Why study abroad? I believe the real question is, why not? Why not see the world? Why not experience different cultures and learn about other perspectives? Why not discover new social atmospheres, food, traditions, and customs? Why not get an education through different styles of teaching? Why not experience a side of your area of studies you may not be able to see at home?
Studying abroad has many benefits. It can help you develop new skills because it will push you out of your comfort zone, out of your daily routine, and expose you to new cultures and languages, new people, new places, and new learning styles. It allows you to open your mind and experience new things. It is more than just seeing new places; it is about education, about growth, about culture shock, about experiences and people. Studying abroad allows you to find new interests, see different lifestyles and make lifelong friends. It contributes to personal development because studying abroad brings out your independent nature. You have to be curious and excited, open to new experiences and quick on your feet if something goes wrong.
On top of the invaluable life experiences studying abroad provides, it also provides great skills that graduate schools as well as employers look for. When a job candidate has studied abroad, the skills he or she acquired are invaluable and will serve them well both in graduate school or in a career. This is one of the reasons I would personally love to be able to study abroad. I believe studying abroad will give me the skills I need for graduate school, my future career, and life after college in general.
I am really eager to discover new places and be out of my comfort zone. Having always been close to home, I really embraced living on my own and being independent during my freshman year on campus out of my hometown. I am very curious and I am not afraid to take on new challenges. I have always wanted to immerse myself in a new culture and see the world with a new perspective.
In today’s globalized, interconnected world, being aware of other cultures and having cross-cultural communication skills is very important. I believe studying abroad will teach me those skills, and teach me to appreciate diversity. An international experience is priceless in my eyes, because it provides well-rounded lessons, both academically and personally. In the field I want to work in, hospitality management, I am constantly going to be confronted with different cultures. I will be working with people from different backgrounds and cultures, who speak different languages and have different views on the world. Experiencing a different culture now will only be beneficial and give me the much-needed skills in my field in the future.
That is why I have planned on studying abroad in England next fall semester. I am so excited to go on this adventure and thankful I get to experience this once in a lifetime experience. I hope you can understand how beneficial going to study abroad can be to you, even if it is just for a week or a month. If you asked me why you should not go study abroad, I would not be able to give you an answer. But if you asked me why you should go study abroad, the answer would be boundless!
