@Imp75

DD was indeed homesick during her Canada stay,
(i) alone;
(ii) too small Asian community;
(iii) not staying in hostel which made it harder to make friends;
(iv) winter; and
(v) uni was in a town about 1 hour by train away from the city.

Believed she was lonely and homesick lthough she did not said it and worry us. She made frequent day trips to the city on weekends to explore as well as to eat at Chinatown.

The train fares for the day trips were not exactly cheap but I did not stop her nor reference money/costs except to remind not to return too late. Short days in winter and not many people outdoors.

Am happy she was able to find it within herself to self-soothe.

The uni for her undergrad studies was about 3 hours by train from London. She was studying at home for around 2 years or so due to lockdowns during the pandemic, hence slightly older when she left.

Also did summer school in France “virtually” due to lockdowns.

Same, travelled frequently to London. Did not travel as much as would like as friends required visa so unable to travel as freely as they like.

She was happiest in London, hard-core city person. Lots to see and do. As the employment markets are deeper and more innovative, there more opportunities to try different things. Applicants from other countries do fly in for emplyment selection process so the competition was an eye-opener - 山外有山

There are other offers from equally reputable uni, but they are in uni towns which she will not enjoy as much and we would be less inclined to accept.

My lessons learnt and takeaway is personality of child and fit is important for an enjoyable experience and happy outcome.

@Imp75

Congrats on your daughter’s decision.

We kept the local number for admin (eg banking) purpose. DD also maintained her overseas number for same reason. There is quite a fair bit of communication and services tied to phone number nowadays, do not want any slippage or omission due to phone number being cancelled.

DD went alone so we only packed the essentials within baggage allowance. We did try sending Prima paste but seems paste/liquid is not allowed. Not sure about courier though.

Unless a child is going into a highly specialized field, don’t think they will be too confined to a specific path or industry.

What is important is being able to embrace change and learn / re-learn fast.

Jamie Dimon says to get a job at JPMorgan, what you study in college ‘almost doesn’t matter’

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/jamie-dimon-says-job-jpmorgan-220827006.html

@slmkhoo said in Overseas Uni funds preparation:

@doodbug said in Overseas Uni funds preparation:

@lee_yl jialat so if kids are going to europe to live or study, especially for girls, maybe we need to consider sending them for self-defence class. guns are not legal or prevalent in europe (i hope) but still other forms of crime, especially mobile phone theft, are not uncommon.

Learning a little self-defence can create overconfidence, I feel. I tell my girls to push away and RUN! And scream as well. But the best defence is avoiding situations and behaviour which attract attention or are dangerous. Singapore is too safe, which is both a good and bad thing. Most overseas cities are more dangerous than Singapore, whether in Europe, Asia or just about anywhere else!

Totally agree with you.

Know parents who gave kids safety alarm to hang on bags plus pepper sprays for protection.

To add on, keep a low profile on a daily basis - avoid carrying/wearing branded items.

@Imp75

Is any of your DD’s friends or school/class mates also offered/going?

Am not sure if the contact info for the other local recipients will be shared or if there will be any pre-departure orientation. I vaguely remembered DD was communicating with some local and Asian recipients (from different courses) about flights and accomodation arrangements.

Am not familiar with Japan’s student accomodation arrangement, hence not sure if the opportunities to get to know others is better staying in hostel or flatting out. My DD stayed in a hostel, ensuite with cleaning services. She eats out most times so no concerns in this aspect. Food should not be a problem in Japan.

Japan is not so far, probably can consider flying there regularly until she is more settled.

@Imp75

DD was indeed homesick during her Canada stay,
(i) alone;
(ii) too small Asian community;
(iii) not staying in hostel which made it harder to make friends;
(iv) winter; and
(v) uni was in a town about 1 hour by train away from the city.

Believed she was lonely and homesick lthough she did not said it and worry us. She made frequent day trips to the city on weekends to explore as well as to eat at Chinatown.

The train fares for the day trips were not exactly cheap but I did not stop her nor reference money/costs except to remind not to return too late. Short days in winter and not many people outdoors.

Am happy she was able to find it within herself to self-soothe.

The uni for her undergrad studies was about 3 hours by train from London. She was studying at home for around 2 years or so due to lockdowns during the pandemic, hence slightly older when she left.

Also did summer school in France “virtually” due to lockdowns.

Same, travelled frequently to London. Did not travel as much as would like as friends required visa so unable to travel as freely as they like.

She was happiest in London, hard-core city person. Lots to see and do. As the employment markets are deeper and more innovative, there more opportunities to try different things. Applicants from other countries do fly in for emplyment selection process so the competition was an eye-opener - 山外有山

There are other offers from equally reputable uni, but they are in uni towns which she will not enjoy as much and we would be less inclined to accept.

My lessons learnt and takeaway is personality of child and fit is important for an enjoyable experience and happy outcome.

One additional point, on the scholarship, you may wish to check if it is awarded for the full course of studies, regardless of grades or on an annual renewal basis subject to grades meeting certain criteria. Usually latter, so there will be pressure and depending on each family, may wish to have a plan B for worst case scenario.

Am aware of students who lose their scholarship mid-way but not close to find out more.

@Imp75

What is the downside if she accepts / goes and find that it is not suitable?

If it is bond free, am assuming there is no penalty and credits are transferable?

Expectations have been set clear since kids were young that we can only afford local uni and they will need to obtain a scholarship if they wish to study overseas.

Based on the offers, the choice was pretty obvious, hence from that perspective, keeping us informed is fine. Prior to that, she had interned in Canada.

On the option between furthering studies or accepting the job offer, the conflict was the universities and employer were all top names. She was able to quickly pick out the high probability of personality mismatch with some of the universities and eliminated them from consideration.

The only consideration (to her) then was funding as there was no unbonded scholorship in hand at that time.

We only told her that funding should not be a factor of her consideration and the uni’s name will open even more doors. She just need be true to herself in making that decision.

@Imp75 said in Overseas Uni funds preparation:

@bbbay
Overseas Uni or not really depends on kids nowadays. I don’t think parents have any say in this. Hv one child already obtained a fully funded non-bonded scholarship to Japan yet is mulling over the decision to live in Japan for 5y.

This is true.

My kid just “informed” us that she received a scholarship and would be giving up her place locally…

For her post-graduate, the only question to us was whether to accept or give up as she already has a job offer in hand.

Her classmates are all either working or continuing studies overseas. Am sure she will “let us know” when she will leave again - many countries now offer self-sponsored visas which she qualifies and will apply at the right time.

I sent knowing that the person who returns is not the same as the person who left, and the brighter lights will help her thrive.

Personality of other child is different, am hoping to send to help him develop confidence and widen comfort zone. If agreeable to go, will likely be HK, Japan, Korea or China for easier visits.

Would think the social experience is also dependent on the profiles / ratio of the student intake at the uni and social circle. Mine was in a Russell group uni outside of London for undergrad and in London for postgrad. Would have thought that there will be lots of fellow SG at the uni but somehow not really. May be due to the course, unable to confirm.

山高皇帝远 comfort zone for advanture is often wider than mine so is often 先斩后奏

Most kids will be sensible enough to know not to worry family, so will need to be street smart to solve any issue encountered so that no escalation is required.