I came to study the MSc in Finance course at the London School of Economics. Found an internship at an investment bank and then started as a Grad the same year. It’s been four years since I moved to London and three years since I started working. I’ll try to answer this as best as I can. Yes, opportunities are not what they used to be since the PSW(Post study work visa) has ended. But I suggest people get the chip off of their shoulders. Stop thinking that any country out there owes you a job. I certainly did not come here with that sort of attitude. The LSE did not force me to take up this Masters, I knew the risks all too well. I came anyway. What I did do was give it my best shot. I did not go out partying every night. I did not fly back to my parents at the drop of a hat. I worked on my applications, worked on my interviews, I got lots of rejections, lots of interviews and with every rejection I picked myself back up again and tried harder.
In my four years here I couldn’t ask for more. As a woman the freedom this city gives you is amazing. In all those years I’ve never been groped or inappropriately touched even once. I have never faced a hint of racism and neither have any of my friends from India. They all love it here and although most went back, they went back with fond memories and made friends the world over. My family lives in New York and I’d pick London over New York any day of the week. My sister who’s a New Yorker even admits the same when it comes to things like safety and public transport.
I also think that most non EU students get swept up in the glitz and glamour of London. When I was at uni, the same people who went back and cried about racism and not being given jobs were the ones I saw partying every night in a new nightclub and spending over a £100 without thinking about the fact that they have a massive loan to pay off. I knew a girl from India whose parents took out a huge loan to send her to the LSE. Even though I offered to help her find a job, she refused and was out partying with her boyfriend and friends every night, she decided to stay in the most expensive area in London where rents are as high as £2k for a room and when she went back she blamed racism even though I never saw her lift a finger to find a job. She only started applying during her last month in the UK. She wasn’t the only one who was like that, most were like her.
People who wanted to find jobs, found them. They planned, they worked hard, they attended interviews throughout the year. They basically gave it their best and today they’re in one of the best cities in the world. I’m set to move to Germany eventually because my boyfriend’s German and we’ve decided to marry and settle there. But I dread everyday when the time comes to leave this amazing wonderful country and its people. No country on earth is more tolerant towards different people than this one. I can guarantee you that as someone who has travelled all three continents extensively.
Source: Quora
Written by: Ritika Goswami
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