum is best to use!) Egg  (Optional) spam, pork floss, other meats of your choice   Method: 1. Boil water (1L) and pour into bowl 2. Empty mama noodles onto bowl and cover with lid for 3 mi...

--> A conversation with a fully funded PhD student from India Name:  Vasudha Wattal Background of the student:   Vasudha is an Indian student from Delhi, awarded a fully funded PhD opportunity from the School of Economics in the University of East Anglia. She has done her Bachelor of Arts (Economics) from the Delhi University, then pursued her masters in the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics and finally completed her master’s in philosophy before joining UEA. What was your motivation to do your PhD at UEA? I always wanted to do research. During my masters, I started working on my thesis and I really liked the entire process. I found it challenging and I enjoyed creating great things from nothing. This enthusiasm led me to work with a research organisation in India and my work experience landed me to the University of East Anglia. UEA was my first choice because it is mostly based on the area of my research interest and ...