Students: I need some good stories!

So, I'm starting to slightly freak out and need some good stories to get myself through the next couple of months. Long story short, I had one last class to finish over the summer, but I'd already received a conditional offer to Uni of Liverpool to begin September 26th.  So yay there. After I finished this final class on June 2nd, I talked to my undergrad uni and they said I wouldn't have a diploma/transcript/official proof I finished my degree until AUGUST OR SEPTEMBER! Without that, Liverpool won't give me unconditional offer which means I can't apply for my student visa, and without student visa approval I'm not booking airfare or packing my life up until I know it's definitely going to happen.  So I got a letter from my department advisor stating that my degree requirements were completed and my final GPA, which I emailed to the admissions at Liverpool last night.  Haven't heard back but I'm hoping they accept that as proof that my Bachelor's is completed so I can get the CAS. It's just all ugh.

So besides this stress, I'm thinking about how we are going to obtain housing when we get there in mid-September (we're not doing uni accomodation).  Does anyone have any tips, such as how long we might need to find temporary housing until we can close on a flat?  I'm looking at cheap B&Bs/hostels that we could stay in for a couple weeks when we arrive, but considering it will be me and my partner that is going to get expensive.  As much as I want to make this move and complete my master's degree in England, I'm really beginning to second guess this whole thing.

Sorry for the long post, I think I just needed to vent to people who have or are going through this and can give me positive experiences.  Hope everyone is well this first day of Summer!

~Jillian

Don't fret too much! I got my CAS letter in the first week of September and I was in the UK two and a half weeks later, meaning I got my letters from the UK, filed for my loans, got my loan papers, found housing, gave my school my passport copies, booked plane ticket, moved my entire life, said goodbye to family and friends, etc in that amount of time. Even if you get your transcripts and diploma in August, you can fax or email a copy to the university. You should probably bring the official copy of your transcript and diploma when you register at uni, but they don't care about sealed envelopes like US unis do. 

I would recommend getting temporary housing and then seeing flats. You can try searching on websites (like gumtree) from the US, like I did, and you can manage to secure accommodations. I spent an entire night looking, emailing, and in the morning, I had one person who was interested. I've been pretty lucky with my housing in the UK, but definitely never perfect. I moved a few times this year, but I'm finally happy in my current flat. There is some issues that need to be dealt with, but if you're lucky enough to have mates like mine, then you'll work through the problems together.

As someone told me, if you're going to do something then do it and finish it. Don't half-ass it and don't waste time regretting it. If you can't get through the paperwork, then how do you expect to survive in the UK? I know telling you not to freak out won't help, but I promise you, once you have that visa in your hand you're gonna think to yourself, "phew, it wasn't that bad."

If your experience in the UK is going to be anything like mine, the visa process will the easy part. I had a lot of ups and downs and a few moments of 'oh, I shouldn't have done this.' Now I love my life (both in the UK and US) and don't regret coming here for a second. I now consider both countries to be home. Sorry if my post is not extremely chipper, but I wanted to say that the process is worth it and completely doable in a short amount of time. Best of luck!

First off i must say Rynn was a tremendous help to me when I was in your shoes last year. Cant thank her enough really!!

The whole process for me was extremely stressful and long. I applied in nov of 2009, therefore had to do 9 months of waiting! Very long process for me! By the time I got accepted into a uni, I still had to wait long periods to do the next phase, and the next etc. By the time I could actually do the loans, the US gov was doing an overhaul. Loans were completely changed and it was all up in the air, even the Uni's didnt know what to do until very last minute. After the headache of waiting for the new policies to take over my biggest headache was the Visa. Pulled my hair out everyday for weeks waiting on a reply. By this time I had already quit my job, sold my car and tied up all loose ends. I was a nervous wreck, never been so stressed out. The whole process was one of the worst experiences of my life, however, was the best thing I could have done for myself and my life at this current time.

I would not change anything I did, was worth the headache 100 times over! I also have a gf out here as well, so def worth it! Hang in there, i know its all a bit overwhelming! I still have the overwhelming feeling due to other things, example immigration when my degree is over, and what direction my life will be heading in from here on out. Lot of things still up in the air, which I am sure we will get a lot more of in life, being we are in our 20's! Hang in there! dont give up!

I hope everything will work out with your visa. I hope your uni will accept the letter as proof of study. To answer the second part of your post: Most unis provide a list of trusted private landlords for their students, and it's safe enough to rent through them before you even  come to the UK if you send them the deposit. So first of all check whether your university can provide you with some information about this. Even if they don't, you can start searching, agree on a house and send the deposit to secure it before you arrive in the UK, although this may not be always safe.

If you decide to come here and then look for a house, you can find accommodation in a day or two (if you are not toooo picky and you rent through a landlord and not an agency) in Liverpool; I am saying this from my personal experience. You can stay in a hostel for a couple of days (make sure they have some locked space where you can keep your stuff) and start looking for ads in local papers, agencies, convenience stores and the Internet. If you are looking for a double room in a shared house (this is cheaper than renting a flat on your own), try Spareroom.com. If you decide to rent a flat through an agency, remember that this is likely to take longer, as they need to check your background, references etc and then they are likely to ask you for a guarantor, as you are a student. Renting through a private landlord is faster.
Hope this helps!

Don't fret too much! I got my CAS letter in the first week of September and I was in the UK two and a half weeks later, meaning I got my letters from the UK, filed for my loans, got my loan papers, found housing, gave my school my passport copies, booked plane ticket, moved my entire life, said goodbye to family and friends, etc in that amount of time.

This is exactly what I needed to hear.  I know I can get the visa expedited with an extra fee. I think my biggest problem is a fear that my student visa could be denied.  I meet all the requirements, but I do not want to turn my life completely upside down, which includes leaving a high paying job I've been at for seven years, without knowing that the student visa has been approved. 

I'm sure I'm worrying unnecessarily, I've always had an overly paranoid personality and that is hard to overcome.   

I'm surprised that your registrar can't write a letter to Liverpool for you. In the mean time, while waiting for your transcript to be ready I suggest you get all paperwork ready. If you live in NY then I recommend to pay a premium of 100 to submit in person and collect the passport in the same day. I did mine last year n it was quick and relatively stress free

I'm surprised that your registrar can't write a letter to Liverpool for you. In the mean time, while waiting for your transcript to be ready I suggest you get all paperwork ready. If you live in NY then I recommend to pay a premium of 100 to submit in person and collect the passport in the same day. I did mine last year n it was quick and relatively stress free

Panda, I did end up getting a letter from my advisor stating that my degree requirements were completed and what my final GPA was, and I emailed that to the admission's office for my department at Liverpool, but I haven't heard back.  I'm making an assumption that maybe people are on holiday, and if I don't hear back from them next week, I'm probably going to bug them.  I unfortunately do not live in NY, but I am spending 3-4 days there before heading to England, so worse case scenario, I can go that route.

So I got a letter from my department advisor stating that my degree requirements were completed and my final GPA, which I emailed to the admissions at Liverpool last night.  Haven't heard back but I'm hoping they accept that as proof that my Bachelor's is completed so I can get the CAS.

FINALLY heard back from Liverpool today, and they accepted my letter as proof and said they're going to get the CAS out as soon as possible.  So yay!  Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for your advice!  This has probably been one of the most stressful things I've dealt with in my life (even more than planning a wedding and working and school all full time but I cannot wait to be in England and begin school again. 

FINALLY heard back from Liverpool today, and they accepted my letter as proof and said they're going to get the CAS out as soon as possible.  So yay!  Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for your advice!  This has probably been one of the most stressful things I've dealt with in my life (even more than planning a wedding and working and school all full time but I cannot wait to be in England and begin school again. 

Congrats Jillianbean! Keep us updated on the application process etc... I will be applying in a couple of weeks(as soon as I receive me CAS), and I would like to know how the process is.

Congrats Jillianbean! Keep us updated on the application process etc... I will be applying in a couple of weeks(as soon as I receive me CAS), and I would like to know how the process is.

Thanks, aBlessing.  I am going to submit my app as well as soon as I get the CAS.  Fingers crossed for all of us through this stressful process!

So far so good on this front - finally got word that my loans are originated, submitted online applications today, biometrics scheduled for Monday and then hopefully premium appointment soon after that. Hopefully I'll have a good story for you soon, but so far so good!

While we're at it, though, anyone have any word on what the wait is like for premium appointments in NYC around now?

I still haven't received my CAS.  Don't they know I'm freaking out about this!!  I've emailed the admissions office to try to get a time frame, but no response still.  At this point I really wanted to have my visa approved before I put in notice at my job.  I fear I may need to if I don't get that CAS sometime this week, and then still pay the extra fee for expedition of the visa. Le sigh. Thanks for listening, guys, I just needed to vent.  I'm crazy excited about the trip and school and just the whole adventure.  The idea of moving to a foreign city with no job or a place to live should be more scary, but that's not what I'm typically freaking about.  Suppose I'll just get back to obsessively looking at places on Right Move and the best airfare prices until I have that visa in hand.

I still haven't received my CAS.  Don't they know I'm freaking out about this!!  I've emailed the admissions office to try to get a time frame, but no response still.  At this point I really wanted to have my visa approved before I put in notice at my job.  I fear I may need to if I don't get that CAS sometime this week, and then still pay the extra fee for expedition of the visa. Le sigh. Thanks for listening, guys, I just needed to vent.  I'm crazy excited about the trip and school and just the whole adventure.  The idea of moving to a foreign city with no job or a place to live should be more scary, but that's not what I'm typically freaking about.  Suppose I'll just get back to obsessively looking at places on Right Move and the best airfare prices until I have that visa in hand.

Hi Jillianbean,

Have you received your CAS yet?

Hi, aBlessing.  I finally heard back from the university admissions office today, they said that I should have my unconditional offer letter in the next week or two, and then once they get back my acceptance, they will email me the CAS within 3-4 days.  So realistically if all goes well, I should be able to apply for my visa within the next three weeks. Then pay the extra $150 to expedite the visa. All in all it just means I will need to put in notice at my job and buy our airfare before I have the visa approved.

How is everything going on your end? Surviving our 112 degree temps?

Hi, aBlessing.  I finally heard back from the university admissions office today, they said that I should have my unconditional offer letter in the next week or two, and then once they get back my acceptance, they will email me the CAS within 3-4 days.  So realistically if all goes well, I should be able to apply for my visa within the next three weeks. Then pay the extra $150 to expedite the visa. All in all it just means I will need to put in notice at my job and buy our airfare before I have the visa approved.

How is everything going on your end? Surviving our 112 degree temps?

I'm trying to stay cool(if that's possible). I am hoping I don't get sick when I get to the U.K. since there will be such a drastic change in weather compared to Texas.

I mailed off my docs yesterday through FedEx priority overnight. I'm starting to freak out now because I got tracking confirmation that the package was delivered and signed for by "Robinson" this morning. I also paid for the priority processing, and wrote the information on the envelope as instructed. I read that folks have been receiving notification emails from the consulate saying that their package has arrived in the office safely. I haven't received anything yet. I'm probably just jumping the gun since my package was delivered a few hours ago, and I imagine they are extremely busy right now. Hopefully I will hear something by tomorrow.

Anyhoo, fingers crossed that all goes smoothly.