"Having completed my A-levels and after saving for half a year, I
first visited New Zealand in the middle of an epic round-the-world
trip in 2006. I only intended to stay for three weeks, but soon became entrenched in an ever-growing group of new friends in Wellington. Kiwis are a friendly bunch, and so to cut a long story short, I ended up staying five months.

“The friendly, laid-back nature of the people, the beauty and diversity of NZ and the vibrant creativity of the Wellington scene
(art, music etc) all made me think I ought to come back, despite at the time holding a place to start at Manchester University which I was supposed to be going home for.

“When I got back to the UK, I began investigating going back to Wellington for unit (in which Study Options were instrumental, I don’t think I could have done it without them). I knew some people already at VUW from my first visit and had heard good things, so went for it and here I am.

“At first I found the somewhat more Americanized style of the uni system (the flexibility to take various subject ‘papers’ whilst
‘majoring’ in one or two things) a bit unfocused, but soon found my feet. I’m now studying English literature and Philosophy.

“I feel really settled here now, to the point where I feel like I lead two lives, one in NZ and one in the UK. It’s a great place to be, although I do miss home. I’m really enjoying my courses, which is very much down to the passion and energies of my lecturers. The teaching methods are largely what I expected, a mix of lectures and smaller tutorials. One real benefit to studying here is the diversity of the staff, which gives you an alternative worldview. I’m taught by a mixture of Kiwis, Australians, Americans and Brits and encounter other interesting guest lecturers.

“At first the University seemed a huge labyrinth of bureaucracy but in fact tutors and lecturers are fairly accessible – the best bet is to email them first and arrange a time to meet, but most will give you a specific time when they can be found at their office.

“I live in a suburb called Hataitai, in a flat with four other
students. I found it online in the ‘flatmates wanted’ classifieds. I’m very happy with it and it was relatively easy to find, though if you are planning to come here and not stay in halls it’s probably best to arrive a month or two before the beginning of term as I have heard of some students finding it difficult to find a flat. Rent is cheap and there's a large arts and music scene here in Wellington, so there's always fun to be had. Finding part time work is also relatively easy - a good way is to use www.sjs.co.nz (student job search).

“It’s extremely easy to make friends in New Zealand. I only know a couple of Brits here, and as a result my accent is a bit messy now – I subconsciously end sentences with ‘ay’ a lot. I feel very at home here
– I don’t feel like an international student as such, I don’t feel any different from the other students at Vic.”

Top three things about studying overseas? 

The amazing surroundings, friendly people with different perspectives
on life, and being able to live somewhere where friendliness is the
general social default.

Three things you most miss about home? 

Quality comedy – no-one does it like us. Friends and family. And more
chances to see world-renown bands play.

Anything else you think people should know?

Kia Ora’ is Te Reo Maori for ‘hello/hi’.