<p>Hi all, I'm a pre-Haas/economics double major who wants to study abroad at some point in college. Is it recommended to study abroad in the first two years? I could finish all my Haas pre-requisites in fall of sophomore year and spend that spring abroad, or, alternatively, I could study abroad in fall of sophomore year and finish my pre-requisites in spring. Any thoughts? Thanks in advance.</p>
<p>I studied abroad as a junior (spring semester) and most people go their junior year. However, I really advise you to do it earlier. I know you apply to Haas your sophomore year, so I don’t know how it will affect that. But study abroad really makes you reevaluate your views on life/priorities, and you’ll come back to school with only a year left and not enough time to really achieve what you want to. So yeah, I think your idea to go sophomore year is ideal.</p>
<p>I also studied abroad my junior year, which caused me to completely re-evaluate my life and priorities, as arduouspallor so articulately put it. A friend’s daughter who graduated from Berkeley with a degree in History likewise did it in her junior year and I don’t think it had much of an impact on her. Nor a friend of my son’s, who graduated in 2010 in Poli Sci – also as a junior – caused him to move onto a completely different path (he used to be a regular on these boards as Punkdudeus).</p>
<p>So . . . I think it depends a lot on WHY you want to do a year abroad, as well as how mature you are. If you’re pretty mature and not terribly socially awkward, with HAAS as the goal, I agree that Sophmore year might be best.</p>
<p>Just to let you know, my life, and I know a lot of other friends of mine feel the same, completely changed doing a year abroad. Once you’ve gone, you’ll get it.</p>
<p>Does financial aid cover your trip abroad? Is the study abroad program good for studying in China? What do you do there?</p>
<p>Consider your selection of courses for your remaining semesters; study abroad during a fall or spring would displace a semester, so you want to choose a time when not being able to take courses at Berkeley would have the least impact (e.g. in terms of courses that you want to take that are not available every semester, or are part of a prerequisite sequence).</p>
<p>I’m currently studying abroad, my fall semester of senior year. I disagree that it’s better to go abroad earlier - you should go abroad when you feel ready. Preferably with a good idea of what you’d like to see/accomplish while abroad, with a dose of maturity and travel know-how. That said, I have classmates here who are studying for their last semester (ie. they’re fifth-years) and they have the advantage of considering working in the foreign country or apply for a master’s degree in the same area right afterwards. You can be more future-oriented too if you’re about to graduate.</p>
<p>In your case, I think you should just finish up your pre-reqs in the fall and go abroad in the spring. If I were to choose. I would def feel more relaxed my semester abroad, knowing that my Haas stuff was done.</p>
<p>And yeah, consider your course selections. For my major, I still have to take a class that’s only offered fall and summer, so I can choose to stay (yet another) summer or a ninth semester. I was planning to take an extra semester anyway, so I was ok with studying abroad fall semester…</p>
<p>If you’re studying through an EAP program, financial aid works the same as it does when you’re in Berkeley, but your budget will be adjusted. You’ll get your Cal Grants and Pell Grants and loans etc. after you fill out the normal fin aid forms. (ask for more info from the study abroad office if you’re unsure.)</p>