I Was Carrying More Than a Backpack - I Was Carrying My Family’s Hopes

Kharissa
16 hours ago
2 min read

Why Nepali Students Trust Rohini for New Zealand Pathways: A First-Generation Story

In many Nepali homes, studying abroad is never just a personal dream. It's’s a family decision, discussed over dinner, weighed against savings, and often carried quietly by the eldest child. When I started thinking about New Zealand, I wasn’t only thinking about myself. I was thinking about my parents who had never studied overseas, relatives who would ask “padhai sakera ke huncha?”, and the unspoken expectation that this journey had to lead somewhere meaningful.

As a first-generation student, the fear wasn’t failure but choosing the wrong path.

At Rohini International Education, the counselling didn’t feel transactional. Instead of being told what I should do, I was asked questions that made me think about who I was becoming, not just where I was going.

Seeing New Zealand Through Nepali Eyes

What helped most was understanding how New Zealand’s education system would feel for someone educated in Nepal. Classrooms where students are encouraged to question lecturers, assessments that value critical thinking over memorisation, and a learning culture that expects independence early on.

For many Nepali students raised in structured, exam-focused environments, this shift can be intimidating. Knowing this in advance made it less scary, and more empowering.

We also talked openly about realities Nepali students rarely admit out loud. The pressure to work part-time while studying, guilt about spending family money, and the emotional weight of being the first to leave home.

When Preparation Becomes Respect

What stood out was how much attention was given to life beyond the visa. Managing finances responsibly, finding housing without family support, handling homesickness during Dashain or Tihar, and learning to ask for help in a culture where independence is expected.

New Zealand became less of a “foreign country” and more of a place I could slowly grow into without losing who I was as a Nepali.

Why This Story Matters

For first-generation Nepali students, studying abroad isn’t about prestige but about trust.

Trust from parents who may not fully understand the system, but believe in the promise of education. Trust that the sacrifice will lead to stability, confidence, and opportunity.

Having guidance that respects that responsibility makes all the difference. Leaving Nepal didn’t mean leaving my roots. It meant carrying them with me, carefully.

Why Nepali Students Choose Rohini

For first-generation students especially, the right consultancy is not the one that promises the fastest outcome but the one that respects the weight of the decision. Students choose Rohini because they listen before advising, they explain risks as clearly as opportunities, and they treat studying abroad as a responsibility, not a transaction.

Leaving Nepal does not mean leaving values behind. With the right guidance, students carry those values forward, prepared, informed, and grounded. And for many Nepali students heading to New Zealand, that preparation begins with Rohini.