discussion Should I stay in my country for uni, or should I go overseas?

[ithinkheknowsoutsold]

Hi everyone!

 

So lately I've been stuck in this awful dilemma where I have to choose whether I wanna stay in my country for my undergraduate, or if I wanna go overseas to the UK.

 

The university that I can go to in my country (which is in my city) is a pretty highly ranked within my country, even if it's not super high ranked globally. I am going to be majoring in history here, and it's a four year programme. The perks of staying here are that I don't have to leave my family or my home (I am already getting homesick at the thought of leaving), and it's actually super cheap compared to the other option. The drawback is that the course I have here, history, may not lend itself well to future employment opportunities (at least that's what I think). The other option I have is of going to the UK, to the University of Manchester, which is a much higher ranked university globally (ranks in the top 25/30 according to most rankings), and the course there (Modern History with Economics) gives me a lot more flexibility for job options/post-graduate degrees in the future. It's also one year shorter, so I might even be able to my post-grad there and return home before I would even get to finish my undergrad here. The problem is that it's way more expensive (although my family is in a good position financially and they think they can afford it comfortably), and that I'll have to leave my family and move thousands of miles to live with strangers in a brand new country all by myself. I've never lived without my family before, and this process seems very daunting to me. I am very close to my family, and I'm scared I'll miss them too much. At the same time, I also want to go because I feel like I'll be wasting my potential by staying here and pursuing a degree in a generally unemployable field that will eventually force me to go out for my post-grad. 

 

My family is very supportive, though most of them get emotional at the thought of me leaving. They also worry that 18 is too young an age for me to live all on my own, but they also want me to do well in life and choose what's best for me. I've been very torn lately and in a state of near constant confusion. Any words of advice/encouragement? What would y'all choose if you were in my place?

 

Edit: I forgot to mention that I'm actually going to start taking classes at my local uni starting tomorrow, and I have till 31 August to decide what I wanna do. I'll drop out from here if I wanna go to Manchester, I guess.

Edited August 21, 2022 by ithinkheknowsoutsold

[Shinseito]

Going abroad will broaden your horizons and enrich your life experiences. You’ll always have home to return to. You’ll thank yourself for doing it. Eventually you get over homesickness. 

[KillingYourCareer]

Having talked to you, if your areas of interest are still the same, I say go to the UK (or other parts of Europe)! Lots of excellent universities for those fields.

[Cain]

To me personally having the chance to go abroad is always a yes, it indeed broadens your horizon and you seem to care about your resume, so; having experiences abroad is a major plus on your resume

HOWEVER, you should not underestimate that you might indeed feel lonely, especially in the beginning. It's important that you crank up your socialness to a 100 in those first few months and try to make friends and have a support system in the UK, otherwise those 3 years might take a toll on you. The good thing is that this is can be easily done, and once you have that supportgroup you will also feel less homesick

[Virgos Groove]

Study abroad. Not only will it give you access to more opportunities, it will also broaden your horizons.

 

Leaving home will be hard, but trust me, spending your college years living with your parents is much worse.

[RussianRoulette]

Go. I've been living in the UK for some time and it was pretty fabulous.

I have met people from all over the world there and it was one of the best experiences I had. 

I doubt you'll hate it there. 

Don't worry about the money, you can find part time jobs pretty easy. 

As for the family, you can always go back home for a visit when you have the time.

[nathanspears]

Manchester is a great city for university. There are so many accommodation options (although some are quite expensive). Much cheaper to live in than down south in London.

 

There are 3 big universities pretty much in the same area Uni of Manchester, Uni of Salford and Manchester Metropolitan University so it's full of new students. Many international students as well so you definitely wouldn't be alone.

 

Also, there's the gay village 

Edited August 21, 2022 by nathanspears

[moonlitdick]

Abroad abroad abroad!!!

[bad guy]

Abroad. Do it so that you never have to look back and regret it if you don't

[Robert]

Going abroad is a great experience that will look good on your resume and broaden your horizons. Manchester is a nice city that’s very international and well connected so plenty of opportunities to travel around the UK and Europe. UoM is a particularly good university. Living in the UK is very expensive though so make sure you’re financially prepared as we have one of the highest inflation rates. 

[John Slayne]

Do it. You'll regret it if you don't, it's a great opportunity. You have to be brave and learn to live independently, your parents won't be here forever.

[BlazingLovatic]

Go to Manchester for sure, it will be worth it in the end!

Live in halls (the more housemates the better imo) and go out every night - you won't feel lonely if you build a nice social group

 

[Archetype]

Go abroad.  You need to learn to live by yourself as a separate entity from your family.  Being self-reliant is one of the best things you’ll ever have, and even if you choose to move home after uni, you’ll at least know what you’re capable of.  College is the best time to discover more about who you are as an individual, rather than being influenced by those who raised you.

[BtDecember]

Abroad. Being away from home will give you freedom and teach you independence, which are very important. You are also lucky to not have financial problems so take the chance
 

[DoubleRainbow!]

2 hours ago, Shinseito said:

Going abroad will broaden your horizons and enrich your life experiences. You’ll always have home to return to. You’ll thank yourself for doing it. Eventually you get over homesickness. 

This.

I would've done this if I had had the money 

[cockatoo]

You'll love Manchester, large student population and the uni there is great. Plus if you ever feel like exploring other parts of the UK it's very well connected.

[Theshigo Washidu]

Like others have said already, going abroad will expand your horizons and knowledge of the world.

 

18 isn't exactly too young to live alone, you are now a legal adult. Eventually it would've happened.

You never know who you might meet or what opportunity you may come across abroad which could change your life for the better.

 

Good luck! 

[ithinkheknowsoutsold]

22 hours ago, Shinseito said:

Going abroad will broaden your horizons and enrich your life experiences. You’ll always have home to return to. You’ll thank yourself for doing it. Eventually you get over homesickness. 

That's true. Staying in one place for most of my life will stunt my growth as a person, and that worries me a lot.

 

22 hours ago, KillingYourCareer said:

Having talked to you, if your areas of interest are still the same, I say go to the UK (or other parts of Europe)! Lots of excellent universities for those fields.

Hi omg, it's been so long  Yes, my interests are the same, and even more pronounced now. Other parts of Europe aren't really an option for me at the moment, since it seems to me that registration deadlines for most of them are over now. Plus I've been to the UK before on a trip and I loved it the most out of any country I went to in Europe, so that's a plus too! 

 

22 hours ago, Cain said:

To me personally having the chance to go abroad is always a yes, it indeed broadens your horizon and you seem to care about your resume, so; having experiences abroad is a major plus on your resume

HOWEVER, you should not underestimate that you might indeed feel lonely, especially in the beginning. It's important that you crank up your socialness to a 100 in those first few months and try to make friends and have a support system in the UK, otherwise those 3 years might take a toll on you. The good thing is that this is can be easily done, and once you have that supportgroup you will also feel less homesick

I really wish that I had a friend or two who went to the UK with me. Having some form of support there would've made it infinitely easier. I have a hard time making lasting friendships, but I hope this time will be different.

 

22 hours ago, ATWK said:

Study abroad. Not only will it give you access to more opportunities, it will also broaden your horizons.

 

Leaving home will be hard, but trust me, spending your college years living with your parents is much worse.

Leaving is the scariest part, more so than living there. I just hope I get through that without crying too much.

 

22 hours ago, RussianRoulette said:

Go. I've been living in the UK for some time and it was pretty fabulous.

I have met people from all over the world there and it was one of the best experiences I had. 

I doubt you'll hate it there. 

Don't worry about the money, you can find part time jobs pretty easy. 

As for the family, you can always go back home for a visit when you have the time.

Are you still there? How often do you think you get to go back home once you study there?

 

22 hours ago, nathanspears said:

Manchester is a great city for university. There are so many accommodation options (although some are quite expensive). Much cheaper to live in than down south in London.

 

There are 3 big universities pretty much in the same area Uni of Manchester, Uni of Salford and Manchester Metropolitan University so it's full of new students. Many international students as well so you definitely wouldn't be alone.

 

Also, there's the gay village 

Manchester apparently also has a big Pakistani community, and being from Pakistan I hope to find some sense of community there too. 

 

What's the gay village?

 

22 hours ago, moonlitdick said:

Abroad abroad abroad!!!

22 hours ago, bad guy said:

Abroad. Do it so that you never have to look back and regret it if you don't

Yep, my sister keeps on telling me that I'll always regret it if I don't go.

 

21 hours ago, Robert said:

Going abroad is a great experience that will look good on your resume and broaden your horizons. Manchester is a nice city that’s very international and well connected so plenty of opportunities to travel around the UK and Europe. UoM is a particularly good university. Living in the UK is very expensive though so make sure you’re financially prepared as we have one of the highest inflation rates. 

I have been to Manchester before once and I thought it was a lovely city. I'm genuinely excited to see it again. 

 

21 hours ago, John Slayne said:

Do it. You'll regret it if you don't, it's a great opportunity. You have to be brave and learn to live independently, your parents won't be here forever.

That is true, it's gonna be hard but it's the right thing to do.

 

21 hours ago, BlazingLovatic said:

Go to Manchester for sure, it will be worth it in the end!

Live in halls (the more housemates the better imo) and go out every night - you won't feel lonely if you build a nice social group

 

Yeah I am gonna go for a hall for the first year, but I think they expect students to move into separate accommodation in the second year. 

 

20 hours ago, Archetype said:

Go abroad.  You need to learn to live by yourself as a separate entity from your family.  Being self-reliant is one of the best things you’ll ever have, and even if you choose to move home after uni, you’ll at least know what you’re capable of.  College is the best time to discover more about who you are as an individual, rather than being influenced by those who raised you.

This is very true, and the independence I'll gain from being there actually pushes me a lot to go.

 

20 hours ago, BtDecember said:

Abroad. Being away from home will give you freedom and teach you independence, which are very important. You are also lucky to not have financial problems so take the chance
 

I'm very grateful for that.

 

1 hour ago, St. Francis said:

Like others have said already, going abroad will expand your horizons and knowledge of the world.

 

18 isn't exactly too young to live alone, you are now a legal adult. Eventually it would've happened.

You never know who you might meet or what opportunity you may come across abroad which could change your life for the better.

 

Good luck! 

Where I live you live with your parents till like your 30s, so there's a lot more babying going around. I see my uncles treating their kids in well into their 20s like little children.

[nathanspears]

5 minutes ago, ithinkheknowsoutsold said:

Manchester apparently also has a big Pakistani community, and being from Pakistan I hope to find some sense of community there too. 

 

What's the gay village?

Manchester is extremely diverse, most cities in the UK are to be honest.

 

The gay village/Canal Street is the area in the city with all the gay clubs and bars

[Archetype]

2 hours ago, ithinkheknowsoutsold said:

Are you still there? How often do you think you get to go back home once you study there?

There are holiday breaks and long weekends.  Most people tend to go home during the winter holiday break, which can be quite long (several weeks), and there is also a bit of a spring break as well.  Once you start, the weeks fly because you'll be so busy with school, socializing, maybe working part time, etc.  Flying to and from Pakistan is probably not going to be cheap, but if your family can comfortably afford this, then you really have the best of both worlds.  Most non-European students tend to stay on campus, with local classmates at their home, or with host families during breaks if they can't go home.  

[Bloodflowers.]

UK is boring, find smaller European country so you learn local costumes and lifestyles, people are more friendly there and professors will like you more so you get better grades

[RussianRoulette]

3 hours ago, ithinkheknowsoutsold said:

 

 

Are you still there? How often do you think you get to go back home once you study there?

 

no, i left before the pandemic started

you can visit 2-3 times a year possibly more depending on your budget and your school schedule

around the major holidays the plane prices are ridiculous so book them months in advance 

[ithinkheknowsoutsold]

10 hours ago, Archetype said:

There are holiday breaks and long weekends.  Most people tend to go home during the winter holiday break, which can be quite long (several weeks), and there is also a bit of a spring break as well.  Once you start, the weeks fly because you'll be so busy with school, socializing, maybe working part time, etc.  Flying to and from Pakistan is probably not going to be cheap, but if your family can comfortably afford this, then you really have the best of both worlds.  Most non-European students tend to stay on campus, with local classmates at their home, or with host families during breaks if they can't go home.  

 

9 hours ago, RussianRoulette said:

no, i left before the pandemic started

you can visit 2-3 times a year possibly more depending on your budget and your school schedule

around the major holidays the plane prices are ridiculous so book them months in advance 

I see. Thank you for telling me that.

[POPTART]

I went to study to the UK too and I don't regret it one bit. Hence why I stayed after I graduated. You learn so much not only about different culture but yourself as well. And most importantly, you mature a lot.

 

You can easily find part-time jobs while you're studying, it covered majority of my expenses.

Manchester is a good pick if you're going for it, nice student city with loads of young people and it's got a nice vibe.

 

If you have any questions you can DM me

[Dzjxdzjx]

Do you want to be the girl that went to Paris or the girl that stayed?

 

also I live in the north of England (about an hour from Manchester) feel free to DM me 

Edited August 23, 2022 by Dzjxdzjx