Spending a year abroad either as part of your studies or as part of a gap year can throw up its fair share of problems, but it also has amazing benefits that far outweigh any obstacles that may be put in your path. After all, you chose to do this for a reason! Here are the top 5 best things about a Year Abroad.
Language
As I said, language is the best and worst thing about the year abroad. You will be completely immersed into a culture, which is the best way to learn and the quickest way to improve your language skills. If you are at university, your classes and lectures will be in the target language, so it might be more difficult to understand (no more secret snoozes!) but you will reap the benefits. If you aren’t at university and have chosen to work, you will also communicate on a daily basis in your chosen language. Its daunting, yes, but no pain, no gain! If you are a teaching assistant in a school, you might feel like your opportunities to speak the language are limited, since you will be teaching in English and most likely the English department will sometimes converse with you in English. Remember, its perfectly okay to ask them to help you out and speak the local language, and some of the older students will probably be more than willing to do a conversation exchange with you (see meeting people).
Make the most of your year.
Meeting New People
If going to university opened doors in your social life and gave you the opportunity to meet people from all walks of life, then consider the year abroad as ‘Freshers Week on steroids’. If you are an Erasmus student, not only will you meet other students from the UK on international exchanges, but students from Colombia, Sweden, Italy…the list goes on. If your university offers welcome events, attend them. Its very easy to sit back and let the opportunity pass, but people form groups very quickly, and your year abroad will be over before you know it. Make the effort and you can make some friends for life. If you are working or teaching as an assistant, make an effort to socialise with your colleagues and ask the older students to give you some ideas of places to go. Try going to the local university and putting up a notice offering conversation exchange. A native speaker will help you with your language and in return you can chat to them in English, why not do it over coffee or a beer? This can be a great way to meet people and find out where the best places to go are.
Being Independent
You’ve lived away from home before, and probably rented your own accommodation, but being in another country, sometimes on another continent, means you really have to be independent. Arranging viewings, sorting through paperwork and budgeting can be tough, but at the end of the year you will be proud of how well you coped. Yes, loved ones are only a phone call or a plane ride away, but most of it is up to you, so make the most of the opportunity and see it as a learning curve. When you get back home, everything will seem like a breeze!
Venture as far afield as you can.
Travel
Going abroad for the year can not only teach you a lot about one area, it can also provide you with an excellent base for traveling. Investigate transport networks and look out for special rail offers for students and young people. You will never again be in this position, so money permitting, grab yourself a map, a backpack and a camera. Weekend trips have never been so exciting!
Experience
You might be doing a year abroad as a gap year, or as a mandatory part of your university course, but you will come back with something much more: experience. Something interesting to put on a CV, a year abroad will show potential future employers that you are independent, inquisitive, and know how to handle yourself. It can be a great conversation starter in an interview, and can give you the edge over another applicant, so make the most of it!
Like this? Check out the 5 Worst Things About a Year Abroad.