by Staff writer
On the surface, studying abroad looks really fun and straightforward – you pick what you want to study and choose a cool school and start preparing for your travel.
In reality, that’s hardly the case. Behind all those glamorous Instagram pictures and beautiful landscapes is a constant struggle to remain focused.
Choosing to study abroad requires money, time, patience and lots and lots of courage.
Here are the top 3 things every aspiring international student must know:
1. You need money…lot’s of it!
Education is generally expensive. When you choose to get it from a country outside where you live, this cost can easily become doubled or tripled. The tuition of the University of Iowa for some programs costs around 22K dollars per year.
There can be a way around this though. Most foreign schools have well-structured facilities for helping lower the cost of getting an education. Study loans, scholarships and other forms of funding exist to abate the situation.
Most schools also allow international students to work part-time during their studies.
2. Be prepared to adapt…and as fast as possible!
Imagine having your previous educational experiences in Nigeria and then traveling to the UK or Australia for additional studies. On arriving there, you might be led to think that everything is still the same, or at least similar. How wrong you are! As an international student, you need to be quick on your toes in adjusting to the new system.
3. Find and join a community
It doesn’t matter if you hate to socialize. No matter how introverted you are, once you arrive in a new country for study, you must make the extra effort to get out and make friends with other students like you.
