Studying abroad is a fantastic opportunity to expand your mind and your experiences. It gives you the chance to get to know an entirely different culture and to meet all sorts of new people that can later become close friends or valuable business contacts. On the other hand, studying abroad can be your very worst nightmare if you do not do the appropriate research and take other appropriate steps to make your adventure a successful one. Below are a few things to make sure of before you begin your studies in a new and exciting country.
Local Customs and Laws:
The first thing you need to familiarize yourself with is the local customs and laws for the area you will be studying in and, don’t forget to study up on the driving laws while you’re at it. Even if the country is similar to your own in many ways, there are likely to be important differences between their ways and yours, especially if you are traveling to a place like Africa or the Middle East where there are so many conflicting governing bodies. It would most definitely turn your adventure into a nightmare if you accidentally break the law and end up imprisoned over it and, this is easily avoided by learning the laws in the area before you go there. A way to avoid this is to check out a site like UNICEF that has useful information on education in different parts of the word.
Communication:
Once you understand the laws and customs for the country you’ll be studying in, you want to make sure that your communication skills are up to snuff. There is nothing more frightening than being in a strange country, getting totally lost, and not knowing the language well enough to ask for directions. No matter what country you plan to study in, there is a strong possibility that you will need to have a strong command of the English language to succeed in your studies abroad. More importantly, there are countries out there that will not even issue you a study visa if you can’t successfully pass the International English Language Testing System (or IELTS). Skype English courses are a great way to study IELTS!
Resources:
Without a good working knowledge of the resources in the country you are going to, customs, laws and communication don’t matter one little bit! In order to truly succeed with your studies abroad, you need to know what to expect for resources. The term “resources” refers to far more than just money and budget. It also includes such things as housing, food, entertainment, technology, and more. Before you ever leave home, you need a solid plan for providing for yourself while you are at school. After all, you will be far from home and basically on your own.
There are many other things you need to be sure of before you leave for school but, these are the really important ones, the things that will make all the difference between success and failure when you start your studies abroad.
Research:
Being prepared is an essential part of any trip, so it is important to spend some time studying before you leave. Try looking up the country you are visiting on wikipedia to get a general sense of where you are visiting and what local customs you might encounter once you are there. You can also try to contact your local embassy, who might be able to give you some great advice on local laws and what to expect. A great way to feel more confident with speaking can be to use an online language school that provides English lessons by Skype. It could be possible to choose a teacher from the country you plan to visit, this way you can get expert advice before leaving, while also improving your English!
