Study Abroad Blog

In the blog within, you will find a little bit of humor, a little bit of tears, and a whole lot of honesty. This is my first hand account of what it was like to think about, apply, go abroad, and come back. These are my tips on "things I wish I knew when I was preparing to study abroad". 

Just so you know where I'm coming from: I have never really traveled outside of the country before and never been on a plane. I'm about to be a senior at UT Tyler. And lastly, I'm a Pell Grant recipient as well as many other scholarships. In short- if you think you're too poor or scared or inexperienced to go study abroad, just listen to what I have to say. I thought those things about myself before I went to Ireland for a month too. 

First of all, I would say that if you're even thinking about going abroad, then you need to get a passport. I had to think about it a lot before I did it because, let's face it, I'm broke. But it was worth it. I can't imagine trying to get all the application paperwork completed without even having my passport. You are going to need it pretty much straightaway. And, besides, it's valid for 10 years. 

So just go for it. 

Do it. 

Seriously. 

I'm going to be honest, it was a bit confusing to try and get all the things you need to apply for it. But here's the upshot: it becomes a lot more simple if you just get it done at the UT Tyler passport office. Your study abroad advisor can even help you with it. 

 

Next, let's discuss scholarships. It's a biggie, I know. To be honest, as I mentioned earlier if I didn't get these scholarships, I could not have gone on this trip. I needed them. 

There are tons of scholarships out there for college students. As my study abroad advisor liked to tell me, college is the one time in your life when - if you're looking for it- people will give you money and all but ask you to take it just so that you have these experiences and learn these things. So take advantage of it!

Scholarships do take up time to complete. But if you can stay on top of deadlines for applications and make sure you give people enough time to look over your application before you submit it... you can earn thousands of dollars by writing a few papers, it is so worth it. 

The basic bottom line of scholarships is this: apply for absolutely everything that you can. Do some research on your own, but to be honest you really just need to talk to your study abroad advisor - your study abroad advisor is about to become your best financial friend. If they are anything like the amazing study abroad advisor I worked with (shoutout to Iris Hobma!!), they will be able to tell you what scholarships the university has as well as the big name study abroad scholarships other organizations offer. She helped me with filling them out, looking at my essays before I submitted them to give me feedback, and made sure I remembered the deadlines. 

And all I had to do was just ask her!!! (This is going to be a recurring theme. Ask questions, just do it. It's a good thing.) 

I was fortunate enough to receive several scholarships: National ones from Phi Kappa Phi and Benjamin Gilman ( Iris helped edit the essays for both of them). I also received scholarships from UT Tyler. I had to fill out a separate application but Iris told me how to do it. Then, once I did it, she finished the rest of the submission process for me. She also told me about summer financial aid and how there is a summer Pell Grant that works for study abroad! Just talk with your study abroad advisor, they will be able to tell you if you would be eligible for summer aid. 

I know the whole shebang feels huge, but, honestly, the secret is to get excited about your potential trip. If you start to feel excited, then it will be easier to do the paperwork and the applications because it will feel like it's opening doors for your time abroad. 

And again, don't be afraid to ask questions. Trust me, you will feel way more prepared and at peace if you know the answers to questions. It's fine! You probably can't ask more questions than I did of everyone , and they didn't hate me :)

Once you know you are going abroad, here are a few things I recommend you do:

Budget - Iris told me I should start budgeting and planning before I travel. Now, your budget is of your own creation. So you don't have to be a spendthrift or anything if you don't want to be. After all, study abroad for must of us will be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. And for me, it was totally worth it to spend more money than I normally would in order to do things like go out to eat, buy presents, put extra money on my metro card, or go to tourist sites with people from my program. But I will say try to make a list of the things that you really want to do or foods that you want to try before you leave. That way, you can already get an idea of what to expect cost wise like the price of entry tickets or if you have to purchase a separate train ticket because it is outside of the city.... and don't forget to check the currency exchange rate too. The exchange rate can change quickly.

As for flights, the earlier you can start looking the better. But wait until you get the all clear to purchase your flight from your program advisor. When looking at flights, you can be creative and look at flights that depart from Tyler, Dallas, Houston, or other areas because different airports can have different costs. As for where to purchase your flights, check everywhere. But make sure you stick to legitimate sites. I had the best luck with Student Universe. 

And right before you go abroad, remember to tell your bank how long you'll be gone and what countries. Your card will not work abroad unless they know or they might freeze your card. That would be bad. 

 

When the time to leave is finally here, here are the things to look forward to: 

Look forward to meeting new friends and making memories with them that are just crazy. 

Look forward to learning that you can do things you were afraid of and learning that they're not so scary. 

Look forward to being able to design your own adventure! 

Look forward to looking back. Honestly, now that I'm back in the USA, I find myself running over every memory of my time abroad, however inconsequential at the time. It's such small stuff from my time there that I cherish. 

And when you are abroad, I highly recommend trying to keep some semblance of your normal routine from home. Iris talks about culture shock and homesickness at a pre departure meeting, and it is real. For me, that meant things like taking a shower at the same time of day as I would back home, eating food that I would have back home for some of my meals, and finding a local church to attend on Sundays. You should make lots of room to try new things.... but I saw the students who were being 100% different from their usual selves were the ones who wanted to leave much earlier than me. 

Finally, take lots of pictures. Your pictures not only will make you smile later, but these photos will be something that you show your kids someday. I love my pictures of Ireland. They make me happy. 

Long story short? This will be ok. Do your research. Ask questions. Don't be afraid of this. Take a breath and be excited. You've got the adventure of a lifetime in front of you! 

This post was contributed by Brynna, a study abroad alumni from Summer 2023. Brynna is a Spanish major with a Mass Communications minor who went abroad with our affiliate partner AIFS to Ireland.