toyclicks:
Hi Fam.

Wow!
Good to drop in here as a testifier to this place.
Hope y'all doing fine.

Ok so....quick one. Let me share my experiences so far
I now understand why ppl abroad find it difficult to have time. You almost have to plan your breath. Time is really a scarce commodity here. I don't know how all the good ppl here @justwise, @mimilyrics, @stenon et all. I don't know how you find time for this forum ooo. You were and are still a blessing. Whatever way you have been able to keep squeezing out the time to help ppl here, I would say its worth every part of it. Being a part if so many ppl's life journey and being a blessing to them is worth all the effort. So pls as God helps you, don't get tired.

Now....let me say this bitter truth. A bitter truth that ppl on this forum have quarrelled with Justwise for saying. This ppl included me.

This is not the best time to come to the Uk..
IOW, if you have the means to still chill in Nigeria for 6-12months, sadly, I would advise you to do so.

However, if you want to come and join us to whether this terrible tough period, I am not discouraging you. You are welcome.

Let he explain a bit. If your aim is really studying, don't come right now, else you won't get value for your money. The pandemic has really messed things up. The online class is BS. Even the schools don't know how to handle the situation yet. One other major thing is that networking is difficult. In 6 weeks I only had a class meeting once. Till now I only met one of my senior colleagues since I've been here. No one to come to your aid. You are all by yourself. Everyone is trying hard to survive. Everyone is really busy. No one has your time. No one is available to put you through things. This is when you will value trivial things like seeing your colleagues and lecturer to chat and discuss, holding physical meetings. Believe me, you can't fathom how much frustration this can be, esp when we are talking about something that involves more or less the biggest investment of your life yet. This new way of life has affected many things and not everyone is able to adjust to it.

Also, don't think the lecturers are available to help you. They are not available to "babysit" anybody. They expect at the masters level that you are really cooked and there are many things you are expected to know. Unfortunately for those of us coming from a place like Nigeria, believe me, we are really undercooked. Believe me, a primary school kid here will do much better than you. One of my coursemates confessed to me that it was her kids that helped her with her coursework when she couldn't get a hang of it. Her kids were born and grown here. So you get what I mean. It's so easy for them to flow. Long and short, there is so much catching up for you to do in order to come up to the same level with these ppl.
...And yes, ppl are really getting stranded. I already know ppl whom we moved together from this thread and left with the hope that they can hustle it out. They are getting stranded. Pls if you are coming at this period, you are better off with as much buffer finances as possible.


As regards jobs. There are jobs and there are no jobs. What do I mean? Jobs have really been reduced cos of the pandemic. However there are still some kind of jobs in some remote areas far from town. Transport cost on the long run might take a big chunk of the pay(like 30%). The distance is much( to is like 2½ hrs. Making 5hrs round trip for your job commute) hope you can understand now. The jobs are simply available there cos the location is far from availability of labor. So you count your cost.

I am just taking time to explain all these so you understand my reason for advising to chill a bit if you can

However, for all the ppl like me wet naija don tire. Make una dey come ooo abeg. We go rough am. We go survive.

I hope my msg is not all too negative. But I think it will be of good to you if you get the true and clear picture of things so you can make informed decisions.

I wish us all the best we can be.

Cheers to y'all.
I hope to share more and sweeter experiences later

TheOnly123:
This is the reality and truth for some people. However, my advice would be that anyone planning to come to the UK to study now should do alot of research and ask questions from people there already. What I've observed so far is that in some areas even with the covid 19, there are still alot of jobs while in some areas, nothing at all.

So when looking out to make a choice on the school, also remember the location is very important, don't just go for any location, I can tell you that there are areas you would easily get jobs but if you are in a location that there is no job and then the only areas you are getting the jobs is miles away from you then transportation and all comes in and it's harder.

Then I believe when coming have a mindset of wanting to achieve something and focus on it, be resilient and be prepared mentally for the negatives and positives but have a mindset to make it through.

PS- I'm a dependent, however my wife who is the student attends lectures online at least 4 days a week one of the lecturers even called for a one on one class at one time, she has also been called for some student jobs that have offered her some pounds per hour. I on the other hand coming from Nigeria with some experience in the space of less than a month have been called for at least 3 to 4 interviews, got two offers already and all.

That said, please research and ask people that would be honest with you questions, also pray and ask God for directions and be resilient and keep believing things would turn out good. Apply to alot of job and be ready to improve on yourself.







So which area can you suggest where job is available, which school and which course, you can help some people.


Then I will also like to advise us(people that are there already), when posting your experience and reality over there, do it in such away that you will provide solution to problems you are facing over there like the way out, not just the problems alone.

For instance, when you talk about there are jobs in some areas, tell us the areas that there are jobs, tell us the areas that don't have jobs, when you talk about schools, tell us the schools that are good, then tell us the jobs to expect, so that we can get our mind prepared.

My point is don't just tell us the challenges, tell us the way out of the challenges, since you are already there.

Nigeria is not a place to stay for now, everyone is looking for a way out, at least for our children, we should not raise our children in this kind of insane environment.

My opinion

STENON:
Remember There are jobs for £20-£25 /hr.

You can get 20 hours/week paid contract job.

For January entry, How about working 50 hours per week during school break from May - September ? = 9 × 50hours × 22 weeks = 9900 pounds just for May- September. I am sure the 20 hours school term wages should be enough to pay for moderate accommodation and other bills .

reincarnation:

And there are jobs that pay more than that, no? Let's talk about reality and not something that's implausible at this point in time. Out of 100 students, will 10 people get such jobs? How many of those who came in September have gotten such jobs or any job at all that pays at least £11?
Hey man, My calculation above was based on normal wage of £9 not £11, or £20-£25

Some are yet to get jobs.
Someone said he had £3k for tuition, and you say that magic is possible. How many months will it take him to raise money for enrolment alone which is another 3k. Schools like GCU allows 8 monthly instalments . he gets to UK he isn't a student till he enrols. What state of mind will such person be in? Most schools allow you to set up a payment plan pending without any wahala.
Please, [b]let's give realistic guides to people who are yet to come here so they don't go astray when they get here. [/b]Cheerio!

LagosismyHome:


£20 to £25 hrs per hour job for a student who just came ....... hummmm This is extremely rare and very far in between.

However, this minimum wage range
£9 × 50hours × 22 weeks = 9900 , this very possible pre covid time . But you gat to pay rent and chop food

Aderin0la:
Anybody here going to *Coventry University* in January 2021? Please I need to confirm something from you urgently.

LagosismyHome:


£20 to £25 hrs per hour job for a student who just came ....... hummmm Abeg Let set realistic expectations . This is extremely rare and very far in between. The reality on ground is mainly minimum wage range


£9 × 50hours × 22 weeks = 9900 , this very possible pre covid time

STENON:
Remember There are jobs for £20-£25 /hr.

You can get 20 hours/week paid contract job.

For January entry, How about working 50 hours per week during school break from May - September ? = 9 × 50hours × 22 weeks = 9900 pounds just for May- September. I am sure the 20 hours school term wages should be enough to pay for moderate accommodation and other bills .

macbernard:
Best exchange rate ever. 381 naira to a dollar. But avoid Paga verve if you can

Damole:
Visa Approved! Visa Approved!! Visa Approved!!!

I can well proclaim myself as the chairman of Silent Readers Association. I have followed this Thread all the way from Part 1 and I must say a big Thank you to the likes of @justwise @lagosismyhome @mimilyrics and every other person that has contributed in to this Thread.
You guys are really doing a great job.

Application Timeline:

Online application : 07th of November
Biometrics: 11th of November
Decision mail 23rd of November
Passport Collection mail 26th of November
Passport with visa collected: 26th of November
Application Center: VI TLS Center
Application Type : Standard Application
Previous Refusals : 1 US Tourist Refusal, 1 Germany Tourist Refusal & 1 Canadian Study Visa Refusal, all declared
Previous Visas : SA, Botswana, Ghana, Kenya
School : University of Bradford
Course: Msc Applied AI & Data Analytics

Once again, my appreciation to everyone who has contributed to this thread by way of questions, response, clarifications etc. You guys are the Best

Best of Luck to you all

Any University of Bradford January 2021 Intake, please lets hook up.

Cheers

Oggg:

Send an email to Tayo@paga.com
He is the founder of Paga. Maybe he can wade in.
Go to a GTB branch and show them all evidence and fill a dispute form with all your evidence.
Dnt follow up with them over the phone, the people on the phone are somethin else.
For GTB complaint email, they dont have
Fill a complaints form and they will reply back to you.
https://www.gtbank.com/help-centre/complaints-enquiries#nav-complaints-form

STENON:
Remember There are jobs for £20-£25 /hr.

You can get 20 hours/week paid contract job.

For January entry, How about working 50 hours per week during school break from May - September ? = 9 × 50hours × 22 weeks = 9900 pounds just for May- September. I am sure the 20 hours school term wages should be enough to pay for moderate accommodation and other bills .

shubraba:


Please why

TheGuyFromHR:


Exactly.
One good thing in all this is that a lot of people who've landed are now waking up to reality. As I said, there are some jobs going, but masses of people applying.

Some tips: Anyone coming here with the intention to stay back (not referring to those just seeking jobs to earn funds to cover immediate bills now), no matter what course you've studied or are studying or your previous work experience, add another string to your bow by orienting yourself towards the NHS. Take one or two of the self-study online courses available everywhere (e.g. health and care, etc), make a mix of practical and theory courses and try and find your way in on whatever Band level you can get in.
Leave all the international business management, Healthcare Technology, Information Technology Management and all those strangely named things - they are not likely to get you anywhere.

Redraft your CVs from the Nigerian style (throw out all the extraneous info about origin, primary school attended, etc.) to reflect what you have done (if you have experience) and can do. See if your school has a careers service that is actually working during the pando that can help you with this. You need to start applying soon for the internships and whatnot that will be coming up next year.

Draft good cover letters. Stop using the internet to do that. Anti-plagiarism software will catch you out. Learn the mistakes in your west African English ("asides", "would" instead of "will", etc.) and work on them. They actually do read these things. You all have phones and data, every morning devote at least an hour to reading the papers online to improve your English. Trust me when I say you're being held to a higher standard.

Do some basic research about the company to which you are applying and target your relevant experience or qualifications or skills towards that in your cover letter. Or if its an open position where specifics are not required, say something about what you could do for them using the above if you have no relevant experience, qualifications or skills.

Also, a lot of companies are unfortunately not up to speed with the latest changes to immigration rules allowing for the post-study among others, and still are unaware that foreign students will have 2 years after school, so you might need to address that as well so they know. A brief and specific line will suffice (someone asked me how to put that and I'm not going to say anything here, because the internet has a long memory and sadly a lot of people prefer cutting and pasting). Just say things in your own words, and you will be fine.

Lastly, do not underestimate the use of anti-plagiarism software in all you do. Do not.

reincarnation:
Whoever has the means to come to UK should leave Nigeria, but please have funds that can cater for you for at least 2 months. £1k is fine, but I'd say £1500-£2k if you can, so you don't bleed.

blazerjewel:
please any filled a UK partner visa, do you select Yes also for the section that "People financially dependent on you". i am the primary applicant and the children are already included in mine. we are all traveling together

Dammytt:


I'll be going to Coventry in January

mimilyrics:
You can include them on your spouse's application too except your spouse normally contributes nothing financially to the kids upkeep.

ademola020:


Now you see, this is a well delivered opinion, not like some folks in this forum that just try to force there opinion on everyone. The manner and tone in which you convey your msg matters a lot. No one will read this and say he’s discouraging us. 80% of Nigerians including me believe that the moment we get here, e don better for us. So if you are going to enlighten us or to tell us your experience, don’t always tell us the negative sides, tell us the positive sides too, if na so e hard reach why una no run come back home the way una run commot for naija. Things you find difficult in the uk might not be difficult for other person, places you couldn’t enter or reach might just be a walk over for another person.

Please guys just plan well before you come. Put the pandemic into consideration before making a decision. UK is for everyone. We will all
Make it.


Kudos to you brother for this write up. You have done well.

blazerjewel:

So do i select Yes or No

Miide2:
please does anyone know how much priority visa fee is ?