UK India Grad

For those who have experienced the UK India Graduate Work Experience Programme, we would love to hear from you throughout your job placement. Please tell us about it by emailing us at ukindiagrad@gtisolutions.co.uk

'As I sit at the Luton airport on the outskirts of London, to catch one of the low cost airlines out of the UK, I cannot stop remembering the first time I had landed in London. After the three rounds of selection, the long wait for visa, the packing and the unpacking of suitcases until it weighed exactly 30 kgs (I was flying Indian Airlines!) and of course, the mandated chest x-ray. I found myself in the city, hailed by some as the fashion capital and as the financial hub by others. It’s amazing how it took about more than two hours (given the myriad of underground roadways and tubes) before I even got to see the light of day, or rather the dark evening. Winter is this part of the world does bring short days.
My first impression of London was the ‘greyness’ in the colour, in the clothes, in the buildings and the sky. I don’t mean it in the sense of mood, just the colour. Another thing which didn't go un-noticed, was the multicultural nature of its demography. One could hear every European as well as Asian language on the street. It was impressive how a nation which once wanted to conquer the world, today is tolerant towards all societies. As much as London is steeped in history, it has also adopted the cosmopolitan big city culture, giving everyone a reason to like the city.
If you were to ask me what I like about London, I would say I am overwhelmed by the choices it offers. For a person into music, it offers the best concerts – from hard rock to BBC Proms. It hosts the popular west end shows as well as serious theatre screenings. For someone into sports, there is the football at Stamford Bridge, the Rugby at Twickenham and the Tennis at Wimbledon. For an art lover, you have got the Victoria & Albert Art Museum as well as the Tate Museum of Modern Art. People from all over the Europe come to shake a leg at the London Marathon. The Oxford & the Cambridge teams come down to London to fight it out at the boat race. For the romantics, the river Thames casts its charm through summer and winter. For shopaholics, it’s a paradise (an expensive one, but oh well!). For the food lover, one can’t have enough of the puddings and cakes with clotted cream and raspberry jam. Although one may want to carry one’s own spices for the main course.
Even though England is an island north of Europe, isolated by geography and currency, it is rich in history, literature, wartime stories and beer. The English do love their ales & lagers, be it afternoon, evening or late night.
From a professional perspective, it has been an enriching experience to share 8x5 hours a week in the same workplace. Interacting with people of different cultural backgrounds has made me more aware of my own background. It makes one realise how basic human instincts remain the same all across the world. We share the same concerns about life and death, about marriage and divorce. It is just our upbringing which makes each one of us unique from another. It does come as a responsibility in being an ambassador of your country. My interaction with people gives them an impression of my country. I guess nationalism is a stronger feeling once one is away from home.
Being in the UK, opens up possibilities of travel across Europe, which brings us to the beginning of this diary entry. My flight to Malta is being announced now. One of the many travels, I would do during my one year internship in the United Kingdom.'
 

Purvi Gupta - GlaxoSmithKline - Intake 1

‘With a good salary and 25 days annual leave, there are many opportunities for traveling around Europe. You can ski on Mont Blanc, swim at Brighton beach, watch a Spanish bullfight, walk along the Champs-Elysees and be romantic around the Aegean! How could you ask for more?’

Eric Zhao - AC Nielsen BASES - UK China Programme