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Step back in time for international students

25/10/2019

A group of international students have taken a step back in time and returned to the University of Wolverhampton a decade after studying there.

The students from Italy, France and the Czech Republic have remained friends since studying at Wolverhampton in 2009.

They hold a reunion each year and as it was their 10th anniversary, decided to return to the place where their friendship started to celebrate.

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During the visit, the students toured the new facilities, including the £25 million Rosalind Franklin Building, and visited familiar sites from their days in the city.

The students were part of the Erasmus programme, which is an EU funded programme that organises student exchanges.

Miriam Abdullahi, from Italy, said: “As happens to many of us, Erasmus changed my life and the friends I have made back then have become a second family to me. During our stay in Wolverhampton, we had the chance to visit different places thanks to the trips organised by the International Centre on Saturdays and got to experience life on the campus.

“In the past nine years we have regularly met for reunions all around Europe and decided to come back to Wolverhampton to celebrate 10 years of friendship.”

Pavla Ladova, from the Czech Republic, studied law. She said: “The University has changed so much. It’s very modern and very nice now, and the students are very lucky to study here.

“Coming to the University was life-changing and shaped my future life. Every day was memorable – there were no boring days! We had fun, we travelled a lot, we learned the language and made amazing friendships.”

Jacques Abeng Essamba, from France, is now an agency recruiter within the online gaming industry. He said: “It gives us the opportunity to take a step back and think about how we have moved on in our lives, what we have learned and how things have changed. It is definitely something that I would recommend other graduates do.”

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David Wedge, Alumni Relations Manager said: “We are always delighted to welcome back our alumni to have a look around the University to see how it has changed. It was great to hear how this group of international students had become lifelong friends and meet up every year.

“In addition to help organising a reunion, the Alumni Association provides a host of opportunities for graduates to stay connected and support the University, including becoming a mentor to current students, providing a career case study and coming back to campus to give a professional class talk, plus many more.”

For more information about international studying with the University of Wolverhampton, visit: www.wlv.ac.uk/international

Further details about benefits and services for graduates are available here: www.wlv.ac.uk/alumni

Further information

For more information please contact the Media Relations Office on 01902 32 2736 or 01902 518647.

Date Issued: Friday, 25 October 2019

For more information please contact the Corporate Communications Team.

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