October 21, 2016, by International students

Goodbyes are always hard

By Amber Baba Jan from Pakistan, who has recently completed MSc Advanced Nursing at The University of Nottingham, funded by a Commonwealth shared Scholarship. 

From my #journeytoUoN last year

Throwback to one of the pictures I took when I started my journey to The University of Nottingham and now I’m counting my last few days in this beautiful country, amongst the most beautiful souls I’ve ever met in my entire life. The best year of my life is finally coming to an end. A beautiful dream is finally now over and it’s the time to go back to the reality, to my home country. I can still remember the initial months here in the UK when it was so hard for me to accept the change. All I used to do was nothing but cry because of homesickness and I just wanted to go back to my home country. But gradually with time, I made new friends, new family, accepted a different culture and new people. Saying goodbye has always been the hardest part of any journey but I never expected that saying goodbye at the end of this journey would be hard for me as I always wanted to go back to my home country in the first place. The people who were once completely strangers to me have now become a part of my life. The last two months went unbelievably fast, unbelievably fast.

I had a wonderful and life changing experience in these twelve months, it has taught me many life lessons, it opened my mind and now I can see the world in a completely different way. I got to see many beautiful souls here. I got to know what in actual humanity and being human is like. I have learned that to be a good human being and a kind person and to be able to help somebody, one does not have to have a religion. Humanity is beyond the boundaries of religion, race, color, language, financial status and ethnicity. I have learned that doing good to somebody is not always about getting or expecting something in return. This one year was not only about advancing my studies but it was more about learning to be tolerant of other’s perspectives, cultures and believes. It was about learning to say ‘sorry’, ‘please’ and ‘thank you’. It was about learning that these small words do not make you small but polite and humble. It was about learning to give a smile to a complete stranger and getting a beautiful smile back.

I’m really very thankful to each and everyone here in the UK who made this journey possible and made it worth cherishing. I’m really very grateful to everyone. Thanks to all those families and friends in Nottingham who always took care of me. Thank you all for all the warm hugs and kinds words. I just hope that one day I’ll leave an impression on others, similar to the one left on me by the people here in the UK. I’m also thankful to my family and friends in the UK and in my home country, who were always there when I needed someone to talk to, thank you all for always sticking by my side when I used to go through the horrible phases of homesickness. Huge thanks to the Commonwealth Shared Scholarship and The University of Nottingham for sponsoring my education; without funding this would not have been possible and I would not have made it to the UoN.

The Nottingham sign at University Park Campus

I am very thankful to the whole team at the School of Health Sciences, Dr Catrin Evans and Dr Linda East in particular for all the guidance, support, constructive feedback and motivation they have provided throughout the journey whenever I got stuck. They are one of the best mentors I have got since the beginning of my student life.

From the team of excellent instructors, twenty-four hours’ library and computer room facilities, outstanding student union services, beautiful views all around the campuses including architecture, gardens, the lake, also cafes, gyms and societies to work out and socialize with other international students and much much more, The University of Nottingham is a complete package. I feel really privileged to be a part of UoN family and I will always be a part of UoN as an alumni now.

I am indeed very grateful. The part of my heart will always stay in UK and it will always be my second home. I will always miss this place, the people here and their hospitality and love. You all will remain in my heart and in my prayers, always.

Interested in studying at Nottingham with a Commonwealth Scholarship in 2017?
Find out more and apply by 15 November 2016.

Details of our Commonwealth Shared Scholarships in 2017 will be confirmed in due course.

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