Challenges of studying abroad

Studying abroad is an opportunity for personal growth and other beneficial experiences such as seeing the world, taking in new cultures, and wider career opportunities. However, this opportunity does not come without any challenges as there will always be difficulties of studying abroad. The following are a few challenges of studying abroad that exchange students may experience:

Feeling homesick

Having to live away from home means leaving behind all things you are accustomed and comfortable to – your family, your friends, your bedroom, your mom’s cooking. Almost every thing will be new to you which may or may not be pleasant. One can overcome homesickness by simply being more open to new things and making an effort to make new friends. While ne cannot easily brush off the feeling of homesickness, you can get used to it and adapt to your new environment.

Feeling like an outsider

Having to live away from home means that you will be placed in an environment where everyone is practically a stranger and, sometimes, this is going to make you feel like an outsider. Mingling with new people may come easier to some and harder to others. It can be very scary to a few. Just like how you can overcome homesickness, overcoming the feeling of being an outsider can be remedied by being more open to meeting and getting to know the people around you, and not feeling scared of being rejected.

Running on low cash

Having to live away from home also means that you will have to spend money using another currency which may or may not be familiar to you; that also means that you might have a difficult time budgeting your money because you are not used to the new currency. Likewise, being in a new place would make you want to experience new things which may entail extra spending. There are ways to avoid running low on cash such as listing down your expenses to track your spending, and stay on budget.

Getting culture shock

Having to live away from home means as well that you are going to be exposed to new cultures – not just of the new place but of the new people surrounding you. It might be necessary to familiarize yourself with local norms, its languages or dialects, its geography. Knowing the basics about the place will jumpstart the transition and will direct how you will live your new life. Besides, knowing these basics is part of the new learning experience. So be open to it and enjoy the ride.

Getting lost

Lastly, having to live away from home means an entirely new geography. You will get lost – a lot. It will be a new and unfamiliar environment. It will be useful to memorize the map or install a GPS in your mobile phone to aid you whenever you find yourself in strange territories. You can, of course, go old school and ask actual people for directions. It depends on which method you are more comfortable with or which method is accessible to you as of the moment.

Studying abroad challenges almost every exchange student that is provided this opportunity. These challenges, however, have remedies and may be overcame as soon as possible.