Eat, pray, love: 10 Reasons You Should Study Abroad

You might think that college is just a hurdle, necessary to jump over so that you can get on to “real” life and your bigger dreams. However, the college experience is actually a part of life, and if you treat it as a hurdle instead of an opportunity, you’ll miss out on some of the best things it has to offer. You might even miss out on international study abroad programs.

The prospect of studying internationally can be daunting, as you find a plethora of reasons to not go:

The food might be GROSS.

It’s EXPENSIVE.

It will take me LONGER TO GRADUATE.

I’ll MISS MY FAMILY and friends back home.

Those, and other reasons, keep 99% of students from traveling abroad.

The factor that deters the greatest number of students is cost. While studying abroad can be very expensive, some study abroad programs are funded or offer scholarships for participants. In fact, once you account for food and housing, the cost of a study abroad is often comparable to the price of studying on campus.
It is possible to find affordable options.

Really, though, it boils down to this:
Every opportunity has its cost, but if you make all your decisions on life for the reasons to not do something, you're going to miss out on a lot of incredible opportunities.

Deciding to study abroad was one of the best investments I've ever made.

Here are 10 reasons why YOU should study abroad, too:
1. Get to know fantastic program directors.The directors of study abroad programs take you to many of the coolest sites, and direct you to the others in your time off. It’s about as good as having a personal tour guide for your entire trip!

As an added bonus, you get to know professors very well, and they get to know you, too. This wonderful professor, Dr. Fitzgibbon, helped me receive the Fulbright scholarship!

2. Experience things you couldn't afford on your own.Studying abroad is expensive, and while I'm all for budget traveling (finding cheap motels, sleeping on trains, etc), traveling in a group qualifies you for some sweet group discounts. I got way more than I paid for in so many ways. I felt especially lucky on the days I woke up to this fantastic scenery:

3. Learn a new language.
Immersing yourself in a new culture is one of the best ways to learn a language. Even if you don't come home fluent, you'll likely pick up some fun phrases to say, like "thank you" to your host family or "this is delicious!" to your favorite chef.

4. Learn new skills.
Napoleon Dynamite got nothin' on you. Go on a study abroad and you might come home with a newly discovered passion for art, or the skills of an Italian chef, a Brazilian soccer player, or a Kung Fu master.

5. Make friends.
From the other students in the program to host families and others you interact with, there is incredible potential to form new friendships.

6. Impress people with your very own, stylish Kennedy Center backpack.
Seriously, that logo marks one of the most coveted accessories on BYU campus.

7. Check things off your bucket list.
Swim in the Amazon? Hold an anaconda? Hike a volcano? Climb the Great Wall of China? Check.

THIS COULD BE YOU:

8. Discover things that you didn't even know should be on your bucket list!
There are lots of cool things to do that you maybe didn't even know you could do. Like visiting caves in China, holding a sloth, catching a piranha, or looking out over Iguaçu Falls.

9. Fall in love with a new place.
America is great. There is SO much good here, and so much to be grateful for. But there is a lot of good in other places, too, and a lot of people don't take the time to discover it's there. Traveling abroad opens your doors to meet new people and see new places. I've left pieces of my heart in so many places around the world, and I love it!

10. Experience life like you never have before.
There really is something incredible about study abroad programs. They might take a little extra money and planning, but the experiences are absolutely worth it.