Tag Archives: study abroad

Experiences of study abroad

Choosing a Home Away from Home

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I picked Asia as my study abroad destination because I was looking for a completely different perspective on what it means to live. I imagined that living in such a foreign country would culture shock me into this shift in perspective, but instead, it’s come mostly from the other exchange students I’ve met.

I actually don’t think I’ve experienced any significant culture shock. But I’m not disappointed; my experience has so far surpassed all my expectations. When I first decided to study abroad, the opportunity to meet other exchange students was an afterthought. Now that I’m here, I’ve found that it’s these exchange students, not the new culture, that have changed my outlook.

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Choose Wisely: Embrace Fear

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So you want to study away. You’re stoked, but where should you go? The world is full of choices, and it’s overwhelming. I’ll narrow the field for you: you should study away in a developing country.

First, be fearless. Think of all of the places you’ve been to or would want to go on vacation. Now, cross them all out.

Chances are, most of the “first world” is now off your list. When I chose my study away location, I circled the parts of the world that were so foreign that I would almost certainly never visit them on my own, and I chose from those countries.

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Drowning in Attentions

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This time last year, I was filling out the last of the application materials for my study away program, located in Rabat, Morocco. I knew it would be no walk in the park. The Arab Spring uprisings, threatening violence and upheaval even in typically stable Morocco, had me crossing my fingers that the program wouldn’t be cancelled before my flight took off. My advisor was against it, though she signed the papers amid talks of a “plan b” and “looking at options”. She may have known a little of what I would face, but for me there was no “plan b”. I didn’t want a walk in the park; I wanted a challenge-and I got one.

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