All You Ought to Know About Studying Abroad

Our today’s world is increasingly becoming more and more competitive. To cope with the present dynamics of this competitive world, a quality education is much more necessary. For students in developing world, studying abroad is an opportunity, which allows them to gain quality education and to earn degree from prestigious universities. Furthermore, students also learn about different culture, language, history and adaptive skills. These hard earned skills and degrees enable them to compete in their own market and help their countries in upgrading their knowledge base. Also, these courses are an important tool to increase people-to-people exchange and develop diplomatic relations at macro-level.

Thus, it is important to understand every aspect of studying abroad. Typically, a student can go abroad for any level of education – primary, secondary and higher education. But as in the majority of cases students take decision to go for undergrad and postgrad courses, we will focus on information regarding these courses.

Requirements for studying abroad

Students who are planning to go abroad for studying should carefully check requirements. Note that there are two types of requirements: general requirements and then there are requirements which are related to the particular course a student is planning to pursue.

1.      Scores from Professional courses
Depending upon the education level being pursued, students will have to submit scores from professional courses. For undergraduate programs, students are normally asked to submit SAT score, while for post-graduate programs students are asked to submit GRE (for sciences and humanities) or GMAT (for management studies) score.

Along with the above general aptitude tests, language fluency tests are also required. There are mainly two tests in this category – IELTS (accepted widely in the UK and Europe) or TOEFL (accepted widely in the US). Note that language fluency tests are considered more important as a good score means easier adaptation for a student in a foreign environment.

Additionally, for certain higher courses (mainly in life sciences), universities ask for subject GRE scores as this helps panel members in benchmarking student’s knowledge level with American students.

2.      Scholarships and Funding
Studying abroad is most likely a costly affair. A typical student has to take care of tuition fees, accommodation cost, sustenance cost, and travel cost. Aspiring students can apply for scholarships sponsored by universities or private funders. These scholarships are very competitive. If you are planning to study in Europe, there’s a great opportunity to compete for a scholarship offered by the European Erasmus Programme in which more than 200.000 students are taking part annually. For more information we recommend to read this article elaborating on the Erasmus Programme. Remember that your performance in your school is not the only factor to determine for scholarship. Panel members look for students who have been performing well consistently, have good scores in above-mentioned tests and have a goal in life.

3.      Faculty
It is very important to gather as much information about faculties as possible. Go to online forums to find out whether the concerned faculty teaches well or not.

4.      Travel preparation
While preparing for your trip, make sure not to forget the following things:

• Passport
• Insurance documents
• Duly issued air tickets
• Invitation letter from the university
• Excess currency at least to the tune of two months sustenance bills
• Arrange accommodation beforehand

Author bio: Jeff is a motivated undergraduate student who works as a freelance writer at SolidEssay.com, which is a research paper writing service helping students structure and format their research work.

Checklist for students planning to study abroad

As a student if you get the opportunity to move abroad it can be a very exciting time but also a little daunting. The thrill of the different culture, new scenery and new people take centre stage and some of the slightly less enticing details are pushed to the back of your mind. These are a few things that you should remember when planning your study abroad.

Passport

Surely anyone who is preparing to go abroad will have a valid passport? You’d be surprised. Be sure to check that your passport is still in date as you don’t want this to delay your trip. Equally as important is that it doesn’t expire whilst you’re abroad. The last thing you want is for your passport to expire before your flight home as this can take anything from 4-6 weeks to be replaced and may result in you missing your flight home and additional costs for yourself.

Budget

Start by making a list of any payments that need to be made in your absence. If you have any outstanding debt don’t think that you can just leave it behind, it will be right here waiting for you when you get back and in a much worse state than when you left. Get organised and get in touch with your bank/lender and explain what is happening. It may be that payments can be frozen until your return or even transferred into someone else’s name. Don’t forget that if your moving abroad for an extended period of time you’re going to need a bank account over there as using your current one abroad is likely to cost you money.

On an Erasmus programme you don’t need to pay any extra tuition fees to the new University you will be joining and there are also Erasmus grants that you can apply for but keep in mind that these are to cover things such as a higher cost of living in your country of choice and they are not intended to cover the full costs of your study abroad.

Decide how much money you would like to take with you to get started and be realistic. A good way to be prepared is to work out your budget and then add on an additional 25% as a contingency. If the worst should happen you’ll be glad it’s there. You also need to take into consideration how long you have until you travel. Do you have enough time to actually save that amount of money?

Accommodation

If accommodation is something that you have to organize for yourself be proactive about it. Don’t put it off until you get there as you don’t want to end up being ripped off or even worse having nowhere to stay at all; www.erasmate.com is a site aimed at Erasmus students looking for short term accommodation in Europe and means that you can get it arranged before you travel.

It is also worth thinking about whether you will need to sub-let your current accommodation. If you’re going to study abroad you are likely to be in your second or third year of University and may not be living in halls anymore. Do you rent a room/flat? Who is going to cover the costs while you are out of the country? Think about if you have any friends that would be willing to take it on while you’re away or if not you can use the Erasmate site to advertise it to fellow students. This is a great idea because you could potentially find someone looking for accommodation for the same amount of time as you, so that once your study abroad comes to an end it is an easy transition for both of you.

Hired help

Once you have found your accommodation how do you intend to get all of your belongings there? If you are only studying abroad for three months then this probably doesn’t apply to you but if you are there for a full academic year this is something that you need to consider. Depending on the course that you are doing you may have a lot of essentials that need to go with you and if you are moving for a long time you may require more space than the 23kg the airline allows you. Use an online calculator to work out how much it would cost you to ship everything to your destination as this could work out cheaper than paying for extra baggage and also make it a lot less stressful for you. It may even be necessary to put some things into storage if you are planning to let out your current accommodation. Getting quotes for these early on will ensure you make the most cost effective decision.

Be safe

It is so easy to get caught up in the excitement of moving abroad and you can easily forget things like travel insurance. Make sure that you have some in place that covers you for your entire stay as some policies are only valid for 30 days. You will also need to get yourself a European Health Insurance Card before your trip; this means that if you require any medical attention you are entitled to the same healthcare as the nationals and that you can see a local doctor.

Culture

Immersing yourself in a completely new culture can be a daunting prospect but it is important to do so. Not only will it help you to meet new people but it also looks great to future employers as it demonstrates how adaptable you are. You can read more about how studying abroad can improve your future job prospects in this post.

If you will be studying in a country where you do not speak the language then do a little research before you go. Even though your course may be taught in English this doesn’t mean that when you’re in the real world everyone will speak English for your convenience. Pick up a phrase book and even if you can’t get to grips with it the locals will appreciate you making the effort. Reach out to anyone you know that has already done the course you’re about to do as they can give you helpful tips and advice for starting out in your country of choice. If you don’t know anyone there, make friends. Go to local community centers and find out about any groups for expats. Your new University is bound to have communities for people in your situation so really throw yourself into the local culture and you will definitely settle in much quicker.

This post was written by Ashleigh Sheard on behalf of Robinsons Relocation, a UK based specialist in International, European and UK moving and relocation.

Erasmus in Granada

Erasmates!

We found a funny and informative video for all students interested in an Erasmus exchange to Granada. Listen to some information about Granada with it’s many Universities, Erasmus exchange students, insides on where to party and information about housing in Spain.

Watch the video here.

Erasmus in Finland

When thinking about Finland, what comes to most people’s minds first are saunas, reindeers in snowy winters, and endless midsummer nights! And, well, it is true, those are all characteristics of Finland, which you are about to experience when choosing for the land of the thousand lakes as your Erasmus destination!

While many people go to the University of Helsinki for their exchange period, we would like to point out that there are more universities that are happy to welcome Erasmus students! From the 10 multidisciplinary universities of Finland, two have now joined Erasmate. Both Jyväskylän Yliopisto and Turun Yliopisto (here’s your first Finnish lesson: Yliopisto = University!) decided to become Erasmate partners to help their students find accommodation abroad and offer rooms for their incoming students from all over Europe.

If you are going on Erasmus to Finland, create your search profile for a room now or browse the list of available accommodation.

Nauti Suomi!

For all Interns and Erasmus students in Madrid

Erasmates, readers, friends!

One of our readers and users of Erasmate.com, Britt, was so kind to share the following information on Madrid with us:

As you know, Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3,3 million; the entire population of the metropolitan area is calculated to be nearly 6 million. Madrid is located on the river Manzanares in the centre of both the country and the Community of Madrid.  As the capital of Spain, Madrid is also the political centre of the country.

According to the Monocle magazine Madrid is the 10th most liveable city in the world. While the city has a modern infrastructure, it has preserved the look and feel of many of its historic neighbourhoods and streets.

The best known landmarks of the city:            

• The Royal Palace
• The Royal Theatre
• The Retiro Park
• The National Library
• The Prado Museum
• The Museum of National Arts, Reina Sofia
• The Thyssen Museum

Maybe you think that the city is very old-fashioned, but the culture aspects described before are very interesting. In one or two days you can visit many museums, most of them for free, where you can see various kinds of art. Madrid is also known by the highly developed architecture, with many different styles.

If you have finished your cultural trips in Madrid, you can start shopping. The city has several districts with their own shopping character. The most expensive one is the district of Salamanca, a luxurious area with exclusive boutiques. There you can find Gucci, Prada, Dior, Armani and so on. Also some small real Spanish boutiques are to be found in this area.

Another well-known area is Chueca, the gay-neighbourhood. Here you can find all types of shops, for him and her. This district is leaded by gays, but also for hetero people a cool area. The prices vary from very low to very high and especially shoes are easy to be found.

Gran Via may be the most famous street of Madrid. Here you can find many shops as well. It is an extremely busy area, with many cars and busses, but here you can find the most accessible shops like H&M, Mango and Zara. From this street you can walk down to Puerta del Sol, a famous square of Madrid with always lots of tourists. On the way to Puerta del Sol you can find many shops as well, which will take a lot of time to visit them all.

Madrid is notable for its nightlife and night clubs. The biggest one, el Kapital, has seven floors and every floor has its own music style. This one is very huge and always crowded. It is located in the city centre. Another big one is Pacha, a Spanish club for people who look for luxury. The entrance fee is high and you need to follow the dress code. If not, you cannot enter. Tourist chose very easily for el Kapital or Pacha. Another popular club is Joy Eslava, which is actually a theatre.

A lot of clubs are to be found in Madrid, but generally people prefer to go to bars. The district of Chueca, the gay neighbourhood, is also a popular place to have drinks for hetero people as well as gay people.

Having dinner in Madrid is affordable, compared to many other countries. For €25,- you can easily eat and drink a lot. Of course tapas are very Spanish, but most of the restaurants only offer them during the day. During the evening you can always order for example paella, meet and fish. Here some popular student restaurants:

• Wagaboo (6 restaurants, tasting menu for €23,90)
• Lateral (5 restaurants, 1 at e.g. Santa Ana Square)
• Bazaar (located in the district of Chueca, opens at 20h30)
• 100 Montaditos (>10 restaurants, Wednesday €-night)

We hope this information is helpful for all students going on Erasmus in Madrid.

If you feel like sharing information with other students on different Erasmus cities, feel free to contact us and send us your text!

Britt, thank you for this!

The Erasmus Programme

Dear readers!

Do you know the history of the Erasmus programme? Which countries participate and how many students participated in the Programme over time? Here are your answers:

The Erasmus Programme is a European Union student exchange programme and gives you the possibility of doing an exchange period between 3 months and maximum 12 months to one of your University’s partner Universities.

The Programme, together with a number of other independent Programmes, was incorporated into the Socrates Programme established by the European Commission in 1994. After ending on 31 December 1999, Socrates Programme was replaced with the Socrates II Programme 24 January 2000, which in turn was replaced by the Lifelong Learning Programme 2007-2013 on 1 Janauary 2007. An Erasmus exchange student receives a grant from the EU to help cover the additional expense of linving abroad. The hight of the grant is decided per academic year. Currently, the annual budget is in excess of 450 million euro and more than 2.2 million students have participated since it started in 1987. Lastly, over 4 000 higher education institutions participate and more to come!

For studies as well as internships the following countries offer the possibility of doing your Erasmus: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and United Kingdom.

UK students educationally disadvantaged during Erasmus?

A recent article in The Guardian discusses the political proposition of introducing a new two year degree in UK university education. On a site note, the paper mentions an interesting fact with regard to the Erasmus program.

As UK students “traditionally take fewer years to complete their studies [and] their courses are also often shorter and they average fewer hours of study per week” compared to students in other European cities, they consequently find courses taught during their Erasmus year more demanding than in the UK, while incoming students to the UK find the education on the island less demanding.

If this gap in educational quality is indeed existing, one possible disadvantage for UK students is a harder entry on to the European labour market, as employers see their European counterparts to be better educated, the article summarises the problem.

We are interested in your thoughts on this. Have you experienced something similar? How was the quality of education on your exchange period compared to your home university? Have you applied for a job but were rejected due to a UK education? Tell us your story!

Erasmus exchange to Turkey? Read more…

We would like to share a valuable tip with all Erasmus students going to Turkey upcoming academic year.

During your exchange period you’re most likely using a local SIM card, as roaming is way too expensive. Very important to know is that all mobile phones that operate through a Turkish SIM card need to be registered. Make sure you do this as failing to register and using a local SIM will end up in your mobile phone being blocked.

The first possibility of registering is at the customs desk in the airport. In case you forget to do so, visit one of the stores of Turkish GSM operators like Turkcell, Vodafone or Avea. Bring your passport, pay the costs of registration (around 10-15 TL) and you can use your new local SIM card without any problems.

In case you have any other tips for students leaving to Turkey, feel free to share them as comments!

PS: If you still need a place to stay, check out our current offers for student accommodation in Turkey.

Erasmus & Erasmus Mundus

Ever wondered why you sometimes come across the term “Erasmus Mundus” when you search for information about your Erasmus stay abroad? Well, the answer is not all that difficult.

While Erasmus is the European Commission’s (EC) exchange program that gives Bachelor students across Europe the chance to spend a term of their studies abroad, Erasmus Mundus can be seen as its big brother. Launched in 2004, Erasmus Mundus was set up by the EC to enable Master students and PhD candidates to go abroad during their study program. Unlike the normal Erasmus prorgam, Erasmus Mundus is not limited to Europe but open to universities across the globe. Generally, up to 3 institutions from different countries and continents partner up to offer their students this unique study possibility.

To read some more background information about Erasmus Mundus and an example of how it has been picked up by British students so far, we recommend this article from The Independent to you.

Erasmate in Wageningen?

Today a news article was written about the expected shortage of rooms for international students in Wageningen. Real Estage Agency Idealis expects to be able to provide all first year students in Wageningen with a room, Erasmus students most likely have to search for themselves. Who knows Idealis wants to recommend Erasmate to all incoming students in Wageningen?!

Can you read Dutch? Check out the article!