How to organize your Semester Abroad

Semester abroad. That sounds like every tourism student's dream. It sounds even better if the semester abroad is a compulsory part of your studies.

My semester abroad was in 2018 and way too long ago. I had a lot of country and university choices. I could have actually studied anywhere in the world, if only the semester fees weren't so high. However, I decided quite quickly to go to Indonesia, as I already fell in love with this part of the world. The low cost of living was also a plus. But the main reasons were the courses at the university, the Indonesian culture, the proximity to the sea, the people, the nature, simply everything there convinced me to go to Bali.

If you also want to do a semester abroad, follow these steps:

Step 1: Get informed! One of the first places to go is the international office on your campus, if there is one. There you can find all the partner universities that already cooperate with your university and get advice on what options your university can offer you. One important question you should ask there is whether the semester abroad can be credited to your degree programme or not. At my university, there was even an International Day, where a few representatives from some universities came to Hamburg to my university and presented their university and the courses there.

Step 2: check which language is required locally. Are your foreign language skills sufficient for your stay abroad? You should find out whether you can still learn the language at the university abroad or whether you need to come to the university with a certain level. At many universities, you also need to send proof of your language skills with your application so that they can make sure you understand everything there. For example, I didn't have to send proof that I had a certain level of English, but I was required to learn Indonesian at the university in Bali.

Step 3: Clarify the financing of your semester abroad! Some people may have been working towards a semester abroad for a long time and have therefore saved enough money to finance the semester themselves. But there are other ways you can choose. For example, there are scholarships that can finance a semester abroad. If you are from Europe and want to stay in Europe, you can find out about an ERASMUS scholarship. There are also educational loans that you can apply for for a stay abroad. So you see, there are many different ways you can finance your semester abroad. My university had a slightly different arrangement. Since the semester fee in Bali was lower than in Hamburg, I simply paid the fees to my university in Germany and they then forwarded them to the university in Bali. I then financed my life on Bali from savings.

Step 4: Write your application! As already mentioned, most universities want to see proof of your language skills when you apply. A letter of motivation in which you describe your plans to study abroad. If you want to get an ERASMUS place, you also have to apply to the ERASMUS programme. At the time, I didn't apply directly to the university in Bali, but through a “semester abroad agency” that had a cooperation with my university in Germany. This agency then forwarded my application and informed me that it had been accepted.

Step 5: Clarify formalities! Do you only need your ID card or your passport to enter your destination? If you are travelling further away, you may also need a visa to enter the country and stay there for the duration of your semester. The International Office at your university can give you information about this or you can do some research on the websites of the German embassy in the respective country. I needed a social visa for Bali, which I applied for and got in Germany. It was valid for 60 days, so I had to extend my visa in Bali twice for 30 days. But it was all very easy and the university in Bali also helped us with the extension. So don't be afraid!

Step 6: Arrange your insurance cover abroad! You should inform your health insurance company about your planned semester abroad. The healthcare standards in the country where you plan to spend your semester abroad may be different from the standards in the country where you are currently living therefore it's not a bad idea to have health insurance abroad. You should also consider what activities you would like to do abroad. For example, if you plan to do a lot of scuba diving, you should make sure that your insurance covers that activity. If in doubt, buy yourself some comprehensive insurance.

Step 7: Find accommodation! There are many ways to find accommodation abroad. Your university may have a housing office where you can enquire about available flats. You can also try to find a student residence or a host family abroad. There are also many Facebook groups where you can find flat postings from other students. You can also ask fellow students at your home university if they have any contacts abroad from their international semesters through which you can find accommodation. Some just fly out and live in a hostel for the first few weeks until they find more permanent accommodation. At the beginning of my semester abroad, I got together with three other students. We looked for houses locally and then the four of us moved into a whole house. Everything is possible. Try not to pay double rent, you should find out if you can rent out your flat in your home country.

This was our lovely house in Bali. 5min walk from the beach!

Step 8: Organize yourself early! Ensure you settle everything in plenty of time before you leave for a few months and look forward to your semester abroad!

Of course, there are many things that I haven't listed here, and everyone has their own priorities. of course, there are always variations from country to country and from university to university, which I also don't know all about. Do plenty of research before you decide to do a semester abroad. I can only speak from my own experience. I can only tell you that it was the best decision of my life and that I fell in love with the country where I did my semester abroad, but more about that in the next posts.

- Jackobina