Next step
Hi again - it's been a while but things have moved on a pace. What can I say? Phew. The university has accepted my proposal - so here's what has to happen next on this complicated road to becoming a Dr. and having those illustrious letters PhD after my name and thus make me more employable in the world of academia.
The thing of course about being a foreigner in a new land, is that it is very difficult to make forays in the work place, especially, as I'm starting from scratch, and am funding this all privately. But here's where we are.
Firstly - Enrolling in the mechanisms of being an international student.
The thing that I was completely unprepared for is this little and very important thing called 'Detailed Academic Transcripts'. When I was asked for this - I nearly jacked it all in on the spot. Having just got back from SF, I had this awful sense of horror that I'd have to wait another eight months (how long it took to get my certificate for my Masters over here) and how was I going to go back 5 years to get my transcripts for my Bachelors Degree? But surprisingly, this was not difficult. Of course the US wanted more money to part with this information, but the UK was /is quite happy to send it off. It's not something that is given if not asked for, but once asked for, it is seen, and quite rightly so in my estimation, as your right as a student wishing to progress and continue with education. Needless to say, I went in on the defensive, and suggested that it was their duty in the US, not to encourage foreign students, unless they could realise that not every foreign student wants to stay in the US, and that they have an obligation to the customer! But anyway, there's really no problem on that score, so that's a relief, and then there is the other complication - have I got evidence of residency in this country? Well, here's the difficulty, in order to get a Student Visa/Permit, I need to have registered and paid up at the university, but in order to enroll at the university, I have to have proof of residency- now there's a conundrum. One would think that this might have been thought through further, but it came down to having a letter from the university, saying that they will not be able to accept my registration without residency proof, which I then take to immigration.....I've yet to work out what that all amounts to, but I'll let you know. It strikes me as a rather complicated bureaucracy, that doesn't seem to amount to much. Maybe thiswould make more sense to someone who is applying from out of the country, or is being sponsored or looking once again, to have permanent residency in the country on the strength of their education here. The upshot seems to be that someone like me who is travelling through privately funded education, is a suspect character. Is it a sign of the suspicious times we live in , or is something that really makes sense to people? Do I need to represent my country and stay local or nationalized. Ironically, of course, my desire is to involve citizens of the world into a project of great intimacy and to take it global, to see what are the real similarities, differences. All the reading I seem to get my hands on, is becoming very familiar with different slants, but my experience of people is that there is something very other going on. I'm viewed with suspicion, as I view others ; I'm viewed with interest, as I view others. It's not that easy to assimilate, and that's what is so fascinating. I don't want to view from a distance, but I can only respond to that which I am confronted with.
Secondly - Working and finding people to work with.
I have only one word to say to anybody about this - Volunteer! Only in the last two/three weeks, has this become the pivotal moment of changing my life here. After a year in my books, I can now say that I know about three times as many people and have found spaces to work with and people who want to engage. Admittedly, much of the work is organised by people who have similar backgrounds to me, but I'm confident that things are going to change subtly and magnificently. And so, I'm beginning to make my own work again, as well as continuing the writing and doing all this bureaucratic shannanigans.
Since I'm somewhat convinced that nobody is reading this website at the moment, I thought I'd just add in a few images of some of the work I"m making at the moment. Just as a record for myself and see what it looks like in the form of documentation and cataloging. At the moment I'm focusing the complex problems of genital mutilation, and I feel like I need to become more familiar with legislations and statistics of all these different countries. I"m not sure if I have the tenacity for this , but I'd better give it a go. I think the first step for this is to start showing my work publicly and then to get the discussion going and hopefully, as they say, the cream will rise to the top.
The thing of course about being a foreigner in a new land, is that it is very difficult to make forays in the work place, especially, as I'm starting from scratch, and am funding this all privately. But here's where we are.
Firstly - Enrolling in the mechanisms of being an international student.
The thing that I was completely unprepared for is this little and very important thing called 'Detailed Academic Transcripts'. When I was asked for this - I nearly jacked it all in on the spot. Having just got back from SF, I had this awful sense of horror that I'd have to wait another eight months (how long it took to get my certificate for my Masters over here) and how was I going to go back 5 years to get my transcripts for my Bachelors Degree? But surprisingly, this was not difficult. Of course the US wanted more money to part with this information, but the UK was /is quite happy to send it off. It's not something that is given if not asked for, but once asked for, it is seen, and quite rightly so in my estimation, as your right as a student wishing to progress and continue with education. Needless to say, I went in on the defensive, and suggested that it was their duty in the US, not to encourage foreign students, unless they could realise that not every foreign student wants to stay in the US, and that they have an obligation to the customer! But anyway, there's really no problem on that score, so that's a relief, and then there is the other complication - have I got evidence of residency in this country? Well, here's the difficulty, in order to get a Student Visa/Permit, I need to have registered and paid up at the university, but in order to enroll at the university, I have to have proof of residency- now there's a conundrum. One would think that this might have been thought through further, but it came down to having a letter from the university, saying that they will not be able to accept my registration without residency proof, which I then take to immigration.....I've yet to work out what that all amounts to, but I'll let you know. It strikes me as a rather complicated bureaucracy, that doesn't seem to amount to much. Maybe thiswould make more sense to someone who is applying from out of the country, or is being sponsored or looking once again, to have permanent residency in the country on the strength of their education here. The upshot seems to be that someone like me who is travelling through privately funded education, is a suspect character. Is it a sign of the suspicious times we live in , or is something that really makes sense to people? Do I need to represent my country and stay local or nationalized. Ironically, of course, my desire is to involve citizens of the world into a project of great intimacy and to take it global, to see what are the real similarities, differences. All the reading I seem to get my hands on, is becoming very familiar with different slants, but my experience of people is that there is something very other going on. I'm viewed with suspicion, as I view others ; I'm viewed with interest, as I view others. It's not that easy to assimilate, and that's what is so fascinating. I don't want to view from a distance, but I can only respond to that which I am confronted with.
Secondly - Working and finding people to work with.
I have only one word to say to anybody about this - Volunteer! Only in the last two/three weeks, has this become the pivotal moment of changing my life here. After a year in my books, I can now say that I know about three times as many people and have found spaces to work with and people who want to engage. Admittedly, much of the work is organised by people who have similar backgrounds to me, but I'm confident that things are going to change subtly and magnificently. And so, I'm beginning to make my own work again, as well as continuing the writing and doing all this bureaucratic shannanigans.
Since I'm somewhat convinced that nobody is reading this website at the moment, I thought I'd just add in a few images of some of the work I"m making at the moment. Just as a record for myself and see what it looks like in the form of documentation and cataloging. At the moment I'm focusing the complex problems of genital mutilation, and I feel like I need to become more familiar with legislations and statistics of all these different countries. I"m not sure if I have the tenacity for this , but I'd better give it a go. I think the first step for this is to start showing my work publicly and then to get the discussion going and hopefully, as they say, the cream will rise to the top.So, I will fill you in on the following journey of this Phd quest, but in the mean time, have some pictures to enjoy.
Hot and sexy peppers.
Shounldn't be allowed! I'm just listening to a very interesting conversation about Xeno-oestrogens......just in case I forget.
posted by m @ 7/16/2006 10:28:00 am
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