When it really comes down to it, studying abroad isn’t too difficult to organize.  That said, many students miss their window of opportunity when it comes to studying abroad, and in the years following, they regret that they didn’t get the chance to go to a foreign country.  We’re all so busy with our academic lives that study abroad seems nearly impossible, and sometimes students just don’t know where to find information about study abroad.  Even though it can be challenging, I still highly encourage students to plan a study abroad trip.

Obviously it can be extremely difficult to find the time for study abroad.  Most students have full academic loads, jobs, clubs, and, of course, a social life.  If this applies to you, think about studying abroad during the summer!  Some of the summer abroad programs (London Study and Peru Study) are shorter than the quarter long programs, but still provide students with the same amount of credit units.  This is a great alternative for students who have busy schedules and can’t leave their life at Cal Poly for more than a month and a half.  Research the different programs and when they are offered throughout the year.  Also, as I’ve stated in some of my previous entries, exchange programs are available and students can really tailor these to fit their own unique schedules.

Oftentimes, students don’t know who to contact about study abroad.  There is an entire office and staff devoted to making study abroad trips happen for anyone who is interested, so get in contact with them!  The program, IEP which stands for International Exchange Programs, even claims in its mission statement that it “serves as the principal resource center for students, faculty, and staff interested in international education, administers most study abroad programs, coordinates exchange agreements for students and faculty, and provides the necessary support services for incoming international students and scholars as well as outgoing study abroad students.”  Part of students’ tuition goes towards paying for these services, so if you’re really interested in study abroad, schedule a meeting with one of the advisors and get started!

The biggest step in making a study abroad trip become reality is just starting to plan.  Once you actually pick up the applications and learn more about the program, the rest is simple.  The decision to study abroad is a huge one, and can also be extremely nerve-wracking, but the feedback from students who have studied abroad is overwhelmingly positive!  Every student that I’ve spoken to has had their ups and downs, which is to be expected, but in the end they found studying abroad to be one of the best decisions of their life.

Don’t let time constraints or even lack of information be reasons against studying abroad.  Everyone has reservations about travelling to a country that is unfamiliar to them, but college may be one of the few opportunities for you to get this travelling experience!  Contact the study abroad advisors and ask for their help and guidance because everyone should try studying abroad!

Throughout my blog, I’ve done a lot to address students who are already at Cal Poly and want to study abroad.  On the other side of that, however, are international students who want to come to Cal Poly!

There are a lot of steps that need to be taken if you’re interested in travelling abroad to Cal Poly, but the most important of them all is to make sure you like our school! Cal Poly is located in San Luis Obispo, California just off of the central coast.  Before you decide to travel to California, you need to know that this is the place you want to be.  Check out the various tourist websites and also be sure to visit the Cal Poly website!

Once you’ve decided that San Luis Obispo is a good fit for you, be sure to talk to your advisors and check out the various programs offered at Cal Poly.  You want to make sure that the classes are relevant to your major and also that credits will transfer.

Now it’s time to talk to your advisor even more in-depth.  There are several applications that must be filled out in order for you to be approved for study abroad at Cal Poly.  Keep in touch with your instructors, and find out whether or not your application can be accepted into the program.

Once you’ve been approved, you should receive information from an instructor at Cal Poly.  They will send you more applications to fill out, and through your advisor, you will return those back to Cal Poly.

When all of this is finally done, you need to fill out insurance and health paperwork.  You may need to visit your doctor to make sure you are up to date on vaccinations.  Also, Cal Poly may ask for other forms to be filled out depending on your program.

Finally, all of the hard work is done! Now, it’s time to wait and make sure you got accepted into the program.  As long as your program is affiliated with Cal Poly, you are up to health standards, and you have met the minimum academic requirements, you should be good to go!

Cal Poly’s International Program is currently quite small.  The International Program is trying really hard to expand their student base and strongly encourages international students to come to Cal Poly.  I’ve spoken with several international students, and all of them found the program to be impressive.  In fact, many of them actually liked the fact that it was a small program because they were given a lot of individual attention from professors, advisors, and their peers.  The program also puts on a lot of events such as potlucks, receptions, and even tea tastings in order to help international students get more involved.  There is even an International Student Club on campus!

If you are considering studying abroad in California, I would strongly encourage coming to San Luis Obispo.  Sure, we aren’t Los Angeles, but the area is beautiful, the instructors are incredibly devoted to their students, and everyone is extremely welcoming to international students!

You’ve picked the study abroad trip you want to go on, figured out how to pay for it, and now all that’s left is getting your parent’s permission.  Unfortunately, this isn’t always so easy.  Everyday we hear more and more about bad things going on internationally.  Just recently Thailand issued a warning to over 30 countries, including the United States, that travelling to Bangkok and other areas is highly discouraged.  So what do you do if you really want to study abroad, but now your parents aren’t too big on the idea of you travelling to another country?  Well, surprisingly, there are a lot of convincing techniques you can use to ensure that you get to travel to the country of your choice.

First, tell your parents how study abroad can really help you in the future.  It’s great for job applications and resumes, and it also really helps you to stand out when you’re one of many applicants.  Also, as I said in my previous article, having experience in international and global relations is key in getting jobs in a lot of fields.

Next, tell them what you’re going to be learning! Find out what classes you’ll be taking, and show them how this is going to help your overall education.  Oftentimes, classes are offered solely for a specific study abroad trip and can’t be taken elsewhere.  Make sure that they are aware of how unique this opportunity is for yourself and for your education.

It never hurts to be organized.  Map out your plan for studying abroad.  They need to know that the classes will be applicable to your major, and most importantly, that the trip is affordable.  If they see that you’ve put a lot of effort into making your study abroad trip happen, they’ll definitely be impressed.  Also, since this trip is for you, you may need to offer to help pay for the trip.  Get a summer job or a job at school to start saving up for your trip.  When you’re willing to pay for a study abroad trip, your parents will know that you’re very serious about making it work.

Talk to other students who have been on your study abroad trip! Find out how they liked it, and share their experiences with your parents.  Oftentimes, your parents just need reassurance that you’re going to be safe and enjoy yourself on the trip.  They don’t want to send you off to another country and pay for your tuition only to have you come back homesick and disappointed.

Finally, figure out all of the safety issues.  If your parents are worried about you wandering the streets alone, assure them that transportation will be provided, or that you will be with a group at all times.  If they’ve heard horror stories about studying abroad, find the statistics for how often bad things actually do happen in the country you want to go to.  They’ll probably be surprised to hear how rare this is.

No matter what your parents are unsure about when it comes to studying abroad, just be sure to put in a lot of time and effort in order to prove to them that they have nothing to worry about.  All of these tips will help to give them even more confidence that sending you to another country is a good decision.  Remember, they love you, and they just want you to be safe and have fun, so show them that that is exactly what you plan on doing!

Let’s face it: we’re young.  We’re in college and most of us are trying to avoid the impending doom that is “the real world.”  So, when we decide to study abroad, it’s supposed to be something that is fun, that you only get to do once in a lifetime, and it is.  However, study abroad can go way further in helping you throughout your life.  The experiences students have while studying abroad can broaden their entire perspective of the world, help them to mature, and give them great advantages in their future careers.

As we have all seen in the news and throughout everyday life, we are becoming more and more dependent on other countries.  In many study abroad trips, students are given the opportunity to live with locals and learn their languages and ways of life.  Having this experience and understanding of other cultures can be hugely beneficial.  Many companies are looking to hire new employees who can empathize and cooperate with other workers in foreign countries.  When an employer is scanning through applications, being able to say that you have had the chance to work with people in completely different countries and cultures than your own, may land you the job.  On an even smaller scale, being more culturally educated is always a beneficial trait.

When students enter college, they all go through a transition period.  They are away from home and forced to become independent.  Travelling abroad, however, takes this one step further.  Students have to be completely independent, and they also don’t have the option of driving home if things get too stressful.  Studying abroad can help students to mature significantly.  In many instances, students are placed in unfamiliar settings where they are learning a foreign language, in addition to making the transition to complete independence.  Even despite most study abroad programs being fairly short, students who come back have an increasingly higher amount of confidence than they did prior to their trip.  Most of all, they appear to have matured and grown as an individual.  Living in conditions that may not be up to American “standards” can have a great impact on students.  Indeed, it can be incredibly humbling and students will no longer take any of their many luxuries for granted.

Overall, studying abroad gives students that extra note to put on resumes.  Studying abroad tells employers that the applicant is well educated, empathetic, and good at going through extreme life transitions.  All of these will greatly increase the chances of being chosen for a job.  In a job market as bad as ours, study abroad could just be what gets you hired.

If you aren’t convinced about studying abroad just because of how much fun it can be, then think about how it will impact your future.  Studying abroad can give you the competitive edge needed to land that high salary job or door-opening internship.  Weigh your options, and definitely consider studying abroad!

For most students, just planning a study abroad trip is stressful, however, for many others with some sort of disability, studying abroad seems beyond stressful and even almost impossible.  Students who have a disability, don’t let this discourage you from studying abroad because it doesn’t have to!

As I’ve said time and again, one thing I have definitely learned from all my study abroad research is that Cal Poly really wants every single one of its students to have the opportunity to study abroad.  This even means that Cal Poly will help overcome obstacles that are seemingly huge problems in planning a study abroad trip, such as travelling with disabilities.

Unfortunately, not every study abroad trip is located in a facility that is completely accessible for people with disabilities, and some of the trips taken may be extremely difficult, however, there are other trips that definitely will cater towards students with disabilities.  The best plan is to make an appointment to meet with a Study Abroad Advisor of Program Supervisor as far in advance of the application deadline as possible.  Talk to them about what programs will be the best to participate in and how to go about arranging everything, including special accommodations if necessary.  Cal Poly has even released a statement about study abroad for students with disabilities: “Cal Poly will attempt to arrange reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities, although it is important to note that countries and educational institutions differ in their infrastructure and ability to accommodate individuals with disabilities. Certain sites are better equipped to assist students with disabilities, and we recommend speaking to a Study Abroad Advisor or Program Supervisor early on in the application process about any and all needs for accommodation.”  The Cal Poly Study Abroad website also suggests that students do some research on the country they are going to attend regarding how they accommodate people with disabilities.  Also, students should be open to all different study abroad programs as possibilities so that they can attend the one that best suits their needs.  This may mean that students with disabilities don’t get to attend the program that is their top choice.  It is also extremely important that all faculty and staff members of the program know about a student’s disabilities and what needs to be done in order to help the student.  Finally, the website recommends knowing how to discuss disabilities with people who are native to the host country.  They may have questions, and students will obviously want to understand and answer them.

In case none of the Cal Poly study abroad programs work, there are also programs specifically created to help students with disabilities.  One such program is Mobility International USA, which “aspires to empower people with disabilities through international exchange, information, technical assistance and training to ensure the inclusion of people with disabilities in international exchange and development programs.”  There is also a program called Access Abroad, which is a federally funded project (that) seeks to enhance existing study abroad opportunities for students with disabilities. This is currently the most comprehensive resource for students with disabilities and study abroad.”

Ultimately, there are many options for students with disabilities who want to study abroad, and there is absolutely no reason that they should be unable to participate in an international program.  If any of this information applies to you, talk to an advisor and start planning your study abroad trip now!

I’ve spent a lot of my time on this blog talking about the faculty led programs specifically at Cal Poly.  While they are all amazing programs, they don’t necessarily appeal to every student at Cal Poly, and so, now it’s time to talk about the California State University International Programs that are offered, and which every CSU student is eligible for.

There is a total of 19 countries that students can visit if they choose to partake in a study abroad trip offered through the CSU system.  The countries offered are amazing and give students the opportunity to travel virtually anywhere in the world!  Students can choose to go to Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Denmark, France, Germany, Ghana, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom.  Within these countries, there are even 33 different cities that students can then choose to study abroad!

Attending a study abroad program offered by a different Cal State University can be a really good option for students who can’t find a Cal Poly faculty led program that fulfills class requirements or interests them.

According to a brochure I received from the Cal State study abroad office, they offer the following majors:

• African Studies
• Agriculture
• Anthropology
• Architecture
• Art
• Biology
• Business
• Chinese
• Communications
• Computer Science
• English
• Economics
• Engineering
• French
• Geography
• German
• History
• Hospitality Management
• Japanese
• Kinesiology
• Latin American Studies
• Mathematics
• Middle Eastern Studies
• Music
• Parks & Recreation
• Philosophy
• Political Science
• Psychology
• Sociology
• Spanish
• Theater
• Zoology

It’s obvious that the Cal State system wants its students to have the opportunity to study abroad.  As I listed above, they offer tons of majors in addition to classes within these subjects that many students still need in order to graduate.

Even though students are strongly encouraged to study abroad, there are still some requirements that are definitely important to know about.  Most programs require a minimum of a 2.75 or 3.0 grade point average.  They also need applications to be submitted by February 1^st for most programs, and by May 1^st for students travelling to Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.  Keeping these in mind, students should start planning for their trip now, whether it is by raising grades or by getting a head start on the application process.

One of the greatest aspects of Cal State study abroad is that it is actually the “most affordable study abroad opportunity available to CSU students,” and the price is actually fairly similar to what students pay at school now.   Another great benefit is that study abroad experience looks great on a resume and may just be the extra piece of information that employers need when deciding whom to hire for the job.  Even though these are both great reasons for students to be encouraged to study abroad, it really comes down to the basic fact that study abroad is an amazing and life changing experience.  It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity, and, students at Cal Poly, take advantage of the amazing programs that are offered