Student life outside the classroom

There is more to student life than lectures and books; it’s about the experiences you have outside of the classroom too.

Praveen, from Singapore, is now studying International Law at the University of Birmingham.

He talks about his time in London, and life as an international student away from home.

Why did you choose to study in London?

Once I finished high school, I joined the army. I trained with the military police and this is where I learnt about law.

From there, my desire and passion to study law begun, and I knew it was what I wanted to in the future: to experience student life.

I decided to study Law at university, but I couldn’t do it in Singapore as I didn’t quite achieve my high school grades – you need really high grades to do Law in Singapore.

So I did some research online and came across INTO London and realised this place is affiliated with many universities which I thought was ideal.

I had lots of options, and I was offered a foundation course in Law, which would help me get into a UK university as long as I worked hard. No problem!

Student life in London

INTO London is located right in the heart of the City of London.

I chose to come live and study in London as it is a stepping-stone for me.

When you live in a capital city, you see different cultures and experience the busy lifestyle. I love the fast vibe of London.

Singapore is the same, a busy, bustling city so I didn’t really miss home.

When I finish my degree, I want to live in a big city. My dreams give me inspiration to work harder and reach my goals.

London is such a fun city, there is so much to do.”

There are loads of places to go, like Camden and Shoreditch; and there are a lot of cool markets here where you can buy clothes and food.

Food-wise, London is amazing.

There are loads of great places to eat with your friends, which I would highly recommend.

London is so multicultural; it caters to different nationalities. You can eat Turkish, Indian, Chinese or Georgian food to just name a few. Anything you can think of!

Just Google what you’re after and trust me, you will find it.

Social activities outside of class

The student services team at INTO London are really great. They organise social activities for students outside of the classroom, so it is not all work, work, work.

Student Services are fantastic. I had a really good time with all the events and activities they organised for us.

The staff members on the team were so good to me also. One of the team members was like a mum to me.

They are always there for you to talk about your problems if you’re under stress.

The centre has a very relaxed atmosphere about it, with a lot of areas where you can hang out, so this does make it nice to just chill out with friends.

I often used to pop by the welcome desk at INTO and chat with the Student Services team, as they are so nice and always up for conversations.

One of the things we did with Student Services was to have Iftar with the students and staff during Ramadan.

We all came together to cook food and break our fast.

It was so nice, it felt like we were all a big family and I really got to know people.”

We also went to Thorpe park, which was really good fun.

I was super scared before going as I am scared of rollercoasters, but it was a great day out.

By the end of the day, we were all exhausted!

Life outside the classroom is really great, and it is important to have a good balance between study and play.”

INTO London organise plenty of social events for you, all you need to do is tell them your ideas. So don’t worry about finding activities to fill your time outside of the classroom.

I’ve made some great, lifelong friends here, who I met at the very first social event I attended.

It is a really good opportunity to meet other people outside of your class, so I would highly recommend for you to check out some of the activities INTO will organise – you never know who you might meet!

Do you have any advice for international students on how to enjoy life outside the classroom? We’d love to hear your thoughts – write them in the comments section below. 

Find out more about student life and studying at INTO London on our website, and connect with the student community on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

For great videos about studying abroad and life as a student in London, head over to our YouTube channel.