My experience with FIDERH funding
When I decided to do a master’s degree in the UK, I knew exactly what I wanted to study, but I still had to decide which funding options best suited my circumstances.
I researched different scholarship and funding options in Mexico. I considered applying for a SECIHTI scholarship; however, the commitment to return to Mexico upon completing my postgraduate studies did not quite fit in with my plans. I wanted to keep the option open to apply for a Graduate Visa and make the most of my time there to gain more professional experience in Birmingham before returning.
That’s how I ended up at FIDERH. Their payment terms suited my short- and medium-term plans better, and I also discovered a significant advantage: thanks to their partnership with the University of Birmingham, I could access an additional scholarship and combine it with the one I’d already received from the university itself.
The trickiest part wasn’t filling in the application form, but getting all the timelines to line up. To apply for funding, I needed a letter of admission. I applied to six universities, each with different requirements and deadlines, so organisation was key. Having several offers ended up being an advantage: I was able to take my time comparing programmes, opportunities and costs before deciding which was really the best option for me.
My advice? Check the dates and get started well in advance. University applications, funding, the English language test, the visa and the start of term can all be surprisingly close together.
Once I’d received my acceptance letters, everything moved much faster than I’d expected. One of the things I was most worried about was the English language test. I chose to sit the TOEFL and prepared by practising the format and watching videos online. In the end, it turned out to be much more manageable than I’d imagined.
And then the visa arrived. If you look up the process online, you might end up convinced that you need to turn up with a small library of documents under your arm. The process turned out to be much simpler than I’d expected, and many of my printed documents weren’t even needed. Even so, having all those papers gave me great peace of mind.
Applying to universities, securing funding and applying for a visa seems overwhelming when you view it as a single, massive task. When you break it down into steps — researching options, checking deadlines, preparing applications and organising documents — it no longer seems impossible.
For me, FIDERH was a tool that allowed me to organise the investment involved in studying for a postgraduate degree abroad much more efficiently, whilst retaining the flexibility I was looking for in my future plans. If I could give one piece of advice to anyone just starting this process, it would be simple: start early, draw up a comprehensive timetable and compare all your options before making a decision.
And I’d probably tell you not to print out so many documents for the visa.
- Fernanda Lorena
