Today I would like to share some tips on how to travel the world by getting just one visa – a student visa. If you are yet to land a permanent residency permit or citizenship, a UK, US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Europe, or any top country (South Korea, or even China and Japan), student visa can be your ticket to conquer the world.
The tips below are based on the assumption you have landed one of the aforementioned countries’ visa.
1. The first 3-4 months once you land with your student visa is the most important. This is the time to be intentional about your travel plans as Embassies are more likely to approve visit visas when you have more years left on your student visa. Once your student visa is less than 3-4 months to expiration, chances of visa refusal increases. By the first 4 months in the UK, I had applied for my American, Schengen, and Canadian visa. Remember, that a post-study visa, whether it is for 2 or 3 years does not demonstrate you have strong ties to a country and Immigration officers are likely to refuse you. So, start early.
2. Leverage on the power of your student visa. A Nigerian passport with a student visa abroad is way stronger than a Nigerian passport domicile in Nigeria. Once your Nigerian passport leaves Nigeria, your travel destiny has opened. Why? Because visas will be approved faster, and your passport is accorded ‘more respect.’ A Canadian visitor visa in Nigeria can take 3-6 months to process, outside Nigeria you can expect a reply within 2 weeks. All my Schengen visas abroad have all been approved within 3-5 days and my Malaysian visa was also approved in less than a week. US visa approval rate is higher abroad with a student visa than in Nigeria.
3. Map your travel by covering geographically contiguous countries. If you are travelling to Schengen countries for example, study the map to see countries that share close borders. For example, the journey from Vienna, Austria to Bratislava, Slovakia is just 45 mins. Luxembourg is only 30 mins away from Brussels, Belgium. You can travel all the Scandinavian countries (except Denmark) with less than $180 on a budget flight. So, for your first trip you can travel to say Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Netherlands, and Germany on a good budget and with lots of tourism experience.
4. Do not settle for minimum wage jobs on your student visa. There are jobs that pay way more than minimum wage – which by way, is never enough. There are jobs in healthcare and hospitality you can take on as a student and make a lot of money doing while studying. For example, in the UK, a healthcare shift in Manchester can pay £10-£11. Same shift in Portsmouth can pay £40-45. Remember during holidays you can work full time.
5. Travel during off-peak period or in shoulder season. You are student so you want to travel before all the rush. Travel tickets in late Autumn and Fall are cheaper than Summer. A ticket from Liverpool, UK to Oslo, Norway cost me only £4. So, look out for deals and take advantage of it.
6. Do not get caught in the big city trap. Big cities are fancy but there are adjoining cities that often offer way cheaper tickets. Flights to London, Gatwick can be way cheaper than London, Heathrow on a good day. So, keep an eye out. However, it is always important you consider the distance from the airport. In Tokyo for example, there are two airports, but one is farther to town than the other.
7. Think long-term. You certainly do not want to be on a student visa forever. So, remember why you came. Avoid anything that can put a blemish on your passport like criminal record or immigration issues. This would ensure you easily get visit visas in the future. Beyond this, you want to set yourself up to apply for permanent residency or for tier-2 (skilled migrant) job opportunities.
8. On getting Tier-2 or skilled jobs. You want to shut down on travel within the first 6-8 months of your student visa. If your goal is to have a good travel history, 4-5 countries in the Schengen area is a good start. Getting a tier-2 job offer after your study would ensure you get to travel as you please with a bigger budget and a guaranteed stay.
