What I Wish I Knew as a First-Gen International Student at TUM

When I moved to Germany at 21, I was excited. New city. New culture. A world-class university. But soon, reality hit.

Visa stress. Financial pressure. Culture shock. Zero guidance.

I was a first-generation international student.
I didn’t have older siblings who had done this before.
No one explained how to get a residence permit, apply for scholarships, or find jobs in a foreign system.

I had to figure it all out alone.

While others around me seemed to move forward with ease, I often felt like I was just trying to survive. Visa appointments. Blocked accounts. German bureaucracy. Finding housing.

What I wish someone had told me back then is this: don’t compare yourself to locals.
They’re playing a different game. You had to cross countries and systems just to sit in the same classroom. That already says something about your strength.

Your timeline might look different.
You might take longer to adjust.
You might fail before you succeed.
That doesn’t mean you’re behind. It just means you’re building something more complex and more resilient.

If you come from a place where things weren’t handed to you, where you had to fight to even be here, that story is not a weakness. It’s your strength.

And if you ever need a roadmap, I wrote one:
It’s called Studying at TUM and Landing Your First Job.
It’s everything I wish I had when I arrived.
Scholarships. Jobs. Research. Mindset.
It won’t give you all the answers, but it’ll make the journey less lonely.

As a small thank you for being part of this journey, I'm offering you 20% off my book with the code: 8W2TBOC.

Fondly,
Kei

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