2 answers
Andriana
Student
Big Pool, MD
1
Question
Updated
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What criteria should be considered when planning a semester abroad during undergraduate?
I'm an incoming freshman but I've been told that to study abroad, my plan must have a solid foundation by the end of my first school year.
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2 answers
Maggie Weglarz
Electrical Engineer
17
Answers
Schaumburg, Illinois
Updated
Maggie’s Answer
Hi Andriana -
I would look into where you are interested in studying. Your school may have a list of locations that students have studied at in the past that you might take inspiration from. There is probably a study abroad coordinator or division at your school that could direct you to this info. Then you want to consider which locations have programs that fit with your major and the classes you want to take. An advisor from your school can help with this as well, to map out which classes you need to take as a freshman and which classes you could take abroad.
My experience is not necessarily everyone's experience, but I had luck as an engineer studying abroad during the spring of my sophomore semester. I did have to move a few classes around, but I was still able to stay on track.
Best of luck! Studying abroad was a great experience for me, and I wouldn't change it at all.
Maggie
I would look into where you are interested in studying. Your school may have a list of locations that students have studied at in the past that you might take inspiration from. There is probably a study abroad coordinator or division at your school that could direct you to this info. Then you want to consider which locations have programs that fit with your major and the classes you want to take. An advisor from your school can help with this as well, to map out which classes you need to take as a freshman and which classes you could take abroad.
My experience is not necessarily everyone's experience, but I had luck as an engineer studying abroad during the spring of my sophomore semester. I did have to move a few classes around, but I was still able to stay on track.
Best of luck! Studying abroad was a great experience for me, and I wouldn't change it at all.
Maggie
Lauren Burris
Director, Human Resources
2
Answers
San Francisco, California
Updated
Lauren’s Answer
Hi Andriana! A couple of criteria questions that I considered when I was deciding on where I wanted to study abroad were:
- Will this help my major? (Such as: are the courses available useful? Does the university/location offer further context for your major? If you don't have a major yet, you can work with an advisor to narrow down locations of general studies.)
- Will there be a language barrier that might make it difficult to complete my studies? (I decided to go someplace that spoke primarily English because my other languages would have impacted my ability to do well in my classes.)
- If I have a location already in mind, are there courses available in specific semesters, and will that work for me?
- How much will it cost? (Honestly, it can be an impact to where you live during your semester abroad and ability to participate in the larger culture)
I studied abroad in London, England and also used my student visa to get a part time job to embed myself in the culture outside of my fellow classmates. I loved it and was able to segue it to a summer internship in Scotland and follow up with a job after I graduated. If you can make it work, it is a great opportunity to see how others live, work, and approach life!
- Will this help my major? (Such as: are the courses available useful? Does the university/location offer further context for your major? If you don't have a major yet, you can work with an advisor to narrow down locations of general studies.)
- Will there be a language barrier that might make it difficult to complete my studies? (I decided to go someplace that spoke primarily English because my other languages would have impacted my ability to do well in my classes.)
- If I have a location already in mind, are there courses available in specific semesters, and will that work for me?
- How much will it cost? (Honestly, it can be an impact to where you live during your semester abroad and ability to participate in the larger culture)
I studied abroad in London, England and also used my student visa to get a part time job to embed myself in the culture outside of my fellow classmates. I loved it and was able to segue it to a summer internship in Scotland and follow up with a job after I graduated. If you can make it work, it is a great opportunity to see how others live, work, and approach life!