• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
College Magazine logo

College Magazine

College Life, Dating, Career & Campus Advice

  • Colleges
    • College Guides
    • College Rankings
    • Campus Life
      • Academics
      • Dating
      • Freshman Year
      • Health
      • Social Change
      • Party
    • Find Your College
  • Majors
    • All Majors
    • Most Popular Majors
    • Choosing a Major
  • Intern
    • Internship Directory
    • How to Get an Internship
    • How to Write a Resume
    • How to Write a Cover Letter
    • How to Interview
    • How to Network
    • Career 101
    • Find Your Passion Career
  • Money
    • How to Make Money
    • How to Save Money
    • How to Get a Job
    • Credit Cards 101
    • FAFSA
    • Ramen Project
  • Travel
    • Study Abroad
    • College Spring Break
    • How to Travel Cheap
    • Things to Do
  • Shop
    • College Magazine Shop
    • Gift Guides
    • College Packing List
Home » Latest Posts » Study Abroad: A Six Month Vacation?
Life Study Abroad

Study Abroad: A Six Month Vacation?

Facebook Tweet
Nolan DiFrancesco   May 5, 2011  (Updated: October 26, 2014)

 

I’ve heard it said time and again. Study abroad is a reprieve from real life, six months of pure vacation. School is easy… too easy. Grades don’t even count. All you need to do is find a way to pass. The good life, right?

The weather is gorgeous. The women are beautiful. The nightlife is plentiful. Who needs to show up to class? This is generally the romanticized version of the study abroad experience.

Well… get real. Studying abroad is no summer holiday. Don’t get me wrong, it is meant to be the time of your life. But if you have an ounce of free time, you’re doing it wrong. If you don’t experience some form of culture shock, you’re doing it wrong. If you aren’t challenged by classes or research or language acquisition in a foreign environment, you’re doing it wrong.

Now, I’m never one to endorse unnecessary stress. While traveling for travel’s sake or running from one exotic destination to another just for a visa stamp and bragging rights is not the way to go, neither is working too hard on something as trivial as schoolwork when there are so many more adventures to be had. There is certainly a balance between really engaging with one’s surroundings–immersing oneself in the customs and the people–versus moving from one place to another in a sampling of buffet-style cultures.

But the time spent abroad is said by all veterans to be full of the memories most often cherished in the college career. These are the character-defining experiences that become the basis for so many memorable stories. These might not be the kind of stories you’ll be keen to tell the grandchildren one day, but they will be ones that last a lifetime nonetheless.


trending

497

10 Student Organizations Breaking the Mold at Berkeley

201

Top 10 Spots Around Emerson College to Get Inspired

170

Top 10 Ways to Spot a UT Austin Alum


So go out, enjoy that beach, work on that tan, party like it’s 1999. But also travel with a passion, learn a new language and establish friendships that will last far longer than the semester abroad. There is no time to waste.  For my part, at the end of this “vacation” I’m going to be in need of one helluva vacation.

About Nolan DiFrancesco

Junior > International Studies > Johns Hopkins University

The Art of the Hot Girl Walk

I Used to Outrun My Feet

What I Wish I Had Known About Mental Health So I Wouldn’t Have to Call Myself a College Dropout

Ant-Man Opens the Doors for Marvel’s New Phase

10 Boba Tea Spots for Houston College Students

10 Ways to Have Fun with Your Friends Indoors

Do You Actually Care, Or Do You Want to Look Like You Do?

unsplash.com

Top Ten Inspirational Quotes from Your Favorite Sports TV Shows

I lived with my three best friends. Here’s how it went.

Previous Post:The Red Light to Procrastination
Next Post:I May Not Be a Celebrity Journalist, But…

colleges

  • College Guides
  • College Rankings
  • Campus life
  • Academics
  • Dating
  • Freshmen Year
  • Health
  • Party

majors

  • All College Majors
  • Most Popular Majors
  • Choosing a Major

intern

  • Internships Directory
  • How to Write a Resume
  • How to Write a Cover Letter
  • How to Interview
  • How to Get an Internship
  • How to Network

money

  • How to Make Money
  • How to Save Money
  • How to Get a Job
  • Credit Cards 101
  • College Loans

travel

  • Study Abroad
  • College Spring Break
  • How to Travel Cheap
  • Things to Do

shop

  • College Packing List
  • Gift Guides
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS Feed
  • Twitter
  • About Us
  • Team
  • Write
  • Apply
  • Privacy Policy
  • Sign Up
  • Advertise
  • My Account
  • Cart

College Magazine logo

Copyright © 2023 Powered by BizBudding