I remember how I felt when I first arrived in Paris. Fearful yet excited for the semester ahead of me, thinking about everything my friends had said about how I'd have the time of my life. Jet lag couldn't stop me from looking out the window at the street names, wondering what that landmark we just passed could have been. Maybe it was the champagne I'd had hours ago on my flight, but I was filled with this giddy excitement of what the semester ahead held in store for me.

Regardless of whether you're thinking about applying to a study abroad program, or if you're halfway through your semester at one of the global centers, do your future self a favor and ask yourself these questions:

What do you really want out of a semester abroad?

What are the steps you'll take to ensure that you'll achieve that?

What is your fallback plan if you don't reach this goal?

Before you apply to the study abroad program of your choice, think about the potential upsides and downsides. Think about potential situations you may encounter, so you can anticipate it in advance. Come up with a bucket list of what you want to accomplish on your semester abroad, and think about creating a fallback list of comforts you can turn to when you miss home.

If you want to travel, take note of possible discounts. I found that I saved more with the prix jeunes (for youths under 25) than I did with the prix étudiants (for students), with a few notable exceptions- I did get free entry to the Picasso museum in Barcelona when I showed them my student ID from Paris 7.

Create a list of places you want to go, of things you want to see. Budget your time and money wisely. Then, space them out on your calendar.

Take loads of pictures! Don't just do it for the Instagram likes or Facebook reacts. (Or, you could. NYU has an official study abroad tumblr called This Is NYU that will repost your pictures as long as you #hashtag them.) Each picture is a memory you'll keep with you long after you return from your semester abroad. In years to come, you may look back on these pictures with nostalgia, recalling the good times you had at this city or that one.

Your study-abroad experience can definitely be a mixed bag. You could technically meet a ton of people you get along with and have an absolute blast. Or, you could put yourself out there and talk to people from your classes, and not really hit it off with any of them.

You might get homesick. You might miss your friends. You might wish you were actually enjoying yourself. Then one day you'll look back and think about how your semester abroad changed you, and how different things would be if you hadn't gone.

Like many things in life, your semester abroad is only worth what you make of it.