Sailendra pursued his Master's in Advanced Spectroscopy in Chemistry at Leipzig University. He found his programme via Studyportals. We asked Sailendra about his experience of searching and applying to a university abroad.
Tell us a bit about yourself. What is your name? How old are you? Where are you from?
My name is Sailendra Chaudhary, I'n 29 years old and I come from Nepal.
Where are you studying now? What university are you attending and what programme are you enrolled in? What degree are you pursuing and how long is your programme?
I study at Universität Leipzig, Germany. I'm currently enrolled in a Master's in Advanced Spectroscopy in Chemistry (Master ASC), in a 2-year programme.
Why did you want to study abroad?
There are different reasons why I chose to study abroad. Here are a few:
- It provided me an opportunity to travel around the world and learn different languages
- Allows us to know different cultures and different people
- Helps to develop new skills and also it enhances employment opportunities
- Helps us to build confidence\and to become an independent person
How did you find your study programme? Why did you choose this particular university? How did Studyportals help you?
I was looking for a Master's degree related to Analytical Chemistry. While searching the internet, I found Studyportals and, after that, I started looking for universities by using Studyportals.
I found the information about my programme from Studyportals, and then finally went to the programme official website. Studyportals really helped me to find the suitable programme out of thousands.
There are thousands of universities and programmes and it is difficult to find the right one, that you are really interested in. Moreover, Studyportals also provided me the detailed information about the programme, admission process, requirement, fees and deadlines.
Did you know about that university and/or programme before seeing it on Studyportals?
No. I got the first information from Studyportals and then from the official website of my programme.
On what stage of application were you using Studyportals? Did you miss any important information on Studyportals?
Studyportals helped me in the beginning, while searching for the suitable programme.
What were your main priorities when choosing your university and your programme (e.g. academics, accommodation, university services & facilities, personal & professional development, city & culture, cost & funding, practicalities, social life)?
My main priorities for choosing the university was the quality of the education it provides, then professional development, city and culture, university ranking and its reputation, cost and funding.
Was it your first study choice? What other universities did you consider? What was the main reason of your final choice?
My first study choice was my study interest. I had a clear vision that I wanted to do my Master's degree in this particular field/subject.
Actually, my programme offers a multiple diploma degree, from four other universities, in four different European countries, and we have to attend at least 2 universities in order to get the degree certificate. So, applying for this programme means applying to 5 universities at once.
The main reasons for applying to this programme were: quality education, exchange programme (multiple diploma), multicultural/multilingual experiences, professional development, scholarship opportunities and the good programme reputation.
Did you already know from the start that you wanted to study in that particular country and city? Why did you choose for this particular location?
No, I was not sure that I was going to study in this city or country. For me, the particular study location dis not count a lot. I came here because this university had the specific modules that I was interested in.
Did you take a language test (e.g. TOEFL, IELTS) when applying for the programme? If yes, which one did you choose, why and how was your experience with it?
Yes. I took the IELTS Test before applying for the programme because it was my admission requirement. All the lectures are also in English. My experience was really nice and I really feel that it also considerably increased my English knowledge. It also helped me build up my confidence level.
Book an IELTS test in your country!
What would be your advice for students from your country that consider studying abroad?
Due to the limited resources in our country, I would like to highly recommend students from my country to study abroad. But, before going abroad check detailed information about the programmes, place & university, cost & funding, future opportunities.
Moreover, I would also like to advise students to take language classes before going abroad (those coming from non-English speaking countries). It really helps you a lot in every way.
How did you finance your stay abroad and what financial advice would you give to future students?
As far as I am concerned, I received the scholarship from the programme. So, first try to get a scholarship. If you are not able to find scholarships, then you should have enough money for at least 1 year before going abroad.
There are some job opportunities here in Europe and it is possible to get a student job, which I think is enough to cover all your expenses. Still, it depends on your personal lifestyle.
Why would you (not) recommend this particular city / university? How would you rate your experience on a scale from zero to ten (0 – It was a total disaster, 10 – I had the time of my life)?
Leipzig is a beautiful city and the university is also good. There are more than 20,000 students currently enrolled in the university in different programmes. I like the place and university.
But it also depends on the faculty or the programme that you are interested in studying. So, from my personal experience, I would rate this university 8 out of 10.
Is there anything that you would do differently if you could do it over again?
It’s perfect and I am enjoying the university at the fullest. There is nothing that I could do differently.
What was the biggest surprise in your study abroad adventure?
The biggest surprise for me was the scholarship.
Were you inspired by the story of Sailendra?