Trying to study abroad can be confusing and complicated. I ran into multiple issues when I was going through the process to study abroad in Lucerne Switzerland for a semester and to Dublin Ireland for 2 weeks. In order to help you along your path to the ultimate experience as a college student, I’ve laid out the process of what it looks like. The process is laid out for a Purdue University program but will show the general flow of events regardless of the program. If you are simply trying to learn more about study abroad and if its for you, check out my article So You Want to Study Abroad?

Here are the Steps:

Choose your program

Find a program based on a culture, environment, activities, or simply the continent on that excites you. Be sure you have researched the location thoroughly and are certain the idea of living here for roughly 6 months sounds exciting. You will have to pay a $500 nonrefundable fee for the application. To read more about selecting a program check out So You Want to Study Abroad?

You’ve been notified via email that you’ve been accepted to the program

Read the acceptance email thoroughly. This email will define what the next steps are for specific to your program. Most likely it will be telling you to begin working through all of the required information on www.studyabroad.purdue.edu and navigating to “My Study Abroad”.

Once you are in “My Study Abroad” begin familiarizing yourself with the different feature the website offers and all the different forms you will be required to fill out and submit. This is also a good time to start familiarizing yourself with the different people you can utilize to assist you during this process. You will have at your disposal the academic advisor appointed to your study abroad program known as the program coordinator. this person will perhaps be the most important contact at your disposal. You will also have your academic advisor, and both Elizabeth Barajas and Jennifer Ramos who work in the Office of Globalization and oversee all study abroad programs. Eventually, you will have contact with an academic advisor at your host University as you work through all the information required. If you have any questions during the logistical process you have plenty of resources to get those questions answered. Start with the advisor appointed to the program as they will know the specifics to what you need, and work from there.

After familiarizing yourself with the resources available and becoming aware of the required information you will need to fill out, begin filling said information and documents out. I recommend starting with the medical form. If you have any medical conditions that will require a doctor’s signature as outlined in the form, this process will take much longer as you will need to schedule an appointment and obtain the signature from the doctor. Do not procrastinate on filling these forms out but also do not stress about getting all the forms done as fast as you can. Some forms you will not be able to fill out and submit until other tasks have been completed. For example, one form is uploading copies of your passport. If your passport has expired or will expire during your trip, then you will have to go and obtain a new passport which can take several weeks. Therefore, this document will be unable to be completed until the new passport arrives. But because it can take time to complete you should not procrastinate.

Part of the documents to complete is scholarship applications. There are plenty of scholarships for studying abroad and applying is easy. Apply for as many as you can. Why wouldn’t you want to get as much paid for as possible?

After you fill out and submit all the forms you can in the “My Study Abroad”, wait for further guidance on the logistics side form the advisor in charge. You will have multiple pre-departure meetings take place and receive multiple emails from the advisor (program coordinator). During these meetings you will discuss more logistical information that will need to be done. This will include applying to your host university to be accepted into their university (do not worry you WILL be accepted), applying for an apartment or dormitory/ creating a profile to be matched with a host family, applying for a visa, and any other aspects your specific program may have. Make a list of tasks and to do with deadlines and cross off as you complete them to stay on track.

Begin working with your program coordinator and academic advisor to create a class schedule for your semester abroad that will keep you on track with your current plan of study. The program coordinator will provide you with a link to the university’s course offerings as well as give you a handout of the offered classes. Keep in mind you need 12 credit hours in order to be a full time student and remain eligible for any scholarships you may have.

Submit class list and course equivalency document you have filled out with academic advisor/ program coordinator on “My Study Abroad” for approval.

This waiting period is also a great time to start thinking of and writing down any questions you may have about studying abroad. This could range from anything about pre-departure and filling out all the information to how much to expect to spend weekly when abroad, to fun things to do at your destination. There are no stupid questions and everyone in the meeting is in the same boat as you. Therefore, they all are most likely thinking about the same questions.

Applying for A Visa

This process is a beast in itself. I cannot stress this enough to begin this application process as soon as you have gathered all the required information for the application and have received the go ahead from your program coordinator. You will receive instructions from your program coordinator on how to go about this.

You will need your up to date passport before continuing

Go to the website of the embassy assigned to your program. The embassy being used will be dependent upon the destination you are traveling to. The needed material before applying will look something similar to this:

From Switzerland Embassy Website

Once you have acquired the required documents, and made an extra copy of everything for yourself, enclose the documents in an envelope and mail to the embassy. You will be notified with a letter once the visa has been approved. This process can take multiple weeks and should be started as soon as possible.

Once receiving notification your visa is ready, send passport with spare passport photo (picture of yourself), and authorization form for visa back to embassy to be stamped with the actual visa. This can take multiple weeks as well and therefore should be done as soon as you receive the authorization from the embassy.

After a couple weeks you will receive your passport back with your stamped visa. Check it is correct.

Cellular Usage Abroad:

You have 3 options for using your phone abroad in order to avoid fees

Stay on your current plan and rely purely on connecting to WIFI when possible to stay connected. This will be the cheapest option but will be the most difficult. Most places abroad require you to make a purchase before having the password to access the WIFI. WIFI is also spotty and not guaranteed to be present.

Purchase a new SIM card in your host country and create a new cellular plan. This may or may not be cheaper than option 3 below. This will depend on your location and data plan you choose. The usage speeds will be much faster than option 3 however. You may have much more limited data, most likely, depending on your data plan you choose. You will have the option to use WIFI when available as well.

Change your current cellular plan to a “plus” account to account for foreign travels. This will be more expensive potentially based on your carrier and type of plan you have. Phone companies have greatly improved their cellular speed abroad and this option works much better now. The speeds are not nearly as fast in the US with this option but is usable. You will also of course have the option for WIFI when available as well. This was the option I went with and it worked great and saved the hassle of creating a new phone plan abroad with limited data.

Money:

Apply for a credit card with no foreign transaction fees as you will need money for living normally but do not want to pay extra fees for no reason. Plus, you build your credit and can build travelers points.

Consider setting up a bank account at a bank in your host country. You will receive details on how to do this upon your arrival during orientation week. The perk in doing so is you will be able to withdrawal money from ATM’s without paying any extra fees. Using a normal card to withdrawal money will have x% taken out of the withdrawal and using a currency exchange is incredibly expensive.

You now have completed all the pre-departure logistics!

Time to Leave for the Study Abroad. What Do You Pack?

The items you want to bring and the clothing you should pack will greatly differ depending on the semester and destination you have chosen to study abroad. For example, studying in South Africa during the summer will require a drastically different packing list than studying in Switzerland during the Spring semester. I will use my packing list from Switzerland in the Spring semester as an example. I Packed in 1x medium sized suitcase, 1x 70L Osprey Aether Backpack, and a small backpack:

Phone
Charger
Passport
Wallet
Credit card
Debit card
Drivers license
$50 cash
Printout of passport
Plug adapter- the type you need will be based on your location
Laptop
Laptop Charger
Headphones
Hand sanitizer
Glasses
Contacts with contact solution
Important documents in folder in backpack
Watch
Rain jacket
Down Jacket
Ski Jacket
Ski Pants
Ski gloves
3x wool socks
Ski hat/ helmet
Ski goggles
2x Jeans
1x Khaki pant
2x dress shorts
2x comfortable sweatshirts
2x button ups
2x flannels
3x long sleeve t-shirt
7x nice t shirt
7x socks
7x underwear
2x stylish sweatshirts
1x sweatpants
5x running/ workout outfits
Bathing suit
1x Baseball hat
Sunglasses
Hygiene kit
Towel
Bed sheets
Camera with lenses
Camera batteries
Camera memory card
Camera tripod
Intervalometer
Hiking boots
Running shoes
Dressier shoes
Mountain bike shoes
Mountain bike gloves
Mountain bike helmet
Mountain bike trailside tools
Mountain bike knee pads
Mountain bike shorts

I tried to leave plenty of room between both bags for purchasing a couple new shirts or jackets in Switzerland. Again, this was my list based on the destination I was traveling to during a colder timer of year. Your list may look drastically different depending on when and where you are traveling.

Getting Settled in Your New Home:

Arrive 2-3 days ahead of the beginning of Orientation. This will allow you to have some time completely on your own to get comfortable. This will allow you to have the ability to adjust to the new time zone and get rid of jet lag and feel more prepared for the onslaught of other students you meet during orientation. Use these couple days to set up your apartment/ room/ living arrangement with your things to make it feel like home.

Once settled into your living arrangement, head out into the city you are studying in to begin orienting yourself to it. Key points to note are grocery stores, pharmacies, police stations, university buildings, and public transport points for bus, trains, and ferries. I recommend walking routes from your living place to all your destinations for the first few days just to get comfortable navigating. Once comfortable then begin using the public transport.

As part of these 2-3 days of orienting, begin the process of registering at the local immigration office. This process can take a few weeks and is worth getting done sooner rather than later to avoid headaches. The process to be followed will be sent to you in an email prior to your arrival by your host university’s study abroad coordinator.

Use this time to obtain your public transport card to make using public transport easier. You will typically have the option of a half fare card or a full fare. The actual logistics and coverage will be dependent on your location and you should visit the country’s public transport website for specific details. Despite what option you go with, the card will grant you special discounts and access to different events, stores, and activities around the country. Below is a description of how the public transport cards worked in Switzerland specifically. Note the public transport cards are only good in their specific countries and cannot be used for public transport across borders.

Half fare- pay a lower annual rate and pay 50% of the normal fee for any public transport system. This option is best if do not plan to travel around the country weekly but rather use transport for staying near or within the city for normal school and personal runs. You will need to plan to purchase a ticket every time you choose to use public transport.

GA Pass (full fare)- pay a higher monthly fee but never worry about planning to purchase a ticket when using public transport. You receive a GA Pass ID card to keep in your wallet and simply present the ID when asked for ticket. This option allows you to travel however frequently and however far you want with no additional fees. If you plan to regularly travel around the country and see as much as you want or have the freedom to go on spontaneous train rides to the other side of the country without worrying about the cost, then this option is the best for you. If this is your plan, then the cost of the trips on half fare balances out with the higher monthly fee but you have less headaches with this option. I used this option and would not do it any other way as being able to go anywhere I wanted at no additional cost, however often I wanted, was extremely pleasant.
Eurorail- If you are studying in Europe this is another option. It costs slightly more than the GA but allows you to use trains in nearly all European countries at no additional cost. However, you do not receive an ID and instead must manually track each train usage on a form that you mail back when used up and receive more forms. This option also limits you strictly to using trains in any country including the one you are studying in. To use any other public transport you must pay the normal fee.

Go grocery shopping for the first time.

Understanding how much you are going to spend weekly on groceries, what grocery stores to use, and what kind of goods your host country will be selling will help you develop a budget for yourself as well as begin to understand what your diet will look like. If you’re in a country that speaks a foreign language this is also a perfect opportunity to either learn how to handle a transaction using charades, or practice your language skills. Not to mention you are now living in this country and therefore will need food to eat and cook and obtain items like soap.

Program Orientation:

Prior to your arrival you will be sent a schedule for orientation. Orientation is typically around 2 weeks long. This is perhaps the most critical time during your study abroad experience. During this period, you will have countless interactions with the entire study abroad program for your host university. There will be a meeting to help set your mind at ease with your new temporary home. They will talk about what to expect from your university and how the academic semester will work, how to make friends with the local populace, fun activities unique to your location, and safety information. Throughout this process it is important to remember nearly everyone has traveled to study abroad alone and everyone is looking for friends. This orientation period is designed to bring you all together to make that process easier. This is important as everyone is coming from a different culture where meeting people and making friends can look very different. For example, Swiss people tend to be very shy and therefore very difficult to befriend as they tend to stay within their smaller friend groups. Using this orientation to break the ice goes a long way in developing those friendships.

You will have the opportunity prior to arrival to sign up for a weekend trip at no or very low expense and run by the study abroad program. You absolutely should do at least one of these trips. This is an opportunity to spend an extended amount of time with some of the other students and allow you to get to know them and start forming your new friend group. For example, I had the opportunity to do a snowshoeing trip through the Swiss alps during my orientation for 15 CHF (about $16). The cost included all of the necessary equipment, guides, transportation, and meals for the trip. I got to know about 30 of the other students during this trip and ended up spending the vast majority of the study abroad with this same group because we all got to know each other well during the trip.

Your program will have events nearly every day and night. You will be tired and perhaps even get sick of being around so many people so frequently. It is worth every second, however. This is where you make your friends for your time abroad. The events are actually very fun and some of my favorite memories are from the orientation weeks. The program will also work with local bars during this time to have all the students come and get cheap or even free drinks. At events not at clubs or bars, the program provides loads of free booze too. Alcohol should absolutely not be your motivation for going out and being responsible should be your first concern, but it is most definitely is not a bad perk and a little liquid courage makes making friends easy.

Take advantage of any event and party as you will form amazing friendships all while having a blast with other students from all over the world doing it on the study abroad programs budget. This goes for once orientation is over as well. The study abroad program will regularly have parties and events happening that you should partake in to keep forming new relationships and strengthening the ones you have. Plus, they are simply fun and will help you make memorable experiences.

Kicking off Fassnacht in Lucerne Switzerland

Normal Semester:

At this point you will have settled into your living arrangement and will have started to form a group of people you hang out with regularly. That said, it will stake another couple week or so to get truly comfortable and have established your solid group of friends. Learning how to balance the fun of being abroad with new friends and people and also doing well in your studies is going to become the new challenge. This is ultimately going to come down to your own work ethic and the people you have surrounded yourself with. I recommend working to setup your schedule to allow you to have either Friday or Monday off in order to maximize your weekend freedom. This way you can have more time to travel and take the opportunity to see as much of the part of the world you’re in without risking missing classes. The other perk in doing so is setting a deadline of having all your schoolwork done during the rest of the week to keep this precious weekend time free for exploring. In turn you will succeed in your studies because you will be working diligently to get the work done while also maximizing your free time to explore and be with friends.

Take advantage of any trips and events put on throughput the semester by your study abroad program. There will be a multitude of trips you can participate on at a very discounted rate put on by your program. This is a great opportunity to see different parts of the world you’re in as well as invite some of the friends you’ve made to have cool experience together. Along the way you will meet other study abroad students participating in other programs from different countries on these trips. Many of these trips are typically too expensive to do on your own and therefore should be highly considered as you may not get the opportunity to do the same style of trip again. For example, a trip we had the opportunity to do was travel to Amsterdam for 4 days. 2 days were going to be hanging out by a lake and camping and the other 2 were in a nice hotel in the city. All transportation, housing, and meals were covered by the program throughout the trip. This trip was special because all ESN programs from all over the world were traveling to Amsterdam the same weekend making the opportunity to meet all kinds of people from all over the world a very unique experienced. The best part was the entire trip cost 100 CHF (about $115) for everything. This type of trip would easily cost $600, and most likely much more, should you have done it on your own.

Before arriving to your destination, you will have had a meeting on cultural awareness. Part of this is also learning some of the basic phrases in the language of your destination. This meeting may seem boring and not very important information at the time, but this information is absolutely crucial. The country you are traveling to is virtually guaranteed to have a very different culture and language than what you are used to in the United States. There is no need to be a professional on all the customs and operations of the country you are traveling to, but you should have an idea of what to expect. It is extremely disrespectful to enter a new country you plan to live in temporarily and assume everyone to conform to the way you are used to doing things. Remember, you are guest in their country. Therefore, as you would follow the rules someone else has in their home, you should follow the rules of the country you travel to. That said, you should not change your moral beliefs and such because you are living there, but simply remain respectful of the way they do things. For example, being late in Switzerland is extremely rude and a sign of disrespect. Making yourself aware of the customs and courtesies should be something you want to do as part of the learning experience. You should refrain from expecting people to conform to your expectations as they most likely will be very different simply due to cultural differences. You are there to represent the US and this is perhaps the most important way to positively represent Americans.

Fitness

Maintaining your physical fitness is another important factor throughout the semester. This will help you establish a more normal daily routine. Plus exercising is a fun and healthy lifestyle! Depending on the program and university you study at, you may or may not have a gym to utilize. If you do have free access to one, then there is absolutely no excuse to not training as you have all the resources you need. If you do not have free access to a gym, then you have two options:

Depending on your financial status and the cost of a gym membership in the host country, you can join a gym. This is going to provide you with the resources you need to have a well-rounded training program and train well. Choosing the gym you train at will also allow you to pick nearby and/ or one that is very appealing to your taste and exercise style. Both these factors will help motivate you to train more regularly. Note that most gyms will have a student rate much cheaper than the advertised rates if you simply call or email and ask.
If joining a gym is not an option for you then you have the perfect opportunity to create your own home workout routine to greatly improve your running, pushups, and sit-ups. There is no better excuse than no gym access to improve your running abilities especially. This option is completely free and allows you to explore your destination in a new way! Perhaps some of the other students enjoy running as well and you can go on group runs.

Lastly!

It is important to know and be okay with the idea that you probable will have no idea what is happening for the first week or two. This is perfectly okay. Everyone will be confused. As the program works to get organized and all the final changes worked out, many changes happen that will confuse the life out of you. You will simply just be confused on navigating the city streets, using public transport, how a normal school day works, and simply just what to do with your free time with so many options. All these things are perfectly normal and should be laughed at as they come up rather than become stressed and frustrated by. The entire study abroad experience is a learning opportunity and an adventure. These moments are simply part of those and therefore should be handled as such.

Building a Snowman randomly in the mountains with friends from all over the world!

For a full List of the Gear I use for adventures like this, check out My Gear page HERE

Step by Step Guide to Study Abroad

Happy Migrations Everyone!