if you could study abroad, where would you go?

[Sherriscott]

I want to be an architect and for architect Paris is best. So hell yes I will go to Paris.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Haha yes, my child is a sophomore in college and thinking about study abroad next year. I'm not really asking "for" her per se, but she was saying how she's not sure where she wants to go but she does want to do a study abroad and that got me thinking...what a cool predicament to be in! If I was in that situation, where would *I* choose to go?

She is a psychology and biology major looking to go on to become an occupational therapist...so not like being say, an art history major where the answer of where to go is much more narrowed down (Italy).

The vast majority of programs through her school are "direct enrollment" i.e. you enroll at say, Oxford (although that's not an option...just using an example that I think people would know!) and although there would be other American students/students from her school, she'd be living/going to class alongside English students.

I was a German major that studied in what used to be (but wasn't at the time) East Berlin for the 96/97 school year when very few adults had learned English in school because Russian was seen as more useful. For my purposes it was great - it really cemented my German language skills.

I'll share an observation I saw among my classmates. Your daughter is a hard science major, which is a much more "tracked" major than the social sciences. Each semester builds on the last one. Be sure to look at what your daughter's graduation requirements will be (or grad school requirements will be) to be sure that she won't miss a class that is only offered every two years while she's gone. Instead of looking at countries, your daughter may need to look for specific schools that offer similar programs to what she's studying here so she can take a required class there (after checking with her home school that the credits will transfer). Remember, schools in Europe (and potentially other parts of the world) are much more specialized than here in the US. Many schools here in the US are "liberal arts" schools and offer a wide array of majors. In Europe, it could be that you go to XXX school to study Economics because the other schools don't offer Economics. At all. So if you were a study abroad student at one of the other schools and needed an Economics class that semester to graduate, you would be out of luck.

If your daughter's school has a study abroad office, have her make an appointment to talk to them (this isn't a drop in discussion) about what programs are offered at each of the potential schools she could attend - or how to structure her schedule at her home school so that she doesn't have to take ANY required classes for a semester - and that's the semester she studies abroad, regardless of when her friends can go.

To be clear - I loved my study abroad experience and think everyone should try to make a study abroad experience work for them. Based on what I saw, though, it's much easier to study abroad if you're a language major or a social science major than if you're a math major or hard science major. It's likely still possible for math and hard science majors, it just takes more coordination on the front end.

Also - some study abroad programs have internship opportunities. Have her look into whether any of the potential schools where she could study abroad have OT internships available. That would be an incredible experience - but might limit her to English-speaking countries where the internship would be possible. Needing a highly technical class during her study abroad time could also limit her to English-speaking countries, because a more full catalog of classes would be available.

Now, if your daughter is looking at a SUMMER abroad - which is also a great option - her potential locations may open up considerably because she could potentially take electives rather than the tracked required classes.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was supposed to study abroad in Spain but due to various circumstances ended up backing Europe instead. It was an amazing experience, but I really hope my kids study abroad. You can't go wrong, although I think it's best to do it in a foreign-language country and learn the language. Personally I think Spanish is probably most practical/useful, so Spain, Argentina, Chile, etc. I'd so love to do that.

Wut?

[Anonymous]

I studied abroad in India. Best months of my life.