Check out now the 10 best reasons, why you should study abroad!

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#1 See the world and broaden your experience

here are so many amazing things to experience around the world. You can see different natural landscapes and climates that do not exist in America. There are historical landmarks in every country that helped shape the history of the globe. You can expand your knowledge of the world by actually being there, seeing it, touching it, and experiencing it. Pictures in text books simply do not do justice to standing under the Eiffel Tower or on the Great Wall of China. Is there a place or landmark you have always wanted to see? This is how you can understand the world in a direct, all-encompassing way. Studying and living in a different culture will help you see the world from a completely different perspective. It is an amazing experience that will change your life.

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#2 Improve your language skills​
Learning or improving foreign language skills are the main reasons why many students go abroad. Certainly, being surrounded by a foreign language and using it on a daily basis can be a great and easy way to improve your language skills. But the success depends on many factors.

- Have a basic understanding of the language and vocabulary before you go to avoid frustration
- Go to a dialect-free region to learn the purest language
-Try to avoid speaking in your mother tongue or English (if this is not the language you plan on improving)
- Practice the language as often as you can. May be you can get a tutor for free, when you teach him or her your native language?
- Learn the conversational language as well as some terminology of your field of study to make the most out of your stay abroad

Find out how you can learn a foreign language in just weeks here!

Hello World by Oskay

 

#3 Experience the Culture​
Living abroad will show you a new culture from a deeper perspective than ever before. Depending on how exotic and foreign the culture you are going to is, the adjustment process will be anything from easy to nerve wrecking and frustrating. But dealing with this new situation will make you grow and become more open to other perspectives on life. Remember when you come home, shaking your head about the strange behavior of the people around you: Your way is not better than theirs, it’s just different.

 

#4 Extend your network​
Networking is a buzz word of our times. Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter are just a few social and professional networking sites that help us to stay connected and use our connections as potential resources. Imagine in a couple of years, you are working in your job and suddenly your company wants to expand to the country you have studied in. Guess who will be a valuable resource for your company, because you can just pick up the phone and connect with several local people there that can give you valid and accurate information in an instant?

 

#5 Improve your job chances​
Yes, experience abroad will give you an advantage over other applicants on the job market. HR managers value international experience highly, as this set of candidates is known as adaptable, independent, problem solvers and open. Having spent time abroad will definitely give you a competitive advantage over your competitors in the job market. Sheila Curran provides more information on the career advantages of studying abroad. Check it out!

 

#6 Become independent​
Living abroad can have another simple advantage for some of us. Getting out of your comfort zone is certainly not easy, but it will help you to grow. Go out there and experience the world, see it as an adventure that you will tell your grand-kids about! Sometimes you have to push yourself and then you will be rewarded with this awesome feeling of accomplishment. Trust me, it’s worth it!!!

 

#7 Create a memory of a lifetime​
Spending time abroad will be an adventure and those memories will last a lifetime. You will always remember the people you met, the things you experienced and the instances where you made a complete fool out of yourself. I know a lot of people that lived abroad and none of them regrets the time they spent abroad. Yes, there will be difficult times, when you don’t understand the people around you, everything is foreign and nothing makes sense and everyday tasks seem like a major problem. But I can tell you from my experience, it is definitely worth it!

 

#8 Change your perspective​
Your time abroad will put you in a foreign and new situation and you will have to deal with this to succeed. But a stay abroad will open your eyes and open your mind. You will understand that there is not just one way to achieve things, but many of equal value. In my eyes, this is one of the most important lessons you will learn during the time abroad.

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#9 Improve your cultural understanding​​
When you immerse in a different culture, you will have to adapt to it to make every day life easier. Different cultures have different perspectives, values, traditions and customs and living in this culture will teach you how to behave yourself in this setting. Living in this different culture will help you to adapt to different behaviors and cultural settings. Cultural awareness and adaptability will be a major asset for you and for your future employer in this globalized world

 

#10 Dispel your own stereotypes.

Frederick Douglass, the renowned abolitionist of the 19th century, once said, “Men who travel should leave their prejudices at home.” In addition to serving as a cultural ambassador to dispel other’s misconceptions, studying abroad gives you a chance to break down some of your own stereotypes about other countries and peoples. Not only will you have the chance to immerse yourself in another culture, you will also meet people from different backgrounds and make personal connections with people whom you may have never expected.

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