What were you doing before Keele?

“I completed my undergraduate in 2012 - I read Political Science and Sociology at the University of Ghana. In my country after your graduation you do National Service, so I had just finished with that and I was working with a financial institution. I wanted to further my studies and then I got the Commonwealth Scholarship!”

Why did you choose Keele?

“That’s a great question! I applied to a lot of schools, but one thing I realised about Keele is how students are being treated, especially international students. I was talking to someone at Keele and then the reception that this person gave me, I really thought that when I come here, it’s going to be better than going anywhere else. And also the campus, it’s really nice – a lot of trees! That’s one thing I like about UK, you have a lot of trees here, it makes the air very fresh and the environment very calm.”

Describe how you felt when you learnt that you had received the scholarship?

“It was a great elation for me! When I first went on the net to read a bit about Commonwealth, I thought that the package was great, and so when I received it I was so happy! I was so thankful to God for being part of it, I was very very happy.”

How have your first few weeks been – what are your first impressions of Keele?

“What I can say is that the people are very receptive, and they are always willing to help if you have any difficulty. And then also things in UK are not like back home – everything is opposite here! So sometimes you have to face some issues. And then the weather too! People have been saying that I’ve not seen anything yet! My block-mates too are friendly, and our lecturers are also nice, so generally I like the atmosphere so far.”

What are your hopes, dreams and ambitions for the year ahead?

“With this new environment and this new opportunity, I would like to explore more. I want to learn more, I want to get acquainted with the social life too, because it’s not all about book book book! And then also with my academics, you know study here is really intensive compared to Ghana, so I need to do a lot of readings, I have a lot of readings to do. So I want to be a better person, I want to be a better person than I came.”