Sunday, August 11, 2019

6 THINGS YOU NEED TO DO BEFORE YOU STUDY ABROAD


So you are gearing up for a semester abroad. Congratulation! It’s one of the most fun, life-altering activities you can do as a college student. You will learn to explore new life-altering activities you can do as a college student. You will learn to explore new places, make friends around the world, and live independently. But before you board the place for your new home, there’s more to do! Choosing classes, getting a visa, and other home items can be at the forefront of your mind. With all the excitement, though, there are some small things you can forget to add to your to do list.
1.       Get the Right Clothes and Shoes: There are many things you need to do before you study abroad, but it is important to pack the right wardrobe. First, you want to avoid a lot of shiny things, especially fancy jewelry and designer clothes and bags. These will certainly look amazing to you but will also catch the attention of thieves. In addition, leaving them at home will reduce the risk of losing them somewhere in your accident.
Even wearing clothes that clearly identify you as a foreign student can make you a potential target for scams and pickpockets. When I studied abroad, they told us to refrain from dressing in the name of our university. Brand logos or vacation spots, or even brightly-colored American goods. Instead, pack a simple wardrobe of simple patterns and sneakers. Here’s an article on how to make a travel-friendly capsule wardrobe. To make it easy, just pack a few pieces that you can mix and match. Laundry is expensive in other countries, so you may not want to have too many clothes to wash. Plus having less bags will make the process of moving in or out of your new location easier. With so many airplanes, buses, and carrying cabs, the least of the bags you will be wandering around.
2.    Call your bank: Have you ever frozen your credit or debit card because you did strange things to your account? Chances are you just went to a shopping sale or something, but this could be a major annoyance for study abroad students.
Why does this matter? When your bank sees that you are making too many purchases in a foreign country, they will mark it as suspicious and that’s it! But because it’s really you and not some random persona who stole your identity, it can be very annoying.  To avoid calling the helpline at odd hours, call your bank before you leave. Tell them where you are studying and for how long and they will ignore the charges on your card. You can also ask them to ignore transactions in nearby countries, as you may be interrupting weekends when travelling overseas. For one simple change to your semester abroad, you can remove the secondary security measures from your bank online bank account. If your bank text or email logs you in every time with a new IP address or device, the bank is bound to worry and you will be offended. Just remember when you get home.
3.       Connect with Fellow Students: one of the funniest ways to study abroad is to make new friends. Find fellow students in your program and connect with them on social media. This is a great way to find a roommate if you only need to get to know your peers before meeting you in person.
If you are admin type, start a Face book group for your program and invite other students into it. Just make sure you confirm that people are actually in your program before you join them to avoid a strange competition. My study abroad program did this and it was a great way to ask questions abroad and before and during the stay and stay connected after I got home.
Once you arrive at your destination, be sure to exchange emergency contact information with your new friends or roommates. If something goes wrong, this is the key. If you stop answering your phone or don’t come home at night, your content may be contacted by your family to let them know. And you can offer to do the same for them.
You will also want to connect with someone who has completed their program before studying abroad. She can tell you the secrets she does not tell you in booklets, such as the best bars, cheap restaurants, and tips for navigating the city.
Ask your university’s foreign studies adviser for help or drop alumni lists for your program. You’ll get some amazing Intel and maybe even make a new friend. Nothing binds people to a shared experience. While connecting with other students may not be one of the most important things you need to do before studying abroad, it’s a lot of fun.
4.       Learn about the Culture:  Cultural sensitivity is, therefore, important when studying abroad. In other countries, Americans often get a bad rap for being loud and tough. Don’t miss that hurdle! Instead, take some time to learn about your destination’s culture before leaving home.
A big part of this is your behavior in public. Each culture has its own customs and rules, so try to be as good as possible. On a similar note, study the laws of the country in which you are going. You do not want to be arrested and imprisoned for anything because you are allowed inside the house.
Another way to show appreciation for your new country is to learn some local languages. Even if these are just a few phrases, locals will appreciate your effort. They will be more than willing to help you honestly even if you start trapping them in English. Learning how to manage at least a handful ( such as “ please, “thank you,” “ sorry”) and asking for directions will get you far!.
5.       Make copies of your Documents: When you are away from your home country across the ocean, you want to make sure that all your paperwork is in order. If you lose something or forget at home, you may suffer major consequences. To prevent any mishap, use caution and make copies of your important documents.
It includes everything that can help you identify and give you access to services you may need while living overseas. Think about your passport, visa, credit card, insurance card, and any other ID you can have. It takes a few minutes to scan and print these things, but doing so can save you a world of trouble.
Of all the things you need to do before you study abroad, make sure you do it! Bring the original papers and copies with you, but leave a copy at home with your family. You can even give a copy to a roommate or friend in your program. If something goes wrong, they can be sure of you.
6.       Familiarize yourself with your new city: before you leave home, you should search inside and out of your destination city. Find your way to school. Find a grocery store near your apartment and look for pharmacies and hospitals nearby. In addition, you may want to know where your Foreign office Staff and embassies are located in the event of an emergency. It’s better to know ahead of time than to understand this in a stressful situation.
It is a good idea to find out before landing that there are bad parts of the town. But don’t stress her out. Instead, your new neighbors. Focus on all the fun stuff in there and don’t worry too much about the seeds.
There are so many things you need to do before you study abroad: Just like when you started college, there are many things you need to do before studying abroad. Moving to a new place, living in another country and preparing to work, there are so many things to consider! This is why it’s best to be prepared before you go.
From meeting new friends to getting your papers in order, make sure you’ve stopped all these important activities. You and your family will be happy with what you’ve done.


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