Visiting london for the first time for an internship? 3 main tips!

Travel!

Firstly getting around London can be ridiculously expensive, if you don’t know what you’re doing. Getting hold of a method of travel depends on how long you’re in london, If you’re visiting for a week or two, I’d recommend getting a visitors oyster card (£3) that you can just top up as you go and can be used on all public transport! Alternatively you can buy an annual card that will be prepaid for an entire year but can be costly, or use your contactless bank card to travel. If you’re only travelling in certain london zones, you can get a specific weekly travelcard that allows you to travel freely through said zones an unlimited amount for a fixed price, depending on the zones.

For more information visit tfl to find out more about oyster cards.

Banking!

Starting a long-term placement in london? You should definitely invest in getting a british bank account, especially if you’re a student, because student bank accounts come with very good rewards and assistance, making it easier and beneficial for student to look after their money, and in turn take up a quick discount or reward and usually a 0% interest overdraft to fall back on just in case.

For example:

• Santander student current account currently rewards you with a 4 year 16-25 railcard allowing you to travel across the UK with a 33% off discount! Plus an automatic £250 overdraft that can be expanded to £1,500

• HSBC student current account is providing a £60 amazon gift card & a year’s free Amazon Prime Student membership! Plus  0% interest overdraft of up to £3,000

Health!

Getting health care while working abroad is important, you never know what could happen to you and i wouldn’t recommend studying in a foreign country without any medical service to fall back on. In this case studying in the UK allows you to take advantage of the National Health Service, if you come from a European Economic Area (EEA) country, you qualify for full NHS treatment. You should obtain a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) before coming to the UK, which entitles you to treatment.

If you are not from an EEA country, you’ll still qualify for full NHS treatment if you are on a placement or internship that last longer than 6 months, if not unfortunately you will not be able to have access to treatment via the NHS.

For more information visit nhs to find out more about european health cards.

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