Someone you know has left or is planning to leave. 1,000 Ways To Japa will speak to real people and explore the infinite number of reasons and paths they use to get to Japa
Ann tried to get into a Nigerian university three times, but it didn’t work out. Then her uncle stepped in and offered to sponsor her to study in the Philippines. In this story, she talks about moving there with just ₦2 million and why she’s now going for another degree in the same country.
Where do you currently live, and when did you leave Nigeria?
I currently live in Metro Manila, Philippines. I left Nigeria in May 2018.
Did you have any particular reason for wanting to leave the country?
Actually, yes. I left because of school. At the time, it was challenging for me to get admission into a good university. I had written the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) exam twice, and I was too unmotivated to write the exam for the third time.
My backup plan was that I’d attend Yabatech if university continued to be a problem. I was going to stick to that plan until my uncle in the Philippines suggested I come over to study. I was excited at the thought of schooling outside Nigeria, so I decided to take the opportunity.
Was the Philippines somewhere you would’ve considered before he suggested it?
No, not at all. Back in Nigeria, I was working at a travel agency, and whenever they asked me to do practice bookings, I’d always choose “Lagos to Manila.” I don’t know why; maybe because I knew my uncle lived here, and somewhere in my head, I wanted to visit Manila someday. But I didn’t imagine that I would ever go to school there.
What was it like securing your admission?
My uncle was mainly in charge of the admission part. He asked me what I wanted to study. At first, I said nursing, because that’s what I had always wanted. But working at that travel agency, opened me up to tourism, so I told him I wanted to study tourism instead. He sent me the school’s website and told me to review the courses and pick something I liked.
I checked the site and found “Tourism Management.” It felt right, so I told him that was what I wanted to study. He handled the admission process on his end, and once I was accepted, he sent me the documents so I could process my visa from Nigeria.
At the time, I didn’t even have a passport. I had to apply for express processing to get one quickly. When I finally got the admission letter, I was so excited. You know how hard it is to get into school in Nigeria, so getting in that easily felt like such a relief.
How did you process your visa?
I had to handle the visa processing myself. I needed a police clearance and X-ray before travelling to Abuja for my interview. I also had to go to the Ministry of Education to authenticate my West African Examinations Council (WAEC) result. That process can be really slow if you don’t know anyone, but I was lucky. I met someone who helped me speed up the authentication process for a certain fee.
Another thing I needed was my birth certificate. I didn’t have one then, so I had to get that done in Abuja, too. After that, I went to the embassy in Gwarimpa for my visa. At the embassy, a Filipino woman attended to people. Everyone who has passed through the Philippine embassy always complains about her.
She sent me back because one of my documents contained a grammatical error. I also had to redo the document and authenticate it again.
At the time, the visa fee was around ₦50,000. After finally submitting all my documents, they told me to go back home and wait for them to contact me. Since I wasn’t based in Abuja, I begged the same man who helped me with document authentication to help collect my visa once it was ready and send it to me via courier.
Thankfully, when the time came, he helped pick it up and sent it through DHL. I can’t explain how happy I was when he told me my visa had been approved. I was so excited; not necessarily because I was leaving Nigeria, but because I was finally getting the chance to further my education. That had always been my dream.
That’s amazing!
Yes, it is. The Philippines doesn’t issue student visas from the start. Instead, they give you a tourist visa valid for three months, which you convert to a student visa when you arrive.
How exactly do you convert your tourist visa to a student visa?
When you arrive, the school that admitted you will collect all the documents the embassy gave you, including your passport, and start the visa conversion process.
You’ll go to the immigration office again, and they’ll require another X-ray, even if you’ve already done one. Then the school will schedule an appointment with immigration on your behalf. You’ll go with a school representative so they can capture your biometrics.
It’s important to do all this before your tourist visa expires. You also need to process the conversion through the same school that gave you the admission. You can’t use another school for that.
That makes sense. Can you remember how much the entire relocation process cost you?
Because of a travel policy, I couldn’t book a one-way ticket, so I had to book a return ticket instead. My ticket cost ₦480,000 at the time.
My passport cost ₦40,000 to ₦45,000, and the visa fee was ₦50,000. I can’t remember the exact amount I spent on authenticating documents since you pay per page, but it wasn’t cheap. Then there was the police clearance, the X-ray, and medical tests.
Also, they didn’t let me fly at the airport unless I had a minimum of $100 cash. That wasn’t an official requirement, but the immigration officers insisted. I had to scramble to exchange money at the airport.
So, overall, I think I spent about ₦2 million.
What’s tuition like for international students in the Philippines?
I went to a private university, so the fees were more expensive. In my first year, I paid about ₱55,000 per semester. The second-year fee was higher, about ₱60,000 per semester. That’s almost ₦1.6 million. For a complete school year, that’s around ₦3 million.
Are public schools cheaper?
Yes, public universities are more affordable. I have a friend who goes to a public university and pays around ₱12,000 per semester, which is about ₦970,000.
As an international student, you’ll also be required to pay a “foreigner’s fee.” Some schools include it in the miscellaneous fees every semester, while others ask for it separately. It depends on the school, but foreign students always pay more than locals.
Do you have any tips for anyone who wants to come to the Philippines?
First of all, don’t use an agent. You can do it by yourself. Everything is online now, and these schools are very active on Facebook. Search for the best schools to study your course. Once you find the school you like, search for its Facebook page. Message them directly. They will reply to you. You can also get their email addresses there.
You don’t need to know anyone in the Philippines to start the admission process. But if you know someone here, they can help you submit the documents and get the admission on your behalf. Still, do your research first.
Don’t wait for someone to recommend a school for you; they might just pick any random and possibly expensive one. Know your budget and know your parents’ financial limits.
Private universities are mainly in the cities and are more expensive in terms of tuition and cost of living. It’s way more affordable if you go for a public university in the province (that’s like our village or outskirts).
Can you recommend any schools?
I can recommend my school. I went to the University of the Visayas Gullas College of Medicine. It’s a Catholic private university that is very popular here. Many immigration officers are familiar with the school, and many foreign students use it to process their visas.
Some people use my school just to enter the country, and after one year, when they’re allowed to switch schools, they transfer to a cheaper one. So that’s also an option. But again, do your research. Admission is easy to get. Most schools will ask for your bio-data page, WAEC results, the course you want to study, and payment. Once you get admission, they’ll give you a blue seal letter to present at the embassy, and you can begin your visa process.
But it’s important to know that immigration laws here have become extremely strict, especially for Nigerians. I’ve had students message me on TikTok saying they were denied entry at the airport. Some were even deported despite holding valid visas.
I also need to mention that students aren’t allowed to work. It’s illegal to work with a student visa here. You’ll need full financial support from home. You pay rent monthly, electricity and water are metered, and you pay separately for WiFi. For example, I currently pay ₦178,000 monthly for a shared apartment, and I still can’t legally work. So, unless your parents can afford to send you money every single month, it’s going to be very hard.
That sounds tough. Are there any upsides to living in the Philippines?
I feel very safe here. I can walk to the market at 4 a.m. without fear. I’ve never had to worry about being harmed when I enter a taxi or bike, even in the dark. There’s stable light, always. There’s also fast, unlimited internet. These three things make life comfortable. You’ll graduate on time if you’re here to study and have the funds.
It’s a great place to study.
On a scale of one to ten, how happy would you say you are right now?
I’d say five. I feel like I’ve overstayed. I was ready to leave after my BSc in 2022, but didn’t want to return with just one degree, so I stayed for a master’s. Now that it’s almost done, I’m mentally checked out. I want to go back home. Most students come here at 15 or 16, finish their four-year course, and leave by 21. That’s how it should be.
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