Dunedin & a Dilemma

Moving to Dunedin wasn't easy!

Visa complications meant that I was delayed in my arrival. I finally arrived in the beginning of March, missed out on O-Week and missed out on the first week of classes. It was a very very daunting experience eventhough I had been to the country before.

On top of that, I wasn't aware of having to sort out insurance before I could course approve. Hence, my course approval process was delayed even further. Talk about being thrown in the deep end! What I went through was definitely an International Student's worst nightmare!


My first year was a rather subdued and quiet one. It took time to settle in. In high school, I was treated by my friends as one of them. In uni, I had to face the fact that I was different. I was treated differently and I found it difficult once again. It was difficult to integrate and be part of the local Kiwi student community. I didn't want to establish a whole new identity, I wanted to hold on as much to the person I was but yet I wanted fit in.

In my second year, I threw myself in the deep end and got involved in a leadership position with the Otago Malaysian Students' Association. I was president for two years and had an awesome time learning the ropes in managing a rather large student society. I made heaps of friends and contacts and it's now great to see some of them starting new societies or trying to keep some of them alive! It's a challenge, no doubt, but it's a wonderful experience.

Some of them have now graduated and are working but the memories that we shared function as a superglue that bonds us together. An OUSA Society Administrator Award and a Gold Award for cultural pursuits are testaments to my skills and abilities.

In such a short time here, I've been there and done that.

I want to share my experiences with all international students as I know how difficult things can be but there are ways of making your time here in Dunedin an enjoyable one.

And now I feel it's time that I effectively represented international students at this university....read on...