Why Study Abroad

1. To make life more interesting

If you’re getting sick of the same old same old, study abroad is the perfect way to get out of the doldrums. When you start to get bored with typical college life, this is a great way to inject some energy and excitement into your life. See new things, meet new people, and settle into a new routine. Studying abroad could be just the change you need!

2. Because It Will Never Be Easier to Travel than Now

Study abroad will probably be the only time in your life that you’ll get to travel, take courses in another country, and meet other international students your age. Plus, if you study abroad with a provider, most of your itinerary will be planned for!

In most other travels, you’ll have a lot more logistics to figure out and pay for: accommodations, meals, the language barrier, navigation, and sight-seeing. While solo travel is its own kind of awesome, you’ll always have the future to do that (like a post-graduation gap year?).

Study abroad is also one of the few to only times you’ll be able to an extended period abroad -- at least three months, and maybe even a year! Once you’re out in the real world and have a job, it can be tough to cobble together more than one or two weeks of vacation time, so take advantage of a study abroad program to catch the travel bug now, while you still can.

3. To Meet New People and Make New Friends

Many students hesitate to study abroad because they’re worried about missing their friends or family at home. Between Skype, Instagram, Facebook, and Face Time, there are more than enough ways to stay in touch overseas. Your friends will still be there when you return home, but you only have this one chance to make new friends abroad.

Study abroad is an incredible opportunity to meet other like-minded students in your program, as well as local people -- from host families, to fellow students, to new friends you meet in the streets. If you’re worried about missing friends or overcoming homesickness, just think of all the incredible stories you’ll be able to tell them when you get home.

4. To Travel Someplace New

If you’ve always dreamed of traveling somewhere, be it Paris or a rural area in Ghana, why not study abroad there? Sure, you’ll be focused on your studies, but most programs give you the weekend off and even schedule longer trips for the group.

Study abroad allows you to see a lot of new places and also spend a lot of time immersing yourself in one place. It will be hard to come by an opportunity like this again, so take advantage of it and travel the world as a student!

5. To Gain a New Perspective

Studying abroad provides you with the opportunity to gain a different perspective, not only on academic subjects but also the way of life. Whether you adjust to afternoon siestas in Spain or learn about holistic medicine in India, study abroad lets you look at yourself, your world, and your studies from a different perspective.

6. To Further Your Studies

It is called study abroad, after all. One of the best reasons to study abroad is to further your academic studies in an incredible, immersive way. If you’re an African Studies major, go to Kenya and put the theories you learned in the classroom into practice. Or if you’re writing your art history thesis on the Renaissance, get some hands-on research experience studying in Italy.

Of course, study abroad is an incredible time to pursue academic interests completely outside of your major. Whether you want to focus on your major, or try something new, study abroad is the perfect opportunity to do so.

7. To Give You a Competitive Edge

This should never, ever be the only reason you study abroad, but if you (or your family) are on the fence, it is an important consideration. Studying abroad sets you ahead of your peers in the eyes of graduate schools and employers. It highlights your sense of adventure, independence, cultural sensitivity, and worldliness. When you return, make sure to update your resume to highlight your study abroad experience. They're not just getting jobs faster, though; students that have studied abroad have also been found to earn 25% higher starting salaries compared to their peers. That's around an extra $7,000 earned annually for students in the US! Salary aside, students who have studied abroad report that they're better at adapting to a variety of work environments and that they're happier with their jobs.

8. To Learn Another Language

Whether you’ve been studying a foreign language for years or are starting from scratch, studying abroad provides a convenient, immersive environment for language learning. 

You just can’t beat the immersion of a study abroad program for learning a new language. If you’re studying abroad primarily to learn a foreign language, you can always attend a language school to get the most out of studying a language abroad.

9. Because Everyone Should Experience Another Culture at Least Once

In an increasingly globalized society, it’s important to understand and experience other cultures. Learn new recipes, new ways of learning, new ways of getting around, new customs, traditions, and ways of relating to people. There’s no better way to learn about how people around the world are similar and different than to immerse yourself in another culture, and study abroad is a great place to start.

10. To Challenge Yourself and Grow as a Person

One of the best things about studying abroad -- even if it’s also one of the most daunting components -- is pushing your boundaries and challenging yourself. It’s ultimately a good thing to push your comfort zone, because as you adapt, you’ll gain invaluable life skills and change and grow as a person in ways you couldn’t if you stayed at home.

This is really what studying abroad is all about: doing something exciting but a little bit scary, experiencing the downs with the ups, and coming through a stronger, more confident, and more culturally-aware person.When it comes down to it, study abroad isn’t right for everyone; however, it's invaluable for students who do go, as well as one of the number one regrets of college graduates who forgo the experience. Even if you still feel nervous, if even a few of these reasons speak to you then chances are you’ll do great studying abroad. With so many reasons to study abroad, the easier question might be, “why not?”

There are many ways to work it out so you can study and intern abroad at the same time. (Or alternatively, take part in a volunteer initiative!) The important thing to remember is that it can be done: sometimes all you need to do is ask for what you want.

Be flexible, and don’t be afraid to ask for a little flexibility in return, whether that means changes to your class schedule, looking for a country with more flexible student working visas, or accepting slightly-odd internship hours. As long as you do your best at both efforts, you're guaranteed to have a rewarding and productive time abroad.