5 Things I Wish I Knew Before Going To Study Abroad

5 Things I Wish I Knew Before Going To Study Abroad

We’ve all dreamt about going to study abroad one time or the other. There you are after the long scholarship application sitting in front of your laptop ready to click send in your application.

A couple of months go by and you forget about the application till one day you get an email notification that you got the scholarship to go and pursue your Bachelors or Master’s degree.

Related: Sample Motivation Letter For Scholarships 

For me the preparation period was full of mixed emotions, the excitement that I was to go abroad for my studies for two years, sad as I have to uproot everything and go start afresh in a new country.

Despite the mixed feelings, there are a number of things I wish I knew before I left the country and that’s what I’m going to share as per my experiences having now been back home one year six months.

Here are 5 things I wish I knew before going to study abroad

1. Culture shock is real

Yes! Culture shock is for real my friends. Culture shock is an experience a person may have when one moves to another cultural environment which is different from one’s own.

Culture shock entails language barrier, boredom, interdependence and many other things.

I always thought that this was a myth and that people were just being whiny. The rate at which this got to hit me no amount of fun could take it away.

There is no known way to completely prevent culture shock as we are all affected differently and react differently. Be prepared to face some of the things stated above and be ready to bounce back.

2. You will be stereotyped

Once people know you are a foreigner they will stereotype you for the little they know about your origin.

I remember once someone asked me where I come from and the question that followed was “Oh! Do you come from Kenya? So you must be a good runner because you train with lions?”

Let’s just say that was the beginning of my stereotyping journey. The best way to handle this is to not take offense in the questions, but turn them into some serious humorous moments for yourself.

3. Learning a new language is not easy

I know there are people who are so easy with languages, but not all of us. It’s often said a semester is enough to learn a new language, practically, this is not true.

You will need more than a semester to learn a language.

Patience is key as getting frustrated that you have not made much progress within a semester will not get you anywhere. Patience ‘sabar’ as my friends would caution me whenever I wanted to give up on learning the language.

Makes as many local friends as possible as they are handy and vital to help you practice the language to achieve proficiency as soon as possible.

4. Financial management is not a myth

We’ve all had to manage our finances, time after time and that is not different when you are in a foreign land.

Experience abroad can turn you into some financial analyst. Learning to manage your finances in a foreign currency and keeping up with the forex exchange rates is not an easy task.

You cannot afford to eat at McDonalds or Pizza hut every day or go to the beach or movies every week.

You will have to learn how not to call your parents every Monday morning because you ‘lived’ the past week.

You get to learn that financial management is not just a subject on campus but a harsh reality.

5. Getting a job once back is tough

There you are on your graduation day having gone through all the pain and tears and almost giving up more than once, you’ve graduated.

Excited to be coming back home with your Master’s degree or Bachelor’s degree and dreaming about landing that big job? Easy tiger…..easy!

With your qualifications, it will still be hard getting a job, employers will look at your qualifications and they are there thinking how you will ask for a high salary or you are over qualified for the position.

Yes, welcome to my world! There is such a thing as being overqualified, the number of times I got to be told that when I was applying for jobs can’t forget.

You will find yourself buying new clothes and catching up with fashion time after time and by the end of your stay, there will be so much dead weight to deal with.

Use the rest of the allowance for things you will not eat in like forever like maize flour for ugali meal to enjoy once in a while.

To be continued next Sunday…

Related: University Student Alters Transcripts From F’s To Straight A’s For Ksh630,000 Scholarship 

Categories: