Studying Abroad – The Pros and the Cons

The myth of studying abroad, isn’t it almost a cliché nowadays?

Many students who finish secondary school in Europe dream to broaden their horizons by going abroad. Getting to know new cultures and ways of thinking, finding themselves with people who may become friends for the rest of their lives. These students have great aims and goals and for those who really do it, those who don’t just keep on dreaming but accept the challenge, an experience begins which they will never forget.
Obviously, not everyone decides to do such a study trip. There are numerous cons that put off a large number of people from the idea of studying abroad but there are just as many pros about it.

So, what are the Pros and Cons of studying abroad?

Pros

1. 1. It broadens your horizon.

      Say goodbye to the daily routine that most of us would like to change, you have something else in your life, better than the same procedure every day. You may live in a country where people are quite conservative. As a young person you might feel somewhat bored or even caught in a cage. You might even think that no one wants to hear your ideas and that your views on some current topics fall on deaf ears among those around you.
      Studying abroad can give you exactly what you are looking for. No matter where you`re eventually going to study, you will have the chance to meet people that have the same ideas and who left their country for the same reason you did. You`ll meet new people from all over the world, as well as new cultures, languages, beautiful faces and so much more.

   2. Become more mature.

      Living in another country will help you to become mature.
      Looking for a flat, organising your budget, sticking to a timetable and living away from your family and friends. All these factors help you to get to know yourself better and from a totally different point of view. While at home you could always count on your parents if something did not work the way you imagined it to, you would just call on them and like with a magic wand, all problems were solved. On the other hand, when you’re on your own, you need to plan ahead. It all starts when you choose your country and university of destination and all the paperwork that comes with that. Don’t underestimate it, but once you do a few forms you should really be able to fill in any form that you might have to deal with later in your life.

   3. Improve Language Skills.

      Of course, your language skills will improve considerably.
      You don’t have any other choice than to open up your mouth and tell people what you need to communicate. You might not believe it now but after some weeks you will start dreaming in the foreign language. Other than that, it is even so funny to listen to all the different accents and voices of the natives.

   4. Skills and Knowledge

      During your course of study, you will acquire skills and knowledge that you will use in the future.
      And always keep one thing in mind: how many people you know have decided to go abroad after they have finished school? This experience is what will make YOU the interesting person. The one that everyone wants to talk to once you will be back home. You`ll be able to tell stories from real life experience and not only talk about trivial things like the weather. This experience will enrich your life and even though you might struggle at times, you will  get back on both feet every time. When you have reached the end of your stay abroad you can proudly say that you did it and no one will ever be able to take this away from you.

Cons

We have seen many different important positive points of studying abroad, but not everything that shines is gold.

1. Fitting in.

   For example, it can happen that some people simply have a hard time fitting in. Depending on which country is hosting the foreign student, the cultural    shock can be too much to handle for them. The candidate may dislike the given opportunity. Let us admit it, travelling and living abroad is the dream of many youngsters, but are all of them ready for this? I am afraid they’re not. Some people, indeed, suffer from a problem called “homesickness”. What does it mean? It simply means, that this person misses their home to the point of not being able to appreciate anything else.

2. Falling ill

    Let’s keep on talking about sickness, what happens when you are studying abroad and you get sick? Depending a lot on the country where you are   studying, this can be problematic. I personally fell sick travelling and ended up in a hospital in Cambodia. Don’t get me wrong, it was an international   hospital and the doctors were prepared and competent. So the problem is not (usually) the skills of the doctors in a specific nation, but the agreements   between the countries themselves. If there is none, the medical bill will be covered by the patient, resulting in a huge amount to pay.

3. Expenses

   This brings up another problem which could occur while studying abroad: expenses. Studying in your own country, generally speaking, is less expensive than going abroad. Excluding the costs of transportation, which although are still a great expense to take into consideration, we must not underestimate the rent for accommodation (unless your family have a property in that country. If that is so, you can light-heartedly skip this paragraph! Grocery shopping, health insurance (not find yourself in a position as mentioned above), tax and more are also great expenses.

What are your thoughts on going abroad? Or have you already made such an experience? Feel free to share it with us in the comment section.