lsq26

I have the chance to study abroad in Austria for 5 months and I was wondering if it is worth it. I was hopeing someone could give me some insight

rex

<<I was wondering if it is worth it...>>

Compared to what? Getting a paid internship to work on the set, filming the next season of "24"? Uhh... maybe not...

But for most mundane options available to someone still in college... well, heck yes!

(You have to realize that you have come here to this forum, asking this question to people who are nearly rabid about any chances to get to travel to Europe!)

You might get different answers - - if they have a &quot;forum&quot; on NPR's <i>Car Talk</i>, for example...

Best wishes,

Rex

J62

Very timely question for me.

I spent 10mo on Austria many years ago - let's just say pre Euro days and leave it at that.

My college reunion (an unspoken multiple of 5yrs) is coming and up and the group of 30 or so of us who were abroad together are all exchanging stories and pictures, old and new.

Unforgetable experience. Lasting friendships. Beautiful country, great location. Overnight train trips to Berlin, Rome, Paris. Shorter train rides to anything closer. Skiing minutes from town, hiking even closer, language immersion - still comes in handy today XX years later. (OK, I almost slipped up there).

I would highly recommend it to anyone who is willing to put in the effort to learn a language, be adventuresome and seeks to broaden their mind

wantstogo

My sister did this one summer-took classes mon.-thurs., hopped on a train, traveled w/ her friends til sunday and started all over again! She said ti was the time if her life!!! I think it's a great opportunity-Go For It!

jlm_mi

&quot;Worth it&quot; is a pretty subjective phrase, so you'll get plenty of opinions here, but with what you've told us about you (nothing), they may be useless to you.

So, since you even have to ask, there must be some &quot;negatives&quot; in your mind that make this not a straightforward decision. What are your concerns that might make this &quot;not worth it&quot; in your mind? If people know, they can address them specifically instead of saying, &quot;Of course it's worth it!&quot; which is how many of us feel.

vivi

Well of course everybody on a travel forum will heartily declare study aborad is &quot;worth it.&quot;

My daughter did a semester abroad in Salamanca, Spain. She adored it all. So much so that she is now in Paris doing a summer abroad program; I am going to visit her next week.

MaureenB

Is it worth it? Yes! Not even knowing your situation, but assuming you're college age, I say do it for sure.

One of my greatest regrets is not having that opportunity during my college and graduate school years. Because once you're out of school, life gets less flexible with career commitments, etc., and your chance to take five months away is slim to none.

So do it now, while you can!! Not too many times in your life can you tour Europe relatively unfettered, playing it by ear. No question-- Go! (Do I make myself clear??)

dutyfree

Its a chance of a lifetime! My parents many years ago let me study French and Italian Art overseas for a month(even though it wasn't even in my major) and it changed the course of my life! My son studied abroad last year in two different cities and the experience has caused him to want to live and work overseas now that he has graduated.His younger sister already has Sicily &quot;penciled in&quot; for next year's spring semester!I quess what I am saying is that going abroad makes you realize how big the world is and it also makes you start thinking about things that you don't always get a chance to look into when you are at home.My son said he enjoyed the traveling,interacting with foreign students and being invited into their various cultures.He learned to live on his own and learn more about himself by being in countries where most of the people were not speaking English on a regular basis.(For a guy whose life was sports and ESPN-he learned to live without the TV and develop a passion for European soccer!)Hard times-yes there were. Strikes, phones, housing and using public transportation back and forth to school gave him quite a few headaches.Would he go back? In a second. He actually told his Dad and I that of all the things that we have done or given to him-last year overseas was the greatest gift.On a personal note-I now work as an international flight attendant and my going overseas every week even for 20 hour layovers is one of my greatest joys in my life!Go and never look back.............it will always be one of your best decisions!!!!!

suze

A chance to study in europe for five months is absolutely &quot;worth it&quot;!!!!! It is a fantastic opportunity, I would never pass up.

That said, and as others have mentioned, you are asking this question to a bunch of people who live to travel, so I'd expect you to get loads of encouragement for the idea.

Marsha

I spent a semester in France as a college junior. It was an incredible experience and not just because I was adding to my French language skills. Our art history class took monthly trips around Provence, so I learned a lot about the Romans, architecture, Provencal cooking, and much more. During school breaks, my roommate and I backpacked to Israel, Spain and Switzerland. We also learned to do without all the comforts of the United States (e.g. we didn't take showers everyday because it would have been very expensive for our landlady) and we learned to be responsible for ourselves (e.g. plan ahead about money and travel arrangements). Bu although I knew I was getting the opportunity of a lifetime, I still didn't appreciate 5 months in Europe the way I would now! Go, study, enjoy and use every minute to its fullest.

isabel

My daughter was accepted to several elite private colleges but we really couldn't afford them and there was no way she could have done anything &quot;extra&quot; like study abroad if she had gone to one of them. Instead she choose to go to the state University so she could afford to study abroad. Last year she did a semester in Paris and she just returned from a semester in London. She says it was definity &quot;worth it&quot; - She says no college experience could have been better than having those two semesters in Europe. I think she made the right choice.

crefloors

I can't even imagine that you are asking that question. My neice spent 6 months in London a couple of years ago, and the opportunity came through a program at her college. That trip however, she was NOT in school but was working. While she was there she managed to go to Scotland, Stockholm, and Greece. She is now leaving in August, again a program through her school, and will be in Copenhagen for 9 months, this time as a student. Her time in London was just a wonderful experience. She had never been away from home and the maturity and personal growth she gained was fabulous. She can't wait to leave in August. Her dad offered to fly her home for Christmas and she said no, that coming home would spoil her experience. Dad, of course, was crushed. If you have any curiosity at all about the world around you, do not miss this opportunity.

wmkibler

My daughter is a Junior at UCLA and has applied to study abroad in Bordeaux, France for half of her last year. She has sounded hesitant about going lately (could be her new boyfriend or just the reality of graduating settling in), and her Mom and I really want her to go. I fowarded the messages above to her as inspiration. Anyone with experience as a student in France/Bordeaux, I would appreciate your experience that I can share with her. merci

epossible

Look. Don't even think about it. Don't get scared. None of that. Just go. I'm studying abroad right now and I can almost guarantee that you will come to look at it as one of your best times in college.

epossible

wmkibler, i just saw your post. like I said I'm studying abroad at the moment, although in England. I was extremely hesitant about going at first. However, it's been a fantastic experience. I can't believe I thought about not coming. I also have several friends studying in Paris at the moment. I visited them over my spring break and they were having a blast. If your daughter wants to talk to anyone I could put her into contact with one of my friends in Paris. I'm sure they would like to talk about it their experiences.

lincasanova

to get the most out of your stay, try to immerse yourself in the language so perhaps you can speak MUCH better than you do now, as so many people just use the study abroad excuse to travel, and they do not take FULL advantage of the language experience.

They travel with their own nationalities.. they go out with their own nationalities, they email incessantly in their own language, they talk on the phone in their own language, etc. etc. etc.

so, it will be WORTH the monetary and emotional sacrifice of all involved IF you feel you have taken advantage of what this study program can offer you, of which, obviously, travel is only a PART.

dedicate time everyday to the austrian press and media and try to get a feel for what the countrymen there are concerned about. learn a bit about their politics and history as it can be embarrassing to not even know the president's name after three months!

enjoy yourself. i think you have chosen a great place to do this. it has everything, starting with beauty.

what city have you looked into?
many of our friend's children go to graz. they say it is fabulous for students.

MaureenGP

I second everybody else's vote--GO!
When I was in college, it was not common to study abroad, and I never gave it a thought, to my eternal regret.
When I first traveled to Europe with my husband over 30 years ago, I remember saying to him that I should have skipped college and just traveled, because I learned so much in just 10 days!
My own daughter was supposed to study in London this past semester, but she decided against it because of her father's terminal illness. She made the right choice for her, because he died in March, and she was able to drop everything and drive home from the university when I called her. That is a very unusual circumstance, however, and I am still sorry, even knowing the outcome, that she was denied the chance to live abroad for a semester. As a consolation, but not remotely the same thing, we are doing a mother-daughter trip to London and Edinburgh this summer.
Almost all of my daughter's college-age friends have, or are, studying abroad, and without a single exception, they say it's the best thing they have ever done. They have gone to England, Italy, France, Spain, and one is planning on Beijing next semester, and they uniformly recommend it. I think it gives young people a world view, which is very important. You start to look at things differently, not just from an American perspective. If more people travel, I firmly believe the world can be a better place, because we will begin to understand each other better.
Worth it? It will change your life.....

MNP

Without a doubt, go go go!!!
My husband and I spend 15 months in Denmark while he was studing abroad during his Masters Degree. Neither of us would take the expirence back for the world...
You really can't put into words why you should go, its really an expirence you have to have for yourself to truely understand.

Just out of curiousity, what parts of it are making you wonder if you really want to go or not? Maybe we can help ease your fears

Again,my vote is to go. and not to think twice about it!!