International Student Guide Part 2: Essential Preparation Tips

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Are you moving abroad for further studies? The opportunities and skills that you will gain while studying abroad are almost endless, which makes it exciting. It can be a bit tricky at first but don’t panic. If you prepare yourself adequately, then the whole process will become much easier. So, before leaving for your year overseas, there are a number of things you should keep in mind to ensure you are ready for this new transition in your life. Do take your time and take care of all the required things like selecting everything you might possibly need for a year, completing the required paperwork, and more.

Once you have all the necessary things sorted, take the time to ensure You are prepared for this new journey. Because of excitement, nervousness, and stress, sometimes it becomes difficult to know where to start.

To make sure you are well-prepared, Thomas Cook has gathered the commonly missed factors that require your attention. In this guide, we will discuss how to prepare for studying abroad and walk you through these different steps required, so that everything goes smoothly when you get there.

Consult your university to plan better

Different countries have different requirements for international students, so make sure you know what you need before you go. Do not assume; directly contact your university to cross-check the documentation you have to bring. Imagine flying there and then realizing you have left a vital required document back at home.

Thomas Cook will advise you to check the timetable the abroad university generally follows. You are required to come back home every once in a while. So, you require proper information to plan your travels. Suppose during the festive season you are planning to go back home for falls during your semester. Most universities abroad do not allow students to take time off in the middle of a semester. If without checking you plan your return, you will end up with a lot of problems. When you have all the information, you will know the windows you have to take a trip back home during an academic year.

Have a solid plan to manage expense

Unfortunately, getting accepted for overseas studies is a much easier process than living there. Besides the educational expenses that you are bound to bear, you have to pay for your daily expenses, transportation, food & entertainment, and more. Many students use traditional methods of making payments for these expenses like bank or credit/debit card transactions. Students who recently moved to a new country for further studies do not know that high charges are associated with these traditional methods of payment. You may end up paying 3 to 4 % more than what you were planning to spend in the first place.

If you pay more for every purchase, you can imagine the financial burden you will face later on. You need to protect your money wisely while studying and living abroad. You have to take every step possible to save as much as you can to ensure a comfortable living in the new place. A Forex card can help you to achieve this easily. This is the reason why a forex card is so loved by students who have been living or studying abroad for quite some time now.  

Thomas Cook has the best forex card for students. If you choose our forex international travel card, then some advantages that you can get are:

• If you choose ATMs across AllPoint Network, then expect no surcharge
• As you will be loading funds in advance, you can actively dodge currency fluctuations with our prepaid forex card
• As you will be following a prepayment method, you will be able to track and manage your spending plans effectively

Build up your language skills

Now that you’re moving abroad, it’s time to buckle down and really build up your language skills. Go to classes when you can and meet up with language exchange partners. If you have a job, it’s best to talk on the job as little as possible. If possible, only communicate with your boss and co-workers in writing. This will allow you to focus on improving your reading and writing skills, two areas that are crucial for building up language skills. If you’re having a hard time finding language exchange partners, there are several online communities that can help you find people with whom you can practice your language skills.

Observing the foreign exchange market

Thomas Cook knows the struggles that a student studying overseas faces daily. Thus, our forex international travel card for students was curated keeping the struggles in mind. As you will be affected by the fluctuating exchange rate, our student foreign exchange card provides the option to lock in your exchange rate. As mentioned before, you can pre-load the card easily and use it as per your necessity. Thomas Cook ensures that the exchange rate as the foreign exchange market on the day of loading is only considered. So, it is advisable that you use our website to keep an eye on the foreign exchange market. Make use of the gathered information and buy forex from Thomas Cook accordingly to ensure your stay overseas is comfortable. Our other student foreign exchange products like forex currency notes  are great methods to make transactions while studying overseas as they ensure you spend less time looking at the ups and downs of the forex market and have more time to study and explore the foreign land that you will call home for a few years.

Studying abroad: Etiquette and culture shock tips

We’ll keep this short and sweet because we’ve already talked a lot about what to do before you go. Now we’ll talk about what to do when you’re there. This section is all about handling yourself and your new environment as gracefully as possible.

First, you need to be aware that you are in a new country with a new culture. This can lead to some culture shock, but you can’t let it get the best of you. It’s important to be respectful of the customs of the people who are hosting you. Don’t make assumptions about the way people live in your host country. Just because it’s done a certain way in your country doesn’t mean it’s done the same way in theirs. Some tips that can help you are the following:

• Learn as much as you can about the speech, customs, and culture of the nation to make the most of your stay there
• Accept the new circumstance and handle it gently
• Meet new people who can support your adjustment to your new environment

The majority of foreign students experience culture shock when they arrive in a foreign country to study. If you embrace it and the foreign experience, you can handle it with ease.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have made it through the process of preparing to study abroad. As you can see, there is a lot to do, but it’s not as hard as it may seem, especially when you plan your expenses better with our student foreign exchange products. With the right amount of preparation, you will be ready to take on the world and have an experience of a lifetime. So, use these tips and tricks to make the most out of your studying abroad experience. For more guidance contact Thomas Cook today!