Alumni reunion in London – a fun night out!
31.07.2015
It´s Tuesday in London, a typical English pub in stylish Soho: „The Champion“. After work in the early evening, more and more smart people enter the pub, order a pint, laugh and chat about all the world and his brother. By chance, there are some former Berlin students too who actually stay in London - for different reasons like permanent or temporary jobs, or even on a short holiday trip visiting the old student friend.
“How did you get your job?” – “After my first company, which had hired me from Germany, made me redundant, I sent five applications, and luckily I got shortlisted for four interviews. Finally, I signed the contract just after the first interview”. Apart from discussing work and sharing our experiences, the alumni reunion turned into a smashing night out.
Living in London is tough and it´s not always an easy walkover. Renting a flat (or even one room as a flat share) is two to three times higher than in Berlin and the job market is demanding. And as a working German in Britain, you need to get familiar with practical questions like the NHS (National Health System), how to find a GP (General Practitioner) – and even gaining access to the internet at home can seem like a challenge. For everyone in that situation, dealing with the BT (British Telecom) might appear like an enduring task of staying patient. Some at this evening have already been lucky, whilst others were still waiting for a working solution. Additionally to familiarizing with calling helplines and improving your English, you learn abbreviations, you´d never heard before…
Apparently, employers appreciate the German way of working – and the study programmes which the students completed. Especially in the field of Digital Film Design, they are well respected and London seems to be one of the world´s hotspots of animation and VFX.
To make a long story short; it was a fantastic and warm reunion, where not only Mediadesign alumni met but also graduates of German Film School and HFF Potsdam; networking at its best.