The University of Sheffield
SSiD

Preparing For Your Departure

For many of you, your time in Sheffield is drawing to an end. There are a lot of things for you to consider as you get ready to leave this country and, although most of you will be preoccupied with examinations and thoughts of graduation, the sooner you start preparing for your departure, the better. This way you will avoid a last minute panic. To help organise your departure, here are some practical considerations for you:-

BUDGET FOR YOUR DEPARTURE

Be aware of end of year expenses:

MAKE TRAVEL AND SHIPPING ARRANGEMENTS

SETTLING YOUR FINANCIAL AFFAIRS AND NOTIFICATION OF LEAVING

BANK ACCOUNTS

ACCOMMODATION

BILLS

RENTALS

YOU MUST SETTLE ALL BILLS AND DEBTS BEFORE LEAVING THE UK.
CHECK THAT YOU HAVE NO DEBTS TO THE UNIVERSITY AS YOU MAY NOT BE ALLOWED TO GRADUATE WITH DEBTS.

RECLAIMING MONEY

You might be able to receive refunds on the following:

VAT REFUNDS

Before you finally leave the UK at the end of your studies, you MAY be entitled to a VAT refund on certain goods, provided they have been purchased within the last 3 months of your stay here AND have been purchased from a retailer who operates the scheme. (They usually advertise that they do so.)

(This does not apply to EC residents unless they are leaving the EC for good.)

For more detailed information, please refer to two booklets:

Both are available for REFERENCE from the Student Services Information Desk or the Student Advice Centre or HM Customs & Excise web site:

www.hmce.gov.uk

LEAVE A FORWARDING ADDRESS

You may wish to leave a forwarding address/your home address to a number of people whether to keep in touch or to receive correspondence:

MISCELLANEOUS

CHILDREN WITH YOU IN THE UK

I have completed my studies in the UK. My children are at school here and I do not want to disrupt their studies. Can we stay here until they finish their education?

However, you and your children may be allowed to stay here just long enough to complete the current school year or to sit an important examination in the near future.

For further advice and information, contact the Student Advice Centre. Tel. 0114 222 8660 email: advice@sheffield.ac.uk

It will be great to get back home – wont it?

Many of you are probably packing your bags and heading back home for the next stage of your career. You may be imagining how wonderful it will be to be home again, how everyone is gong to be so excited to see you, just longing to hear you tell them all about your experiences here, your new ideas, skills and knowledge.

It may surprise you to know that for some people, returning home can be almost as difficult as settling into a foreign country. This phenomenon is sometimes called return shock or reverse culture shock. If you have not been away from home for long or have been home for many visits, the shock might not be too profound. However, if you haven't been home for some time, you may be surprised to find how much things have changed in your home country, how your friends and family have changed. And maybe you yourself have changed more than you think.

Things have changed

While you have been away, things have developed and evolved at home. You have not been part of these changes and may feel uncomfortable and left out of them. It may be difficult to fit into the spaces left for you by others in new set-ups, routines and relationships.

You have changed

There is a great deal of evidence to show that living abroad gives younger students maturity, generally broadens the experiences, ideas and awareness and, in some way, changes everyone. While you have been away, most of you have been exposed to new ideas, experiences and points of view. You are bound to have been affected by this exposure in some subtle (or not so subtle!) ways. This may not become apparent even to you until you are back in your natural environment. Those changes that seemed negligible and subtle in Sheffield may be glaringly obvious once you get home.

Your new ideas, perhaps new-found independence and maturity, may be difficult for your friends and family to deal with.

Family, friends, colleagues and employers may be less impressed and interested than you expect in hearing about you new knowledge and experiences. This can be hurtful and leave you feeling cut off from the life you led here.

What can you do about it?

Well, firstly you should be aware and expect some kind of difference or shock. Keep in touch with friends you make here, join the Alumni Association to keep up with University news. Look for other people near home who have just returned from overseas to share the experience with. Try to be positive about it and view the return as a learning experience. From situations in which you feel shock, surprise or discomfort, you may be able to learn something about culture in Britain, your home country and about yourself.

Keeping in touch

As a graduate of the University of Sheffield you will join many thousands before you and we hope that you keep in touch with us, ensuring we hold your most up to date contact details at all times. The Development and Alumni Relations are about to commence production of a new magazine for alumni so we can keep you up to date with developments at Sheffield. You can view the alumni web pages and update your contact details at:

http://www.shef.ac.uk/alumni

International Office staff visit many countries around the world every year and we always welcome meeting alumni, individually, in groups or with relevant Sheffield Alumni Associations. To find out more and to see if well be visiting your country, do visit:

http://www.shef.ac.uk/international/countries

Alumni Rewards

As part of our commitment to international students we are currently offering alumni rewards to all students who graduate from the University of Sheffield and are eligible to pay overseas tuition fees. The rewards take the form of a fee reduction. For more details see: Alumni Rewards