<p>I have always wanted to travel, learn a new language, and experience a new culture. I am sixteen years old, and if I sign up for a study abroad program now (for next year) I will go when I am seventeen. </p>
<p>I would love to go because of reasons mentioned above, and it would look good on a resume, as well as would help me mature as a person. On the other hand, I have many concerns.
I am quite young, and I worry about home sickness. I also have struggled with depression and OCD in the past. I am on medication now. Also, there would be so much stuff to organize if I decided to study abroad. I have braces, I have a special diet (vegan), I would need to get my medicine, etc. not to mention my concerns over culture shock and homesickness. </p>
<p>I don't want to study abroad if it means I will be struggling the whole time, but I also don't want my fears to hold me back on opportunities. </p>
<p>If you’re a vegan, don’t go to France. They have enough of a struggle understanding the concept of a vegetarian, never mind vegan (“you’re a vegetarian? Oh, here’s some fish” - genuine quote from my last trip to France)</p>
<p>Why not wait until you are at college? That way, you will be able to move into accommodation where you cook for yourself (thus, a vegan diet wouldn’t be a problem), your braces would be off, and you’ll have had another two or three years to mature and get used to being away from your family at college, but without the culture shock.</p>
<p>Hi TKAM. I agree with boomting about France. I suggest the UK - fairly high percentage of vegetarians and you would be able to find vegan-friendly establishments. Plus, it’s foreign without being <em>completely</em> foreign since they speak English. I think the meds would be OK, but get the braces off first. You’ve said you’re 16 but what grade are you in? If you’re not a very young college student, I also agree with waiting til college. If you’re totally eager for an experience abroad, you could experiment first by doing a short summer program or something, for now. The website [GoAbroad.com</a> - Study, Volunteer, Teach & Internships abroad](<a href=“http://www.goabroad.com%5DGoAbroad.com”>http://www.goabroad.com) might give you some ideas, and they include programs for high-schoolers. (I haven’t used the site myself so I can’t say if it’s good, but I happened to see it when I googled.)</p>
<p>I dunno about the second half, but it doesn’t look good on a resume. It doesn’t look bad either. It’s like putting on your resume that you went to Disneyland. Nobody cares.</p>
<p>For example, successfully completing a degree in the UK (if you’re from the US), shows a large level of responsibility and independence being able to pick up and move to a foreign country. It depends on the employer - i.e. some law firms in the US think the fact that I’m doing an English law degree is excellent and would be more than happy to consider me as an applicant for summer associate positions; other firms don’t want someone with a foreign degree and experience.</p>
<p>For the record, we do have orthodontists in the UK (contrary to popular belief!) but wherever you go abroad I would suggest taking a full stock of meds, as sometimes brand names and formulations can be subtly different in different countries . . . and moving abroad isn’t the time to be trying new medications! It is, however, much easier to be a vegan in the UK - foods in supermarkets have ‘suitable for vegetarians’ written on them, and increasingly they will say ‘suitable for vegans’ too. Eating out can mean ordering slightly off the menu (so, for instance, ordering the dish without the side of sour cream) but the concept of veganism is largely understood. I’ve been veggie in the UK for almost 10 years, and my mum was a vegan for several years too (now just veggie). Oh, and if you were so minded you could learn Welsh whilst you were in the UK, although there is a limit to its usefulness as all Welsh-speakers also speak English, and relatively few people speak it as a first language, although it has enjoyed a revival of late. </p>
<p>Another alternative would be to take a ‘gap year’. It’s not too common in the US, although it is slowly catching on, but in the UK it’s quite common for people to take a year out between school and university to work and then go travelling (I did it!). If you did that, you could go to Europe, get an Interrail pass, go travelling and stop off and do some volunteer work in return for bed and board (check out [Help</a> Exchange: free volunteer work exchange abroad Australia New Zealand Canada Europe](<a href=“http://www.helpx.net%5DHelp”>http://www.helpx.net) [Workaway.info</a> the site for free work exchange. Gap year volunteer for food and accommodation whilst travelling abroad.](<a href=“http://www.workaway.info%5DWorkaway.info”>http://www.workaway.info) and WWOOF but make sure you check visa restrictions) so that you can do homestays and practice your French!</p>
<p>If you tried to apply to work in a field like international education without some sort of study abroad on your resume, you’d be at the bottom of the pile.</p>
<p>It is clear advantage in some situations, and neutral in others.</p>
<p>Perhaps - but that’s not what we’re talking about here. We’re talking about a summer or a semester or two abroad on some organised programme. I do have the utmost respect for people who direct enroll for their entire degrees in foreign universities.</p>
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<p>Perhaps - but I also don’t think just a lame semester programme with teachers from your home university etc would cut it. And that’s a very niche field too. But I do admit, that any job that requires native-level fluency in a foreign language, or lots of dealing with people from a certain foreign country, would benefit from having spent time there. But these are tiny minorities of jobs.</p>
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<p>Change it to, a clear advantage in some situations, and neutral in the vast majority, and I’d agree with you.</p>
<p>More or less every middle-class or above white girl at a good university, studying the humanities or social sciences, studies abroad.</p>
<p>People would be much happier if they admitted that study abroad is, for most people, a safe, expensive, structured vacation that brings some college credits. Then they can make up their own minds about it.</p>
<p>Thanks for all of the ideas, I’m still thinking about it but if you have any other thoughts please post them! And do any of you have specific programs that you think are worth checking out?</p>
<p>TKAM: Depression and OCD can be difficult to deal with abroad. While the overwhelming narrative of study abroad is that it’s the best semester of college/one’s life, that just doesn’t hold for everyone. Culture shock is hard enough to deal with-- depression and OCD will add layers of difficulty upon that. If you go, be prepared for a struggle.</p>
<p>If you do go abroad, you should investigate what kind of supports the program has to offer. Larger programs may be treating students like numbers, or they might have a larger student support/health services. If you want to direct enroll, think about using Butler or Arcadia to secure extra supports and help navigating a different university system. Smaller programs (like SIT) may be able to cultivate a better sense of community and help you on a personal level.</p>