Nitish is from Uttar Pradesh, India. At age 14 he was diagnosed with rheumatic heart disease, a condition that set him on the path to study science. In a few months, he will start a placement at the School of Healthcare Science (Division of Biomedical Sciences) at Manchester Metropolitan University in the UK, thanks to the Newton-Bhabha Fund.
 
The Newton-Bhabha Fund is the Indian version of the Newton Fund, a UK Government initiative to work in partnership with 17 countries to strengthen links and promote their economic development and social welfare.
 
Since its launch in 2014, over a hundred Indian students have completed a placement in the UK through the Newton-Bhabha Fund.
 
Nitish is really looking forward to his UK experience, especially because of the ‘country’s quality of education and research, its flexible study system, along with a friendly environment for students coming from different nationalities and backgrounds.
 
He told us he is also proud to start studying with the UK’s ‘world-class academia, with leading experts in the field of teaching and guiding the students.’
 
Universities UK International, a membership organisation that represents the UK higher education sector, runs a Student Support Service for Newton Fund applicants. Among others, it supported Anusree through her application to the Newton-Bhabha PhD placement. For her, choosing to study in the UK was an obvious choice:
 
‘The UK is one of the countries which are full of opportunities in terms of education and research. The Newton Bhabha PhD fellowship is giving me the opportunity to work at a UK university for four months and the work will be related to my current doctoral project that I’m working on in India. This will give my research an extra dimension and help to enrich my scientific understanding of the topic.’
 
Many programmes exist to help students from around the world go to UK universities. For example, the Commonwealth Scholarships, also funded by the UK government, offer a range of opportunities at Master’s and PhD level. 
 
Lavneeta is a current Commonwealth Scholar and an MSc student at the London School of Economics (LSE). She agreed with Nitish and Anusree about the ‘excellent quality of education, renowned faculty, best opportunities for research and diversity of programmes to choose from.’
 
She says her UK university experience feels ‘like a melting pot of cultures, with so much international exposure along with a perfect balance of a British experience. The countryside, the history, the richness of art and culture and the cosmopolitanism of London are all overwhelming.’
 
As for Debashree, a Commonwealth Scholar doing a PhD at Aston University, she told us she ‘really like[s] the creative atmosphere at work in the UK, and how having cross-cultural friends and staff encourages the innovation process.’
 
Their positive comments reflect the high levels of satisfaction international students in the UK report.
 
Study UK - Discover You provides further information on the variety of opportunities there are to study in the UK.

Cleo Fatoorehchi is Communications Officer at Universities UK International (UUKi), which aims to represent UK universities and act in their interests​globally. Cleo has also worked as a human rights journalist and for a children's rights charity. She completed a Master's in Gender and International Development at ​the University of Warwick. You can reach her on Twitter at @CleoFatoo.


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