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Effect of studying abroad essay
Effects of studying abroad
Effect of studying abroad
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Re-entry is the process of returning home to the native country after spending time abroad. This process elicits a mix of emotions from every student following their study abroad experience. Many students feel relief at having completed the journey, depression and/or anxiety that it is over, and nostalgia over the amazing things that they have experienced. Study abroad has a range of positive effects on students’ personalities, emotional states, and future plans. However, the re-emergence process can also be the root of depression and anxiety. This paper will analyze the common psychological and emotional effects that both the study abroad experience and the re-entry period have on students. It is important to note that many of these effects …show more content…
If during this process, students start to question their native cultural practices, they will feel certain disillusionment with their native culture upon their return home. They may feel longing to return to their host culture and therefore might shut themselves out of their native cultural practices, creating a spiral of emotional discomfort. On the other hand, if the study abroad experience causes students to reaffirm their cultural ethnocentrism, their return home might be marked with disappointment because their host culture is not everything they remembered it to be, they had placed it on a pedestal in their minds, or things have changed back …show more content…
Rhinesmith’s Ten Stages of Adjustment summarize the effects of culture shock and reverse culture shock. They describe the natural peaks and valleys that students encounter during their time abroad. Each student experiences these periods at different intensities and for different lengths of time. The wave-like design displays the arrival confusion, honeymoon stage, adjustment period, and adapting and assimilating periods which occur during study abroad. These ups and downs are all a part of the “study abroad experience” that students learn so much about. However the roller coaster also includes a representation of the re-entry period, which is less widely talked about among students before they return home. Re-entry includes initial excitement followed by a judgmental period, realization stage, reverse culture shock, and balanced “readaptation”. The transition back home is marked by an initial period of excitement where students think that they will be returning to a familiar atmosphere. The realization stage is where this bubble around the perfect image of home is popped and students realize that things have changed back home and that people have gone on with their every day lives and do not care about the Eventually, students reach a stage of balance between the new and the old and the foreign and familiar perspectives that
A sudden change in one’s surroundings can result in culture shock. Culture shock refers to the anxiety and surprise a person feels when he or she is discontented with an unfamiliar setting. The majority of practices or customs are different from what a person is used to. One may experience withdrawal, homesickness, or a desire for old friends. For example, when a person goes to live in a different place with unfamiliar surroundings, they may experience culture shock. Sometimes it is the result of losing their identity. In the article “The Phases of Culture Shock”, Pamela J. Brink and Judith Saunders describe four phases of culture shock. They are: Honeymoon Phase, Disenchantment Phase, Beginning Resolution Phase, and Effective Function Phase. These phases denote some of the stages that exemplify culture shock. The four phases are illustrated in the articles “New Immigrants: Portraits in Passage” by Thomas Bentz, “Immigrant America: A Portrait” by Alejandro Portes and Ruben G. Rumbaut, “When I Was Puerto Rican” by Esmeralda Santiago, “Today’s Immigrants, Their Stories” by Thomas Kessner and Betty Boyd Caroli, and lastly, “The New Americans: Immigrant Life in Southern California” by Ulli Steltzer, and are about the experiences of some immigrants. This essay will examine the four phases of culture shock and classify the experiences of these immigrants by the different phases of culture shock identified.
Studying abroad is a dream for many people especially, who live in a country that has lacks education. It is possible that a dream realized for those who they want. However, it has many consequences, causing lack of livelihood to adapt to the different languages and cultures. Eva Hoffman, author of “Lost in Translation” wrote about her experience when she moved from Poland to Canada as a teenager. She felt as a “felt persona” when she merged with Canadians with different culture and language. Also, she felt as a woman who has two different figures, causing a lack of acclimatization. My own experience is similar Hoffman’s experience but, the most different thing that made me a little comfortable is trying to convince myself that
One of the first and most common problems most, if not all international students face when they first arrive in the UK for study is culture shock. culture shock is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary(2014) as the feeling of disorientation experienced by someone when they are suddenly subjected to an unfamiliar culture, way of life, or set of attitudes. When students first move to the UK they observe and experience several things for the first time and it tends to overwhelm them. New international students often find themselves feeling powerless and unimportant which often forces them into self-isolation(Bailey, 2005). The culture shock also tends to result in the students being unable to make friends in their new community because they are unsure of what is customary and regarded in good light (Bailey, 2005).
To be more specific, the spectrum of emotions comprising culture shock can range from alienation and loneliness to confusion and stress. When analyzed more carefully though, culture shock can be viewed through a more fundamental standpoint. Essentially, it can be defined as an emotional stimulus one develops when experiencing a different behavioral response from an individual or group in a social situation that is familiar to both parties involved. How an anthropological researcher handles his or her emotional reactions to these behavioral responses of a native people will dictate the formation of the social relationship that is continuously being developed. From the subjective opinion of the researcher, culture shock can undoubtedly seem like an impediment to his or her progress in research at the time that an instance of it occurs; however in the long term, properly approaching any difficulties experienced from culture shock in an objective manner can reveal under...
Living away from your country can be a really interesting and unforgettable experience, but at the same time it has very important effects on one's life. The purpose of this essay is to discuss the three main effects that living in another country can produce in your personal life.
Learning about new cultures is my favorite thing to do. I interact well with others and enjoy networking with new people. I have found that my ability to meet new people is a trait that makes every visit I have taken to different countries an enjoyable visit. I wish to participate in this program because it has always been a goal of mine to study abroad. By participating in this program I hope to learn about another culture, make international contacts, and gain valuable international business skills.
One of the biggest hindrances to people living in a new culture is the initial culture-shock that people experience, as well as the culture-stress that occurs as time progresses. When a person enters a new culture, there are many noticeable differences from his/her own culture. These differences have been labelled culture-shock and culture-stress. It is the initial differences, which is called culture-shock, that often cause worry, fear, and sometimes withdrawl. However, these can be easily overcome through preparation and changes in attitude. As time progresses, there will be other issues that will start to appear that can become even more troublesome; these are called culture-stresses. The problem with culture-stress is that it is a lot more difficult to overcome. Conveniently there are a number of steps that can be taken in order to minimize the effects of both culture-shock and culture-stress. Missionaries often feel the effects of culture-shock and culture-stress the more than at other people as they normally do not have the support structure that other people do. In order for missionaries to adapt to the new cultures, they must prepare ahead of time.
With the high school graduation coming up, and the end of the school year approaching; most students, at least the most fortunate are all dreaming of foreign countries. The education system is so poor in third world countries like mine that most of the time the only option for parents have is, to ship off their freshly graduate son or daughter to a foreign land. Researches start, parents and children look for school, countries, study budgets options. They fill the paperwork, demand references to their professors, and complete any requirements they need to. The targets are usually France, Canada, United States, England, some choose odd places like china, Singapore and even Russia. Then the results come in, the letters of acceptance
Only when we discover it for ourselves does it become common ground and a common bond and we cease to be alone” by Wendell Berry. As I traveled to Chile for the study abroad semester program, this was my experience as Wendell exposed in her quote. As I heard many of students say, “Studying abroad changed my life”, the phrase that was continuously repeated by students that had previously studied abroad. It was undoubtedly true for them as it was for me. Experiencing studying abroad by first hand has totally changed my life.
Kwon Yangyi, a college student, did a study regarding international students and some of the factors that affects them. One interesting conclusion from Kwon’s study was that female international students were more subject to homesickness, isolation, and loneliness. This is understandable as females tend to be more family oriented than males. Moving to a foreign country where you might not know anyone, may put these international students in a state of depression due to being away from family. This realization that you have to form a new life in a different country away from your love ones can add to the depression.
Individuals will gain more experience of the host country through experiencing more of the host culture. This shows that being adjusting to another culture can have an impact on an individual’s ethnic and cultural identity because they spend a period of time in another country within a community who have a different culture.
Bouchaud, Andrea. "Transitioning Into Life Abroad." Weblog post. The Study Abroad Blog. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2014.
My personal expectations for my study abroad are to expand my horizons and learn more about Scotland. I believe that travelling and learning about different cultures is extremely important in order to broaden one’s understanding of the world that they live in. All countries and all people are interconnected; thus by experiencing various cultures, ideas, methods, and ways of life, one can more easily relate to others and develop a better sense of the web in which we live. I plan to come back with a new perspective that I may have never, otherwise, received if I had not immersed myself in a new educational system, a new environment, and a new country. Studying abroad will allow me to experience sights, events, and culture first-hand and permit me to fully immerse in a different atmosphere and therefore get a genuine feel and understanding of Scotland as a whole. I have a passion for travelling and experiencing cultures, and I feel that combining doing something I greatly enjoy with the ability to learn from Scottish scholars from one of Edinburgh’s major academic institutions would greatly benefit my university experience.
What motivates you not just to travel abroad, but to study abroad? Give specific examples of the academic, professional, and personal benefits that you expect to receive from studying abroad. Response should be no longer than 500 words.
Have you ever thought about studying abroad? No, not just for a few months for your work-experience, but a whole year (or longer) as a transfer-student. Of course, you don’t make such a decision from one minute to the next. It needs to be thought over well. Going to college is a big change in your life because it usually means living on your own for the first time, but as a foreign student it is even a bigger change because you are on your own in another country. This is often the greatest concern for students to go abroad: to leave everything behind. They have trouble leaving their family and the familiar environment. They think this price is just too high. But if they only knew how rich they will be when they come back.