Making the decision to study abroad is one that should not be made without at least a bit of foresight. The reason I say this is, you will spend a good semester solid worrying about forms and applications, which will hound you right down to the last day before you go back home for the break. This is no lie, as it is right now Thursday evening and I have to get not just one but two complete forms back to the Office of International Programs. If I had to venture a guess about what uses the most paper, I’d say TP manufacturers, the U.S. Federal Reserve and International Program offices at colleges across the wide world. But in all seriousness, there is quite a bit to keep track of, and a bit of diligence on your part can ensure that everything goes smoothly.
The Research Phase
I guess I can start at the beginning, when I first looked into a study abroad program seriously. That was in the spring of my sophomore year here at UMaine. I had taken my first semester of Japanese class and throughly enjoyed it. I figured, I can do this, the time is right for me to start looking into this. At the beginning of each semester here at UMaine, the OIP holds a meeting for all those interested going abroad. The only problem for me was, the meeting was aimed at people going abroad the following semester. I was merely looking for information - that was too short a time to commit to something as big as this. But it was beneficial nonetheless. I was able to see first hand the application process I would possibly be going through the following semester, and I got to meet the director of the office personally. This was really good for me, because I was able to set up an appointment right then and there to explore my options for studying abroad. If you are really set on going abroad, establishing an early dialog with your local OIP is important. Going abroad is not something you are going to want to rush. Information is plentiful if only you go out and take that first step to go down to the OIP and even just talk to the receptionist. In retrospect, I would highly recommend this to freshmen - by starting your research early about different options for going abroad, you have the most possibilities in terms of places to go and the potential dates you might want to leave. Since I am in the latter years of my college experience, it is really coming down to now or never.
At UMaine, there are two distinct paths that you can take in regards to study abroad programs, direct exchange or through private companies. Direct exchange is where you pay all tuition to your home college and go off to a “sister school” which is affiliated with your own. This has clear advantages. For one, it is just so much simpler logistically. Private companies will require you to go through much of the process on your own, whereas with the direct exchange, the study abroad adviser (at UMaine, his name is Ace) will have direct contact with the study abroad departments at all sister schools. For another thing, it will probably be much cheaper (as long as you go to state school like I do). Finally, the people factor. You will be able to talk with many people on campus who have gone abroad, and you will also be able to meet foreign exchange students who have come over from the country you are interested. I cannot tell you how much of a motivation for me this was to go abroad. About halfway through the semester I was researching, a group of students came all the way over from Hirosaki in a three-week intensive English program. I immediately jumped on the chance to meet with Japanese students, and also to just be a help and talk with them. They were some of the most interesting people I’ve met, many of whom I will have the good fortune to meet again when I go abroad.
I suppose this is a good time to bring this up. Talking with people who have actually gone on the program you intend to go on is the most important information you can glean during the research process. Fortunately, this was made all the easier by having a girlfriend whose roommate had gone abroad to Hirosaki for a year. I have spent a lot of time discussing with her the finer details and personal experiences she has had with Japan. That is something that you simply cannot get from a book or website. Make an effort to go out and find people from the country and school you wish to go to, and also the people who have gone before. These people will be the most important factors in your decision to go abroad.
The Application Phase
Well, once you have all your research done and you know where you want to go, you think the battle is almost over, right? Well, not quite, to put it mildly. I did mention earlier that people who work in the International Programs offices love paper, which is not an overstatement. During the first few weeks of school the following semester, I recieved a packet of information with dozens of pieces of information and applications. I had sheets for when things were due, how to fill the stuff out, and then the actual application itself. None of these are particularly difficult, usually requiring no more than your name and address. However, there were a few things that took me a while to come to grips with. The first is the form that tells your home school what classes you will be taking while abroad. They need this so that they can figure out how the different classes will transfer for credit. I spent some time going over the course selections and consulting my contacts for potential good classes. After I had the filled out, the fun didn’t stop there. I then had to go out and get a series of signatures, from my academic adviser, to the study abroad adviser, to the college dean. You’d be surprised how difficult it can be to get people to scratch their name out on your application for you. In fact, that is one of the two forms I still have to hand in by tomorrow. The college dean finally signed off on the bugger today, so I feel much better now that all my plans haven’t been foiled by someone else’s pen-on-paper action. You don’t want to fall behind in the signature battle, that is a sure way to lose to war to go abroad.
Another piece of the application is the personal statement. This will be an essay of roughly two pages detailing just how awesome you are. Really, ham it up and make yourself look good. The host country you will be visiting will want reassurance that you are really there to be a positive contributor to their student culture and country. Make sure to outline your reasons for you interest in the particular country your will be going to. But in all honesty, this isn’t as serious as one you might write for a college application. Have fun with it. Like with a college application essay, this will be your one opportunity to talk directly to the people admitting you.
In addition to all that, UMaine needed a sealed transcript and recommendations from two people. Getting the transcript wasn’t to hard, but it was a pain to get ahold of my academic adviser to write a recommendation for me (the other was written by my Japanese teacher). This is something you will want to get taken care of right away if it is required of you - since it is up to other people to come through for you, you will want to give them as much time as possible. In fact, this is a good thing to keep in mind through the whole process. My study abroad adviser gave me what seemed like a surplus of time with which to complete everything. Don’t think about it this way. Unless you want things to come down to the wire, stay on top of them. I was juggling a lot of different forms and keeping in contact with all kinds of people to make sure that I got what I needed from them, especially those recommendations. Getting things done early when it comes to applying for a study abroad program probably means a longer life expectancy in the long run.
The last component of the application I will talk about is the passport and passport photographs. For the application to Hirosaki, the OIP required my to submit a photocopy of my passport in addition to four separate passport photos. This seemed kind of redundant, but it was still necessary all the same because of visa requirements. I took a quick trip down to the local Wal-Mart to get my photos taken, but you can get them taken at pretty much any travel agency or place that processes photos. It was kind of rough for me, though, because they sold passport photos two at a time usually, so taking four was double the price. Hopefully also you have a passport by this point, because if you don’t you will be in a world of trouble, because they can take of to six months to process (at least in America). If you have even the slightest inkling of going abroad you go to the post office and get one.
The Waiting Phase
So, after all the research and all the paperwork, now you get to play the waiting game, which is where I am now. Some countries and universities will probably be on different schedules than others, so allow plenty of time to hear back. Your local study abroad adviser will surely let you know when to expect to hear from them. Hirosaki, and indeed all of Japan runs on an academic schedule very different from the western world. I won’t be arriving there until March for the spring 2008 semester, and I won’t be receiving my acceptance packet until next month sometime. Your mileage will vary.
Whew, that was a looong post, but hopefully full of useful information for those of you out there curious about studying abroad. Good luck!
