First Contact

Dear London,

Today, I had an email waiting in my inbox that sent a shiver up my spine. It was a very basic email, so the idea that it did fill me with such excitement was outstanding. The email is as follows:

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Greetings from Kingston.

We are preparing for the academic year ahead, and both a reading list and letter of welcome will be reaching you shortly. In the meantime, here are a couple of quick announcements to help you get ready.

1. As you know, the classes for MA Publishing take place on Mondays and Tuesdays. The course will however begin with a week long module that offers an introduction to the industry, featuring the kind of opportunities publishers respond to and a whistle-stop tour of what tends to happen and in what order. This will take place in the week beginning 26th September, when you will need to be in Kingston every day (the week will conclude with group presentations as part of the module assignment).

2. The Marketing Module in semester two will require you to have read Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier. We are letting you know now as this is a great summer read!

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I have cut out the signature, on behalf of the privacy of the person who filled me with joy. But, now you can see from where my excitement has risen. While I am apprehensive about a group project in the first week on publishing, I am very excited about the sneak peek of the reading list. After reading the second piece of the email, I went on amazon and ordered the book Rebecca and have placed it on my summer reading list. I would be very interested for them to release the rest of the reading list so I could see into the future. Though, I do have the intention of finding who my author tutors will be in the coming year and read one of their books over this summer - just for a little background.

That is all for now, which is good that it was more on the positive than on the negative.

Italy: 2009, Photographer: Kristin Bergene

xx, Kristin

Order of Events

Dear London,

I now believe I know what order I need to do things in, I just need deadlines. Hopefully tomorrow several emails will arrive and give me dates - and perhaps a checklist - of what I need to accomplish. For now though, here is what order I believe things need to be done in...

1. Student Space - I need to log onto Student Space so I can check the daily listings on flats. This cannot be done until I hear from the tech office and they give me a new password into my account - which should be tomorrow morning.
2. Find a Flat - Something that Stacey, Ruthie and I agree on and fits our needs. Phillipa said she would look at a falt for us, if we found something we really liked. This is also needed for the CAS and the Visa with a UK address.
3. Get Loans - Have the money safely place in my account, or at least okay through the university. There is little I can do before I have the money in my bank.
4. Put Payment on the Flat - Which I need the loans for, and the location.
5. Pay for Tuition - At least 50% of my tuition, but I think I will pay in full. This way it is out of the way and they can include that on my CAS.
6. CAS - Apply for my CAS, which I can do after June 20th, once I have a UK address and my tuition is paid.
7. Visa - Apply for Visa, which I can do after I get my CAS.
8. Appointment for Visa - Schedule an appointment, which comes at the end of the Visa application. This is where I bring in my biometrics, which is the paperwork and identification that complets the application process.
9. Buy Plane Ticket - This is going to depend on a few things, like whether or not I want to wait for my visa to come through. One thing I know for certain is that it will be a one-way ticket, because I literally have no idea when I will be coming home. AND, while I was aiming for September 4th, I think I will have to wait for the following weekend... which is September 11th. Though, I don't know how I feel about that either, maybe I will do September 10th instead?
10. Shopping Trip - I am also planning a shopping trip where I find several new outfits that can interchange. This is so I can pack a little amount of clothing. I am also planning on donating most of my clothes before I head overseas, after I go shopping.

That is the plan, but like I said before I have no dates for anything. Somewhere in between I hope to have time to work on my writing abilities, so I can start the year strong. Also, I would like make time to see my family before I move to London for 10-ish months.

AND this is yet another boring post by me and this process, only made better by the following SURPRISE picture...

Amsterdam: Fall 2009, Photographer: Kristin Bergene

xx, Kristin

Loans - FAFSA

Dear London,

Not that I feel like is it entirely appropriate to talk about money in a public setting, I do want to make a note on my loan process, because this is a very difficult thing for me to accomplish. It could be just me, but I have heard many complaints from many people about taking out loans. Yes, I have filled out my application, but when I go to the website it will not let me look at the actual application that I have filled out. It says I need to update my Adobe, SO I did that, but I still cannot see the document. I used their online chat for help, and the sum of all the answers I received was: Ask your university... Which obviously made me wonder what questions they were there to answer.

Now I have sent a follow up email to someone at Kingston University, basically telling him I am useless. I am hoping that by telling him what I want for my Stafford loan and my PLUS loan we can begin the beginning of the end of this process. I know exactly how much I would like to have in my bank account before I head overseas, I just need someone to put it in there. I feel like it should be that simple, don't they want the profit of my interest on these giant loans?

There is also a debate raging in my head of what order this is all supposed to happen. When do I find housing? I need to know how much I will be paying monthly for a flat, so I can add that onto the final amount of my loan request. I also need to have the money in my account and an address in the United Kingdom when trying to apply for my Visa. Not to mention, I need the CAS letter for my visa, which I will not get until I finish all the work for my loans. AND I need to have my visa before I head overseas, which I would like to do sooner than later so I can find a place to live... I should really draw this out in a circle digram, so I can map out the craziness of this process. It makes me wonder if I am the only one stuck in this trap of deadline and prerequisites.

I hope not.

Anyway, as a person I do need to relax and let things role as they should. I am just really afraid that I will miss something and not be able to go this year. I would be heartbroken. Right now, I just have to wait to hear back from the university from that email. More than anything, I hope they get back to me within this week so that I can move onto the next step.

And as a complete side-note, none of this is made easier with the loss of my best friend and dog for the last 13 years, Kochanie. I feel like if I could just cuddle with her for awhile, I would calm down and de-stress. I miss her so much...

For now, I am going to try and breath.

Somewhere between Belgium and Amsterdam: Fall 2009, Photographer: Kristin Bergene

xx, Kristin

Visa - Tier 4.

Dear London,

I thought it would be important to post the Visa application process that I have gone through up to this point. Applying for a Visa is nothing I have done before, not even when I was a study abroad student. The reason is that as a study abroad student, you are allowed to remain in the United Kingdom for less than six months without a Visa. However, it is important to note that you cannot work without a visa, so that did hinder acquiring an income while abroad.

In this process, so far, I have made many - educational - mistakes. At the time of my error, it was very stressful trying to solve the mess I made for myself and I had very little assistance. I spent spent my efforts online, trying to fix it, only to be more confused.

So, below I am outlining the steps I have taken, including the mistakes...

Applied for Visa:

1. Logged into - http://www.visa4uk.fco.gov.uk/ - to apply for my Visa: Teir 4.
2. Made an appointment to show my biometrics (passport, letter, bank statement, etc...)
3. Paid the fee - $433 with my debit card

Realized I applied for my Visa too soon:

1. Frantically searched the internet - there was a very expensive phone call I could have made - to see how I can cancel my application and get back my money, as I was not willing to pay for my visa twice. I discovered from an email by World Bridge, that if I left my online application alone, and did not attend my scheduled appointment, the application would stop processing and I would be applicable for a refund. The reason the application would stop processing is because they would not have the biometrics to complete said-application.
2. Sent an email requesting a refund for the whole $433, while also having my bank also request a refund by letter - love my bank.
3. Then, I waited.

Found the correct time & way to begin applying for my Visa:

1. Kingston informed me that I cannot apply till June, because I needed to request a CAS letter (Conformation of Acceptance to Study) from their campus and it would only last for 3 months - I think.
2. So, I waited till June 9 when I put in an request for a CAS letter through Osis, to which they responded that they will process my request ASAP (As Soon As Possible).
3. Now, I am waiting.

Currently, I am trying not to panic as I wait for this CAS letter to come through. Everything will work out as it needs to, and I must spend more of my panic energy time on FAFSA right now (should be hearing from them by tomorrow). My biggest fear is that I will not have a visa ready by the time I go over, but maybe it would not be a big deal if it comes in later than I arrive? Once the CAS letter goes through I'll have to reapply for my application again.

Anyway, I am learning a bit from this process, which is why I found this blog important to keep earlier than the last one. Between Visa, FAFSA, housing and everything else that I am required to do on an independent level, I believe it is important to record it in case I ever decide to do this again. Though, the fact that I will be filling out an visa application twice may make the process stick in my mind.

Here is another random pictures from Study Abroad 2009.

View from the Effile Tower: Paris, 2009. Photographer: Kristin Bergene

xx, Kristin

Prepare.

Dear London,

Unlike last time, I thought I'd keep track of the process before I leave the country - even though I've yet to announce the existence of this blog. It would have been really helpful if past me had left a checklist or guide of what to do in order to become an international student. All I remember from that time, is loads of paperwork and the assistant of a great home base at Oneonta State and a great foreign base in the Study Abroad International Student office at Kingston University. Now, I have very little paperwork - other than the stuff I've printed on my own which is generally useless - and no support from a home base. It is very difficult for me to figure out the right questions to ask to see if I am on the right direction, but I might start with...

Hello, I am looking for a giant checklist to make sure my international student process goes smoothly. You know, a list of when and what I have to do before I am allowed to come to your University. For example, this whole Visa business... you know, I didn't need one last time.

But beyond Visa's - note: I am applying for Tier 4 - I am trying to work out FAFSA and loans. I have no clue how much I am going to need for 10 months abroad. The numbers I have crunched and the numbers they have crunched differ by $20,000, which is a huge difference of opinions. My mom says to pick the middle, so that's what I am planning on doing... but I don't know how.

My biggest problem at the moment, is that I don't have time to figure out and charm the system. After quitting my job at The Freeman's Journal because of my hours being cut, I now have more hours than I know what to do with - which is great for a piece of the loan situation. Ah well, there are worse things I could complain about. So, for my own benefit, the following is a list of what I need to accomplish...

1. apply for Visa - appointment, CAS letter, biometrics, etc...
2. figure out FAFSA - how much to take out, how to take out, how soon I can take out, etc...
3. find housing - which is just a bunch of questions - live with Phillipa again still I can find a place, live with Ruthie/Stacey, live on campus, live off campus, how much???
4. buy plane ticket and transportation to the airport - do I buy one way, just in case?
5. packing - need my drugs, clothes, toiletries, etc to fit in one suitcase and last 10+ months...

... And all while keeping up my writing ability, finishing my book, illustration, working, working, working, and trying not to explode from overwhelming stress. BUT HEY, in early September I will be somewhere between here and there, traveling to my home for the next - almost - year and that only 3ish months away. I am planning on leaving work two weeks before the end of August, so that I can go on a little vacation with my sister and hopefully other family, then have one week off to pack, think and get stuff done and then head out to LONDON-TOWN.

With optimism in mind, I will now post a random picture, that I have allowed computer to select, from my last experience as a token of my ambition and a moment of remembrance.

Abbey: Wales, 2009. Photographer: Kristin Bergene

Also, I leave you with this thought: When you leave many behind to achieve what lies ahead, remember that we are all striving for success, but only the individual can declare when success has been had. Do not let others prevent you, as much as you would not attempt to prevent them.

xx, Kristin