Hello, all!

Hi.

I'm an Ohioan living in London, currently studying for an MA in Publishing and working part-time. I've been here since September 2009, studied in Leicester briefly during 2008 and have stayed in Northern Ireland a bit with my boyfriend's family. I get a bit homesick sometimes, but at least London's weather is a lot better than northeast Ohio's! 

I know I found this forum useful to refer to during my last visa application, and hopefully it can be of some support as I continue to go through visa madness until the holy grail that is citizenship. Plus my boyfriend sometimes gets a little annoyed when I feel the need to complain about the UK or discuss life in the states, so I thought it'd be best to find some people who could relate. :]

Welcome to UKY!

Oooh, an MA in Publishing. I would love to do something like that someday. What school are you going to?

Feel free to express yourself here. We're all ears!

Welcome!  How much time have you spent in good ole' "lesta"/Where were you studying?  My boyfriend is from there, so every time I'm in the UK, we spend a good chunk of time up there. 

Oooh, an MA in Publishing. I would love to do something like that someday. What school are you going to?

I assure you that an MA in Publishing sounds far more glamorous than it actually is! I'm going to the London College of Communication (formerly London College of Printing), which is a part of the University of the Arts London. The publishing industry is just so hard to get into that I thought the MA route might give me a bit of an edge. So far it's working as I've done several internships - I think publishers like to see you're willing to put yourself into serious debt in order to get a job with them! Are you looking at doing a course or just fancying the idea? If you do start looking at courses seriously, feel free to ask me some questions because there are a few unis with well-established courses and I'm not sure I necessarily chose the best one for me. 

How much time have you spent in good ole' "lesta"/Where were you studying? 

I was there for about 5 months. I did a semester abroad at the University of Leicester, but spent half of the semester travelling, mainly to Paris as my boyfriend was living there at the time. I know most people aren't too fond of the place, but I actually enjoyed the time I spent there. It was a good transition from the suburbs; I would probably have been overwhelmed had I moved to London first. Have you ever gone to a pub there called The Dry Dock (a boat that's been gutted and turned into a pub)? Not that it's amazing or that I'd go out of my way to recommend it, but I lived right next to it and found it highly amusing to tell people I could get a pint in the boat next to my flat. I do plan to visit the city again, eventually.

Hello and welcome back!  I am currently in northeast Ohio (while waiting not so patiently for a settlement visa) - suburb of Cleveland - and I agree with you about the weather.
(Do you not think it's funny when people complain about the winters in the UK?)

I assure you that an MA in Publishing sounds far more glamorous than it actually is! I'm going to the London College of Communication (formerly London College of Printing), which is a part of the University of the Arts London. The publishing industry is just so hard to get into that I thought the MA route might give me a bit of an edge. So far it's working as I've done several internships - I think publishers like to see you're willing to put yourself into serious debt in order to get a job with them! Are you looking at doing a course or just fancying the idea? If you do start looking at courses seriously, feel free to ask me some questions because there are a few unis with well-established courses and I'm not sure I necessarily chose the best one for me. 

I do have a certificate in editing at the moment, but I do fancy the idea of doing a course. But I'll be moving to Sheffield and I'm not sure what the publishing scene is like up there. 
I may have to look at doing one in a couple of years if there is one up there.

Hello and welcome back!  I am currently in northeast Ohio (while waiting not so patiently for a settlement visa) - suburb of Cleveland - and I agree with you about the weather.
(Do you not think it's funny when people complain about the winters in the UK?)

Hey! I'm from a suburb of Akron, although I tell everyone here I'm from Cleveland, which most of them haven't heard of anyway.

Don't you love that Forbes rated Cleveland as being the most miserable city in the states and the one with the worst weather, too? Weather seems to be the easiest and most common thing to complain about as we have absolutely no control over it yet have to deal with it every day.

Were you here this past winter? I almost ended up stranded in Edinburgh for Christmas because they couldn't deal with AN INCH of snow. I spent hours in the airport grumbling words like 'pathetic' and 'pitiful' other such synonyms. Quite a few glares in my direction that night for proclaiming Ohio's great ability at clearing snow from roads within hours. I was one of those people who pulled all the 'I've made it through ten deadly snowstorms in three hours and these people can't even get a plane off the ground' (slight exaggeration). I recognise it annoys people and I should have shut up, but it's just as frustrating for someone who's used to things still operating in terrible weather conditions. In short, the UK's coldest winter in years = my warmest winter ever. lol

Enjoy your bit of time in Cleveland for me! I'll be back there briefly in July and am strangely looking forward to being in Ohio for a little while. Hopefully your settlement visa won't take too much longer!

I do have a certificate in editing at the moment, but I do fancy the idea of doing a course. But I'll be moving to Sheffield and I'm not sure what the publishing scene is like up there. 
I may have to look at doing one in a couple of years if there is one up there.

Where did you get your editing certificate from? I've done some work for the Publishing Training Centre here in London - have you heard of them? They offer distance learning for a few of their courses, depending on what you're interested in. It's not a degree, though. The publishing courses at universities sometimes pop up and then disappear, particularly the ones outside of London, so just keep an eye on the nearby universities to see if they have/develop a programme.

Sorry that I can't tell you much about publishing in Sheffield. I can't imagine there's tons going in the industry, but there definitely has to be something there. If you can, get a copy of the 'Writers' and Artists' Yearbook 2010' (or even earlier years); it will provide a listing of all publishers in the UK. Most libraries should have a copy of it so you don't need to buy it.

Where did you get your editing certificate from? I've done some work for the Publishing Training Centre here in London - have you heard of them? They offer distance learning for a few of their courses, depending on what you're interested in. It's not a degree, though. The publishing courses at universities sometimes pop up and then disappear, particularly the ones outside of London, so just keep an eye on the nearby universities to see if they have/develop a programme.

Sorry that I can't tell you much about publishing in Sheffield. I can't imagine there's tons going in the industry, but there definitely has to be something there. If you can, get a copy of the 'Writers' and Artists' Yearbook 2010' (or even earlier years); it will provide a listing of all publishers in the UK. Most libraries should have a copy of it so you don't need to buy it.

I got the certificate from the University of Washington. It was like a distance learning course. I'll definitely have to pick up a copy of that book. Thank you very much for the tip! 

Have you ever gone to a pub there called The Dry Dock (a boat that's been gutted and turned into a pub)? Not that it's amazing or that I'd go out of my way to recommend it, but I lived right next to it and found it highly amusing to tell people I could get a pint in the boat next to my flat. I do plan to visit the city again, eventually.

Haha, that is pretty amusing.  (Un)Fortunately, I've only been out to one pub in Leicester, called "Oscars" for New Year's Eve....I met a jolly old drunk englishman who was enamored with Philadelphia Cream Cheese, and had the urge to tell me every 20 minutes or so.  (I tell people that's where I'm from, so i always get the cream cheese/will smith references...)

Were you here this past winter? I almost ended up stranded in Edinburgh for Christmas because they couldn't deal with AN INCH of snow.

I got a bit let's say, perturbed with that as well....hahaha

Welcome to UKY! Sounds like an interesting course that's giving you some exposure in your field! 

Yes, I knew about Forbes' article so I am going to mention that the Cleveland Clinic is one of the top hospitals in the world.  We have some good stuff going for us, and we do know how to handle the weather.

Yes, I was in the UK last winter.  I am bringing a snow shovel with me as I have yet to see one there.  The people across the street sweep snow off their driveway with brooms.
(Very sad)

And I will enjoy Ohio for you, although, I am chomping at the bit to get going.  Have a great time in July when you return.

Hi & welcome to UKY from a native Clevelander!   

In a sense I almost missed the winter snow in Cleveland this year.  However, it was nice to actually have snow here this winter...

The Cleveland Browns are a good reference for a lot of people too besides the Cleveland Clinic.  One of the guys that did my training at my last job automatically said Cleveland Browns to me when I mentioned where I was from.  Even though I'm not a massive NFL fan it gives you that nice warm fuzzy feeling when someone knows where and what you're talking about.

Hello and welcome!!

Thanks for the warm welcome, everyone! 

The Cleveland Browns are a good reference for a lot of people too besides the Cleveland Clinic. 

I always get LeBron James, which is even more "accurate" considering I'm from Akron, but it's also very annoying as I'm sick of his name. Most disappointing was when I was walking down Oxford Street in London several months ago only to see Foot Locker had erected yet another massive 'witness' poster. I can't escape him!

I will agree with you that it is at least nice when people seem to know where you're talking about. Most of the time I find myself saying 'it's between NYC and Chicago'.