Ever since I was a teenager, I knew I wanted to finish my master’s abroad. After I graduated from university in 2016, I took around a year before I started researching universities. I looked at universities in different countries, looked up scholarships, filled out forms, and so on. But nothing felt right, and it just didn’t feel like it would happen. Therefore, in 2019, I felt helpless, and with a heavy heart, I gave it up. After a few years, in 2022, the desire returned to me, and I started where I had left off. This time I was more determined; I knew this was the time I’d make it. Eventually, in 2023, with the help and guidance of the people around me, I settled on studying in the UK.
Just like anyone who plans to study abroad, I went through a lot of steps, having my bachelor’s certificate ready, making sure my papers were well-prepared and properly signed, getting ready for my IELTS exam, dealing with the bank, visa application and interview, contacting the university, and so on. All this took a few months, and yup, that is besides the waiting and the stress.
But through it all, yes, I was the one who went through it, I had a great support system, from my family to my friends and my bosses at work. Without their help, support, guidance, and encouragement, I wouldn’t be where I am today—sitting in Birmingham International Airport, waiting for my flight to take me home after finishing my studies.
The course I took was one year, but the whole process: researching, applying, paperwork, the study itself, and graduation spanned more than a year. I started considering it in 2022, and now it’s 2025 as I wait to graduate in the summer. However, I find myself very blessed to have been surrounded by incredible individuals who ensured I reached one of the biggest dreams I’d ever had! People who made sure I got everything right, provided me with everything that I needed, told me encouraging words when I was down, and made me laugh on my gloomy days. I am forever grateful for their presence in my life.
During the past year, not only did I gain academic knowledge, but I also went through a lot. I felt new things, met people from other countries, and made new friends. I can’t say it was all happy and joyous. Being away from everyone and everything you know is difficult, the amount of homesickness pouring out of me was overwhelming, but with time, I get used to it. I had ups and downs, but the good definitely outweighed the bad. I got stressed over my studies and cried over my assignments, but eventually, I figured them out.
Many people talk about culture shock when moving to a new place, but I believe that with the internet, this has less effect. The world is literally in our hands with our smart devices. So my biggest challenge was not culture shock; rather, it was academic shock, a term of my own creation. Everything was new, from transitioning from the Iraqi education system to the British one and from bachelor’s level to master’s. It took me some time to get used to navigating what felt very foreign to me. But nothing is impossible. Another thing I found very interesting was that UK homes have small entrance doors. A year later, this still amuses me.
I think my biggest takeaway from this is that if God places a desire so strong in your heart that you return to it even after giving up, then He has written it for you; don’t give up. And if things don’t work out right away, maybe something better is waiting for you. I know I sound cliché, but I’m speaking from personal experience. I’m glad I didn’t succeed the previous times I tried because what I got was better than what I had been working for. Also, as Finneas once said, “If I say cliché, it’s ’cause I mean it.”
I have said it before, and I’m going to say it again: dream big! Nothing is impossible. And remember, things can get difficult and tiring, so you have to be prepared and strong for whatever you face when working toward your goals. The sky’s the limit (literally flying while writing this haha).
This is the end of another beautiful chapter in my life, and I have decided that this will be my last stop in academic life. But I’m not counting on that, maybe in the future, I’ll change my mind and apply for a PhD. But for now, I’m closing everything related to studying and getting back to teaching. Hopefully, I can inspire the little ones beyond the academic aspect and encourage them to dare to dream big.
Dlvan's Thoughts 
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