Why is Study Abroad So Important?
Choosing an overseas education during your university years is one of the most rewarding decisions you will ever make in your life. A study abroad experience will benefit you in ways beyond your imagination and expectations. It will offer you an opportunity to discover a unique diversified culture, make lifelong friendships and connections, and receive an education that goes a long way in your holistic development.
You’ll Have Cultural Experiences
Unlike a short vacation, when you study abroad you have the chance to see what life is really like in another country. The encounters you have as you shop for groceries, ask for directions, or walk through neighborhoods will teach you more about a place and its people than any textbook or guidebook could. By going beyond the tourist stops, you will obtain personal knowledge of your new city, the people who live there, and perhaps even a bit of its history. Living like a local is one of the best ways to understand a culture.
You’ll Expand Your Academic & Business Experiences
In addition to the subjects you’ll study while you’re overseas, you can gain skills to carry with you into your future, whether you’re intending to go on for more education or into the workforce. As a student, you’ll be learning how to balance your studies with the everyday concerns of living in a country that’s not your own, which can be formidable at times when it comes to transportation or currency.
You’ll Gain Life Experience
Above all, studying abroad is important because of the life experience you’ll gain as a result. Studying abroad will change you as a person. Whether you study for a short amount of time or an extended one, living in another country as a student will mean you will come home having tried new things, met new people, and gained a more global perspective while striving for academic success. Those efforts will continue to influence you beyond your time overseas, impacting the ways you learn, work, and live.
When you study abroad, you will have experiences that can’t be found anywhere else, and the memories you’ll bring home will stay with you your whole life. Stepping out of your comfort zone to live in a foreign country will give you the confidence to continue growing and pushing your limits when you return.
While you are studying abroad, you may learn habits and skills you wouldn’t have picked up otherwise. You might discover a new passion or a part of the world you didn’t know could feel like home. You may also make connections to people whose lives will now be part of yours no matter where on Earth you go.
Whenever you travel, you never return as the same person. All these experiences will challenge you and help you grow in skills and knowledge. Engaging with a foreign culture, speaking its language, meeting its people, and walking its streets will impact you for years to come. As author Sue Fitzmaurice once said, “You must go on adventures to find out where you belong.” Study abroad is one such adventure and a vastly rewarding one in so many ways.