Ready, Set...Go to Oxford

In exactly a month and a half, I will be heading to Oxford, UK, for my MBA studies. Another dream - checked off from my list. There is definitely a lot of excitement about the prospects, but how much I will miss Singapore - All the wonderful friends and great tangy food. I had a wonderful time in Singapore - tonnes of learning from my colleagues, exposure at regional level, and of course great night-out parties with friends.

That said, I am hearing from our alumni that Oxford is a great place to be - especially for its BOPS (read parties), travelling, and networking. Hopefully, I won't miss the Singapore that I love so much - A perfect confluence of East and West.

Parties & Meet-ups
I had the opportunity to meet some of my future class-mates/alumni at the pre-course parties and meet-ups. To describe them in two words - 'Just overwhelmed'. The diversity is amazing - Students from Economics, Finance, Entrepreneurship, IT, and the list goes on. Never in my life have I had the opportunity to meet such a diversified group. I am really excited to connect and meet with each one of them. Currently, I am doing my case interview preparation with a fellow MBA student from Estonia. Every business case that we try to solve gives us a new perspective - How do we tackle competition, how do we increase profits, are our assumptions correct?, etc. Aside from that, we discuss the state of economy in Asia and in Europe. I had always thought only Ireland provides considerable tax benefits for corporates. Apparently, Estonia has similar tax benefits and provides some excellent perquisites for start-ups.

Pre-course Preparation
While the official pre-couse preparation starts only in September, students have already started planning and taking action on a number of activities - A.T. Kearney Global case competition, CVs and Profiles, Business Cards, Dress & Suits, Cross-Fit Training, Oxford Marathon, and so forth. We have also compiled a list of books to read for core courses such as Finance and Economics. I can say with confidence that everyone is steamed up to make a difference.

Visa &a Tickets
Getting a tier-4 visa was relatively easier than I had thought. I applied for a priority service on Thursday and got my Visa on Tuesday, the following week. The documentation and evidence is collected by VFS. They provide excellent customer service and guidance through the entire process. Students flying from India can get student discount offers from British Airways and a few others. These offers provide for additional baggage allowances and some perquisites. British Airways provided me additional 23kg baggage allowance, an exclusive membership, and additional miles equivalent to London-Zurich return.

If there is anything to take away, try to get the visa done by August. The last minute hiccups are for no one's liking...and if you are showing Fixed Deposit as proof for funding, make sure that the bank statement includes "statement from date". We need to show that the money has been held in your (or parent's) account for 28 days.

The last one-month was filled with loads of positive news for me - finalized loan proceeds with my local bank and got my Tier-4 Student Visa. A major chunk of work is done - I am in Ready, Set... Go Mode!

Full Disclosure: I wrote this post for Prodigy Finance blog

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