What should students of similar backgrounds of identity as you be aware of before travelling or studying abroad in Scotland?
Photo provided by Adwoa Aboah
When I decided to study abroad in the UK, I was so excited at the possibility of travelling Europe as it is something I have always wanted to do. I clearly did not do my research extensively enough and found that with a Ghanaian passport and the type of visa I am on in the UK, I will not be able to travel Europe or apply for a Schengen visa from the United Kingdom. I wish I had known this earlier so that I would have applied for the visa before arriving in the UK. This really opened my eyes into how extremely hard it is travelling anywhere with an African passport as I realized that a lot of my African friends were in similar positions. We spend so much money on visas and trying to prove that we will return to our countries. So many people from western countries do not have to do that because it is generally believed that these places are so great to live that anyone who leaves will definitely return. Whereas apparently everyone in countries such as those in Africa is running away. This makes travelling and experiencing the world extremely difficult and expensive for us.