Student discounts
Many shops, theatres, cinemas, museums and galleries offer special reductions for students and special student fares are often available on buses and trains. To take advantage of these, you will usually need to prove membership of the National Union of Students (NUS), an organisation that represents the interests of all students in the UK, which can be arranged by your institution. Recent discounts listed on the NUS website include 10 per cent off purchases of selected items at HMV (a music and DVD retail chain), Topshop / Topman (a chain of fashionable clothes shops), ShoeZone (shoe shops), Peacocks (a chain of family clothing stores) and Argos (homeware and hardware). Ask at your Students' Union for details of the latest student discounts or check online at www.nusonline.co.uk. Student discounts are also available on most UK travel.
The International Student Calculator has been developed by UNIAID and focuses on raising awareness of the cost of living in the UK. It allows international students to plan their own budget incorporating both limits on their time as well as funds. The site (www.studentcalculator.org.uk/international) includes case studies based on real students, as well as top tips to help international students in their planning.
Free Health care
Anyone who comes to the UK to pursue a full-time course of study of not less than six months' duration will be fully entitled to free NHS hospital treatment in England.
Students study in the UK for less than six months from countries with which the UK holds bilateral healthcare agreements will only be entitled to free NHS hospital treatment that is needed promptly for a condition that arose after your arrival in the UK. For further details and a list of bilateral healthcare agreement countries, see: www.dh.gov.uk/en/Healthcare/Entitlementsandcharges/OverseasVisitors/Browsable/DH_074400.
Leaflets explaining your rights to NHS health care are available from Social Security offices, hospitals, doctors, dentists and opticians and from the Department of Health website: www.dh.gov.uk
You can download the UKCOSA guidance note Keeping Healthy at www.ukcisa.org.uk/student/information_sheets.phpm
Documents required for your journey
Certain documents are needed when you arrive at the airport in the UK, where you will be interviewed by immigration and health officials. It is therefore important that you bring with you:
- a valid passport, with a visa or UK entry clearance (if applicable)
- an air ticket
- vaccination certificates, if required
- an X-ray report, if required
- a letter of acceptance from your place of study
- documentary evidence that you have enough money to pay your tuition fees and accommodate yourself while studying (recent bank statements, proof of scholarship or sponsor’s letter)
- originals (or certified true copies) of any degree certificates or technical qualifications.
Make sure you keep the above documents and the following in your hand luggage:
- some warm clothing
- some British currency
- insurance documents
- a list of what you are carrying in your luggage in case you have to make an insurance claim
- any prescribed drugs or medicine you are taking, plus a letter from your doctor explaining what they are
- an address, telephone number and travel instructions to your final destination
- the First steps pre-departure pack
- a reference letter from your bank in Uganda – this will be useful when you come to open a bank account in the UK.
Money for immediate needs
You need to order British currency and travellers’ cheques and bring enough money to cover your immediate needs on your arrival in the UK, including customs charges, rail fares and any emergency expenses. About £200 should be enough, but if you have any family with you, you will need correspondingly more. If you are travelling to the UK from a country outside the EU and carrying more than 10,000 Euros you will need to declare this to customs.
It is also likely that you will have to pay a deposit for your accommodation before you move in. This is normally the equivalent of one month’s rent but it can be substantially more, depending on the type of accommodation you are renting. You will need to ensure that you have sufficient funds immediately available to cover this.
To check the banknotes used in the UK and for further information go to: www.bankofengland.co.uk.
Transfer of funds
If you are planning to transfer extra money to the UK you should arrange this before you leave Uganda.
Opening a bank account in the UK can take a few weeks. If you are on a course of six months or less, it is a good idea to open an account with a multinational bank before coming to the UK, especially if you can use its cash machines in the UK to withdraw money from your account. It is also useful to have a credit card that you can use in the UK. Otherwise bring any cash you need while you are here in the form of travellers’ cheques.
Checklist for your place of study
Once your preparations for arrival are complete, you should ask yourself the following questions:
- Have you received information on how to get to your place of study from the airport, and how much it will cost?
- Do you know exactly when and where you are supposed to arrive at your place of study?
- Have you told your place of study when you are likely to arrive?
- Do you have a 24-hour telephone number of someone you can contact at your place of study if you have problems on your journey?
- Do you have a contact when you arrive at your place of study or other meeting point, e.g. the railway station?
- Have you planned your journey from the point of entry to your final destination?
Arranging your arrival
When booking your travel, try and make sure you arrive at a time that will enable you to get a transfer to your institution or accommodation. Aim to arrive on a weekday (Monday – Friday), rather than at the weekend (Saturday and Sunday) or on a public holiday, and try to arrive in the morning; as trains, coaches and taxis may not run throughout the night and will give you time to reach your final destination and settle in during working hours when transportation links are most frequent and facilities such as banks and shops are open. This may mean that you travel through the night and arrive tired and slightly jet-lagged but it will help to make your onward journey easier.
Many students arrange their onward journey from the airport to their institution at the same time as they book their flight. A travel agent in Uganda may be able to help you do this. In this case, when you reach the UK you can continue your journey by following the instructions from your travel agent.
There are more than 40 airports in the UK, many of which fly to and from international destinations as well as providing internal flights within the UK. Most UK airports are served by their own rail station, with buses and coaches travelling from them to many local towns and other destinations. Speak to the international office at the school or college where you will be studying to find out how best to travel to your institution.
Registering with the Uganda High Commission
All Ugandan citizens are advised to register with the Uganda High Commission, London as soon as they settle in the UK. One of the core responsibilities of the High Commission is to deliver the best possible counsel to Ugandan citizens, who find themselves in an emergency situation in UK or are in need of the High Commission’s assistance for other reasons.
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