"So, I heard you're considering the UK"

UK is one of the top countries that Malaysians consider to pursue their studies in, mainly because it is more affordable compared to the U.S. or it's part of the commonwealth countries, so getting your documents ready and approved should be fairly more convenient too.

I hope you're not thinking that everything's easy. There's still the student UKVisa to apply for, a university to consider, living expenses and more. But I'll not talk about these yet, let me start with a light and easy topic.

Stereotypes. (And misconceptions)


1. Accents
Not everybody in the UK has a posh British accent that you hear in Sherlock or from Tom Hiddleston. Like Malaysia, every part of the UK has their own unique accents. For example, London or southerners have that normal British accent you hear, whereas in the north, (from where I am which is Teesside) they have different accents like Georde accent, Newcastle accent etc. It's still comprehensible for us, we just need some time to interpret. The locals will understand. (I hope)

2. The British love their tea.
Yes. And coffee but mostly, alcohol. The only nightlife you'll find is either going to the pub for a drink, or dancing in a club. Although they do have 24 hour eateries (MCD *wink wink), you may find it hard to look for a place to "yamcha" (hang out for a casual drink) at night. Yup, in Malaysia we can talk through the night at a mamak, but in the UK, you'd find more drinkers than chatter boxes.

3. British weather is gloomy, wet and miserable.
Not exactly. It depends on where you are as usual. In Middlesbrough (the town where Teesside University is in), you'd get days with sunshine and blue skies, but some days it'll drizzle for the entire day. So just like Malaysia, you'll get sunny days and rainy days too.

4. Fish and Chips
It's like the national food right? Yeah, though they don't eat it at a daily basis (of course they don't I'm just joking!). Truth be told, UK food can't be compared with Malaysian food. You'll find that the flavours are not as strong and savoury as Asian food. Nevertheless, in Middlesbrough, they still have wonderful Italian restaurants for Western food lovers, Mediterranean food and Chinese restaurants for people who miss a bit of home. Don't worry, you'll still get to eat some fish and chips.

5. Everything here is more expensive than Malaysia.
Nope. Certain food are definitely cheaper here. For example, cheese, berries, alcohol and frozen pizza. Yeap, frozen pizza. It's only £1 (around RM6) for a 6-8 inch pizza from Iceland, or throw in a few more pence for a nicer tasting frozen pizza.

So that's a few common perceptions we Asians have towards the UK, I will go through them in detail soon. Until then, I hope this helps in clearing up some basic thoughts about the UK. See you in the next post!