How Studying Abroad Can Change Your Life

We at Wetravel always think about the ways in which travel can enrich our lives. From the cultural to the political, there are so many opportunities for growth, discovery, and exploration. As we’ve said before, travel helps us recognize and appreciate the diversity of the world and encourages us to become students of the world.

We know that you’ll learn many different things while you’re in school or university. You might learn about the psychology of happiness. Or perhaps, you’ll learn about artificial intelligence through a computer science course. While you might study these things in school, we also know that you can pick up some helpful life lessons outside of the classroom. In fact, we strongly encourage it!

There are so many things that you don’t learn in the classroom from how to do your own laundry to navigating your way through a completely unfamiliar and new city, which is why we think it’s important to travel and explore the world on your own. While it can be overwhelming and scary at first, we at WeTravel know how momentous and life-changing these experiences can be, so we want to encourage people to study abroad and learn about what the world has to offer.

By studying abroad, you get a first-hand experience of what the culture, cities, and people are like. Sure you might read about these things in a travel guide or a textbook, but it’s a completely different situation when you’re actually there. You’ll get to pick up on cultural, political, and physical nuances that you might not recognize otherwise. And studying abroad doesn't mean that you're confined to only one place for the whole entire time. When you study abroad, you have the opportunity to travel to so many places that are somehow connected and yet, different. Through your educational travels, you’ll learn more about these subtle differences and similarities and you’ll learn to appreciate them. You’ll get to flex your foreign language skills and pick up on the vernacular. Perhaps, you’ll even bring it home with you and add it to your own vocabulary. You’ll also have the opportunity to meet a wide variety of people, from fellow students around the world to locals who can explain to you the significance of certain monuments, sights, or sounds. When you are exposed to all these different opinions and backgrounds, you discover more about yourself in the process. Who you are, what you want to accomplish, how you relate to these individuals, and how you differ. You’re confronted with the diversity of the world and you’re given the opportunity to recognize and appreciate it.

Studying abroad is a great learning experience both inside the classroom and outside of it. After all, it’s a once in a lifetime experience. While you’ll still have opportunities to travel when you’re older, it just won’t be the same. You won’t have this optimism or wide-eyed outlook on the world. You might have to work or take care of a family. Other things will probably occupy you and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. But when you’re in university, you might still have an idealized view of the world and the potential in it. You want to experience and absorb all that it has to offer and studying abroad can help you do just that. So if you’re ever given the opportunity to study abroad, we at Wetravel say take it (more like grab it with all your might) and don’t let go until this magical adventure comes to an end.