Mbbs In UK
Living in United Kingdom
You will find this section a useful guide to living in the United Kingdom such the UK Accommodation, Travel, Health etc.
Accommodation In UK
UK towns and cities have long experience of providing homes for students and there are many affordable, comfortable and safe places to live.
Finding Accommodation
You should always try to arrange your long-term accommodation before you leave home. Your institution should be able to help you with this. Colleges have student advisers who can advise you on how to find accommodation and universities have accommodation officers.
When you accept a study place, you should receive a package of information, which will include accommodation information. Complete the accommodation application form and return it by the date stated. Even if residential accommodation is not available, there will be an accommodation advisory office which can help you find private accommodation.
If you are coming to the UK for the first time, accommodation provided by your school, college or university might be the most suitable choice. This is an option taken up by more than half of the international students on degree courses in the UK and around 30 % of those who come to FE colleges.
There are advantages to living in accommodation provided by your institution:
- You usually live close to where you are studying
- You get to know other students easily
- You are likely to spend less time traveling, so you have time to get to know the local area
- You will be living in a safe and secure environment.
Communication in UK
Telephone Services
Public telephones in the UK can be coin operated or card operated. To use a card- operated phone, you need either a credit card or a special, pre-paid phonecard. Phonecards come in values of £2, £5, £10 and £20 and you can buy them from newsagents, post offices and supermarkets.
Before you dial, pick up the receiver and listen for dialing tone. After you dial, if the number you want is available, you will hear a repeated double ring. If it is busy, you will hear the engaged tone – a repeated single note. If a number is unavailable, you will hear a steady tone. When your money or card is about to run out, you will hear a series of rapid beeps.
Low Cost Calling
Calling from a private phone is significantly cheaper than calling from a public phone. Inland calls (calls within the UK) are cheapest between 06.00 p.m. and 08.00 a.m. International calls are cheapest between 08.00 p.m. and 08.00 a m. There are also reduced rates on weekends.
A number of different companies now offer pre-paid or account-based phone cards, many of which are aimed at people who need to make international calls. Compare cards carefully as rates differ. In some cases, making your international calls using one of these cards could work out cheaper than using the main phone service provider.
Shopping In UK
Supermarkets are usually open on Monday to Saturday from 08.00 or 09.00 a.m. to 06.00 or 08.00 p.m. In larger cities, you will find more and more supermarkets open twenty-four hours a day. Many are also open on Sundays from around 10.00 a.m. to 05.00 or 06.00 p.m. Smaller food shops are often closed on Sundays and may close earlier or later on other days. (See also the ‘Food’ section.)
If you come from a country with a very different climate, you may also need to buy some clothing when you get here. Clothing shops, shoe shops and department stores are usually open on Monday to Saturday from 09.00 a.m. to 05.30 or 06.00 p.m. Department stores sell clothing plus such household goods as bed-linen, towels, clocks and/or kitchen utensils.
Libraries In UK
Your college or university will have its own library, but the local public library can be a useful resource as well. You can read and study there, borrow books and other items, get access to the Internet using public computer terminals, and find information on local history, services and social events.
Food In UK
Contemporary UK cooking offers a mouth-watering variety of foods, drawing on e menu of international styles and culinary traditions. British cuisine has changed drastically the past few decades. Chinese, Indian, Italian and French cuisine is now as popular in the UK as the typical culinary traditions of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi restaurants have been joined by Lebanese, Persian, Indonesian, Spanish, Mexican, and Thai restaurants in most cities.
As the UK has welcomed people from all over the world, it has also imported their culinary styles, foods, sauces and recipes. Where once you might have or thought fish and chips, you can now choose, tortillas, curries. Supermarkets offer vegetables, fruit, spices and other ingredients from all over the world, and numerous smaller shops specialize in international foods.
Health In UK
You will find this section a useful guide to living in the United Kingdom such the UK Accommodation, Travel, Health etc.
As an international student, you, your spouse and any children who accompany you to the UK as your dependents, may be entitled to free or subsidized treatment under the UK’s National Health Service (NHS). If you are studying on a full-time course in Scotland, you will receive this benefit regardless of the length of your course. Elsewhere in the UK, you will receive this benefit if your course lasts more than six months
Registering with a Doctor
To receive any kind of treatment through the NHS, you must be registered with a doctor or General Practitioner (GP). GP’s are doctors who are trained and experienced in diagnosing a wide range of health problems. If your school, college or university has a health centre, you may be able to register with a doctor there or they may be able to recommend a local doctor or GP.
