Joshua Isleta
What I wanted in a School
I didn’t plan on coming to Glasgow. In fact, Glasgow was not on my radar—and my application cut it close to the deadline when I did end up applying!
After spending some time working in the diplomacy industry in the Philippines, I knew I wanted to pursue my postgraduate degree abroad. My long-term goal has always been to serve my country through international relations, but I wanted to take my qualifications a step further by specialising in something I enjoyed and something that was needed at home.
Communication has a huge social and political impact in the Philippines. The majority of Filipinos get their news from online and social media. This was something I was deeply interested in researching, and it shaped my search for schools.
Still, I didn’t just want to take up my studies anywhere. With much consideration and prayer, a lot of the decision-making involved choosing a school that was ranked highly and one that forced me out of my comfort zone as well as increased my understanding of international relations and communication.
In other words, I sought a school that challenged me and gave me exponential growth. I wanted my postgraduate degree to be just as much a personal adventure as it was an academic one.
Glasgow offered me all of this. I just didn’t know it yet.
Finding Glasgow
I found the University at a Master’s fair in Manila in November 2023. In a huge ballroom filled with schools from the United Kingdom, the University of Glasgow was the only Scottish school present. The kind staffer at the UoG booth proudly invited me to take a look at what they had to offer, and the Political Communication, MSc course quickly caught my eye.
UoG is the only school in the UK to offer this course from a politics perspective—others were teaching it mainly using theories in communication. The degree met my interest in studying the growing digital trends in my country and their impact on the political and foreign policy landscape.
On a non-academic scale, posts about Glasgow from previous and current students raved about the city, Highland nature, the friendliness of the Scottish people, and the insane beauty of the campus. UoG also offered generous financial assistance in the form of the International Leadership Scholarship, which relieved some of the obstacles to studying in Glasgow.
At this point, I was snagged. After lots of prayer, consideration, and discussion with my family, I decided to go ahead and apply.
I got accepted into my course almost a year ago, in April 2024. I remember waking up to the email (Manila is seven hours ahead of Glasgow) and being overwhelmed with gratefulness. I wouldn’t stop thinking about it over the course of the day (and next few months)!
Glasgow Today
Fast forward eleven months, and I can proudly (and thankfully) say that Glasgow has surpassed each and every one of my expectations. The academic rigor of my classmates and breadth of discussion in lectures and seminars is next-level, and UoG’s high academic ranking is evidenced in its ability to push students to achieve more than they ever thought they could. My understanding of my course area has increased just as much as my love for the city and its people, and I feel better equipped to serve my country in the long-term after graduation.
The cultural diversity and commitment to student success at UoG also deserves mention. Studying with people from across the world has made this adventure unique and enhances the already wide array of perspectives shared in class. The support the school offers to international students throughout our stay shows how dedicated UoG is to our intellectual and professional development. Altogether, UoG was everything I had hoped and prayed for in a school, and I’m incredibly grateful for the chance to be doing my postgraduate degree here.
On a personal note, Scotland was the adventure I had been looking for. The weather (a whole blog could be written about this on its own) is unique, and every corner of the city and country tells a story. I wasn’t searching for it when I applied to UoG, but the nature, culture, and warmth I now associate with being here gives me all the more reason to be grateful for this opportunity. I think about this whenever I’m able to go hiking up some of the hills in the Highlands!
I didn’t plan on coming to Glasgow. But I'm glad I did! Each day in the last six months at UoG has shown me what an amazing decision it has been to take up my studies here—and the city has become something of a second home. From deepening my knowledge in my course area to exploring all that Scotland has to offer, I’m confident that I’ll continue to reap the benefits of my stay long after I leave Gilmorehill.
Bibliography
Chua, Y. (2024). ‘Philippines’, Reuters Institute, 17 June. Available at: https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-report/2024/philippines (Accessed 21 March 2025).