Sometimes, I feel our problems are not ordinary. Our situation seems more than meets the ordinary eyes and this is not peculiar to Nigeria alone but the whole of African in general. For God's sake, many of our leaders who take elections as a do or die affair have been in the corridors of power for ages. Most of them have stolen billions that could last their generations for a lifetime. If they believe they are the best candidate for a giving position, why not let the electorates decide, after all a shiny light can't be hidden. I just hope the situation in Anambra State and Nigeria as a whole can be resolved without the kind of violence sweeping across Africa and the Arab world presently cos these so called leaders will not feel the pinch like the ordinary masses would if it happens. God Bless Nigeria, God Bless Our Motherland.

Davedavy:

i've traveled extensively through out Europe including all the ex soviet bloks.Ukraine and Russia are almost the same except that Russia is richer than Ukraine,wages in Ukraine is still very poor and finding any kind of part time employment is very hard.The locals (especially d guys) do not like foreigners at all,they will readily get into fight with you,especially when they see you with their girls,going out alone is very risky as you can be easily attacked.Lots of their youths are jobless so what they do all day is drink cheap vodka or piwa and look for troubles.
You are not protected by the police,a policeman called me a nigga,i was called monkey on countless occasions.I can still remember one occasion where a police man ordered me and my friends out of a club for no reason,dude just came in,saw us with some cute chicks,and called us,he demanded for our identification (passport,registration) we showed him and he said 'idi damoi' meaning go home in Russian,i asked him'pashimu? meaning why? my friend just asked me to stop arguing with him and we took the next cab home.

Ukraine is full of corruption and administrative road blocks,Police will want you to bribe them because you are black,every time they see you asking for your documents,if you provide the correct documents,they will start asking you silly questions just to get on your nerve.The country is very unfriendly to foreigners of  different skin color.And yes,there are some good people in Ukraine/Russia,i met great guys,my Ukrainian friends were always helpful, but lot of young people in Ukraine have nothing better to do than to fight for fun,and foreigners are their targets.

I can't tell you not to go there,it is your choice actually,it depends on what you are going to do and your expectations.If you just want to study, you have the means and after your studies go back to Nigeria,then no problem.But if you are looking for somewhere you can possibly get a permanent residency/Passport and call a second home someday,Ukraine is not that place .I advised some guys sometimes ago about Ukraine,well,they decided to go because their agents in Nigeria told them otherwise,the agent told them it is easy to get a visa to UK/USA and shengen from Ukraine,after some months in Ukraine,these guys had to borrow money to return to Nigeria.Ukrainian citizens  require visa to travel to almost all the countries in the world,if you eventually become an Ukrainian citizens,you will still need visas to travel to almost everywhere in the world.You are better off going to smaller EU/shengen countries.By the time you add all the money you will spend to get to Ukraine,and all the money you will spend in Ukraine for the duration of your course,you will find out that it is economical to have chosen a wiser and better option.

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@Davedavy, even though you are an Ajala traveler, all what you said will help and inform people wishing to go to Ukraine. I have a lot of close friends from Ukraine, Russia and Belarus and I know all of these nationals still need to get a visa to come to Poland. They also have to apply for the residence card (karta pobytu) to be able to stay here in Poland. Many of them don't have anything cheering to say about their country, especially those from Belarus. I have an Ukrainian friend here who studied medicine for 7 years in Ukraine and still had to come to Poland for a 2 or 3 years course as she told me what will be paid to her in Ukraine as a doctor is totally unbelievable and she needs the course in Poland to be able to convert her degree into an European one. When they refer to their country in conversations, they talk about Poland as Europe and they believe in some way they are not a part of Europe. However, like BBwolex pointed out, most unsavory things we heard in the past has reduced but I will point out that people who are going to study there should find out more about the cost of tuition and cost of living and be sure they can be able to support themselves instead of believing agents that ready made jobs are waiting for them in Ukraine. Goodluck Everyone!

Davedavy:

First choice will be Finland; best economy amongst all the countries you mentioned,but cost of living is also the highest.

Poland will come second,healthiest of the post-Communist countries in terms of economy and is currently one of the fastest growing within the EU.Wages are still not the best but also cost of living is not high.

Estonia:i haven't been to Estonia before,but i have been to Russia,Latvia,Lithuania and Ukraine.These countries are still close to foreigners,Poland will be a better choice.

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DaveDavy is perfectly correct. Finland and in fact most of the Scandinavia countries are continually ranked among the best countries in the world but the cost of living in these countries are kinda high. Poland on the other hand is a nice country developing rapidly and totally banishing the ghosts of their communist past. Being a Schengen country gives you access to about 24 countries without a visa. I have been to Prague and Slovakia and I did not see any gate at the border not to even mention an immigration officer to request for documents. This should tell you how much Europe has become one big village as a whole. Like DaveDavy said, Krakow and Poznan are very beautiful cities with a lot of international presence and universities. The people are very open and nice and will be even more open and nicer once you can speak their language which is kinda difficult but learn able if you are really determined about learning. I will be lying too if I fail to say you might get certain stares of disbelieve in smaller towns, but it might be more of disbelieve, surprise or excitement rather than racism. Only at night you can get a few disgruntled drunk people say the word 'Kurwa' and this is also more in smaller towns amongst the very ignorant few. Overall, it is a place which is ideal to start one's European experience. Search braintrack.com and you have a list of all universities in the world Poland inclusive. Check the universities that appeal to you, contact their admission office and ask for the procedure and every other information you need and I wish you all the best. I will contact you directly on your email address and you can ask me the questions you don't want to post here.

justhustle:

@demmydems
what city are you in poland?
what is living conditions like for students,ie how much can you surive on for a month(accomodation and feeding) minimum?
do you have an idea of krakow?
poland,finland or estonia which would you recommend?
would really appreciate your reply as i am considering coming to poland for my masters so i really need to make my mind up.
Thanks

Justhustle,
I am not the best person to talk about Finland and Estonia since I have never been to these places but I know Poland is a nice country, making rapid developments and it is a good place for a stepping stone or place to study if you are focused on studying strictly. I live close to Krakow and the cost of accommodation is around 480PLN a month which is around 25K naira. Cost of living depends on your lifestyle and it will be very difficult for me to evaluate that, but around 100-200PLN a month should do, except you spend in excess. However, you should not have it in mind of getting a job to support yourself for the first year. Krakow is a very nice and historical city, with a very nice international presence. There are lots of international students and also Nigerians.

Hoodrat:

Poland is a nice country with nice people, But you gotta have money to survive in poland because europe is not easy nowadays.

On point.

juzme:

@demmydems
I like your honesty. I hope people who want to go and study in some eastern european country solely on the aim finding a job during their study period will have something to gain from your contribution. People should know it is not always easy to find parttime job these days if you are a student. Therefore, you must have enough finance to support yourself during your study period.
As regard to Norway you as seeking for summer job, you dont need to apply for work permit for your summer job, moreover, it is not going to be easy getting a work permit as a student who want to only work for a short period.
As someone already mention, you can find something easier if you know anyone in Norway. If the person is ready to host you during your period of stay, you can go into any restaurant and ask them for jobs. Mostly in summer, some restaurants hire people to help them during the summer period. You can as well ask for jobs in pubs. Also, there are some farms that need labourers to pick fruits and vegetables. Norway has some fish markets where you can go on daily basis to find job. I cant remember the name of the place. Good luck!

@Juzme,
I read some of your previous posts and I appreciate the way you also give clear and honest answers, especially to helping people to know the rights from the wrong. Thank you so much for your advice regarding Norway too. I actually have a friend there who Norwegian but from Rwandese roots and he his also helping. The main issue I don't know how much he will be willing to help about is accommodation which I understand can be petty expensive in Norway. Even for the seasonal jobs, I was made to understand by their directorate of immigration, UDI that I still need a residence permit for these kind of jobs which can be submitted directly to the Police on arrival in Norway. The issue of a work permit is not an issue for now as you stated in one of your posts, these European countries are trying to protect their citizens because of the economic recession. I am working hard and strategizing on plans and believing God take control. Please do have a nice day ahead.

snowdrops:

well thats cheap compared with what uk unis charge. are you not allowed to work in poland with your residence permit btw?

Snowdrops, you can say that again but you should also note that not everybody will be able to afford these costs in one straight sweep in addition to the cost of living too. You are allowed to work but getting a job is not easy considering the language barrier and other factors. If a person can support himself/herself for one straight year, then there is the option of going to work somewhere else during the summer months to boost one's finances.

kaffy4tope:

Please, is there any cheap university in Poland? i would like to come and study there.

Kaffy4tope, it depends on what you call cheap. You can find universities for around 2500Euros to 3000Euros. However, I must note here that you must have a steady and sufficient amount of money for daily and living expenses, else it will be extremely difficult to survive if not impossible.

Busy_body:


It is a one-off thingy, I am never usually like this, I feel like I am outta my skin, infact I am going back to my usual place on Nairaland, the Religion section

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Busy body, before you go back to the religion section, you don too make my night with all these truthful yabs . I have not heard these words in a long time, Odensin, Daginidoro, Doofus, Oku Igbe e.t.c. Laugh nearly tear my belle.

Hello NairaLanders, I am a Nigerian currently living in Poland with a valid temporary residence status(Karta Pobytu). I will like to travel to work in Norway this summer as I know about the buoyant economy of the country. I have contacted the Norwegian embassy here in Poland and also Norwegian Directorate of Immigration(UDI). They both confirm the fact that I can travel legally to Norway without a visa with my Polish residence card under the schengen agreement, but I must apply for a permit to be able to work in Norway and for this I must have a valid offer of employment from a Norwegian employer. I will like contributions from people who have an idea on how to go about the issue of getting a job in Norway and other informative contributions will be highly appreciated.

Mikky Angel, I have been following your posts for a long time especially since 2009 and I must say they have been very helpful. So I say thank you for the honest and helpful information you have shared here over the years. I arrived in Poland in October too and I found most of the stuff you have said perfectly correct. I feel I can learn some more from you as you know this is an important time in deciding where to spend the summer holidays to hustle and make some money. Do you mind if I add you on yahoo messenger so that we can chat? Have a nice evening.