After return home from the international study abroad experience many students are quoted as saying that they now feel as though they can now accomplish anything. This is because the study experience is truly inspired students as it is a once in a lifetime opportunity which humbles many students due to all of the external and internal factors which they have dealt with while abroad. International students should just enjoy their study abroad experience and take in all of elements associated with it, although much of the study abroad information individuals will read about is associated with preaching caution. The Abroad Student Network hopes that it has provided detailed posts which include vast quantities of information, while leaving the preaching of caution at a normal level. Carefulness is consistently advocated because students need to be proactive in learning how to adapt to their environment and handle a worst case scenario at any moment’s notice; although a worst case situation will more than likely not arise. Other information which study abroad students must account for is related to documentation, packing issues, international learning, health, and general exchange inquiries. All a study abroad student’s questions should have been answered, or at least led them in the right direction, through one of The Abroad Student Network’s vital communication resources such as the eBook, Blog, and Website. If study abroad students still have questions which remain unanswered then some of the best ways in which they can receive accurate responses will derive from their domestic and international advisers, a book, or the internet. All of these essential means of attaining information come highly recommended by The Abroad Student Network, but it is up to the student to take the initiative in properly implementing what they have learned. Overall, the study abroad experience will allow students to grow as individuals, because the demand of self-reliance upon oneself to endure the physical and mental strains associated with international study. This once in a lifetime experience will truly one day have an international student saying, “Wow, I feel like I can accomplish anything.” It is The Abroad Student Networks hope that it has been an essential resource in helping international students to reach this feeling of accomplishment.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Best of Luck on Your Future Study Abroad Endeavors
It is The Abroad Student Network’s genuine hope that international students who chose to utilize this available blog and website gained substantial knowledge pertaining to their future endeavors. Both the blog and website alike have echoed the need for international study students to be proactive and collect in-depth research, resources, and information before their departure. There is going to be a high degree of ambiguity in which students will face during their study abroad experience and they should be as prepared as ever for the obstacles in which they will need to overcome. If students were not able to find an answer to their questions on The Abroad Student Networks website or blog then it is recommended that they search the web, ask an adviser, or talk to a peer about their concern. Unfortunately, some students try to “wing it” and fall victim to international hazards such as theft, fraud, improper documentation, culture shock, along with many other dangers in which a foreign culture can present to individuals. The Abroad Student blog and website has provided a considerable amount of information related to these topics. I hope that students were able to take advantage of this available information as it could truly make or break a student’s international experience. None the less, abroad students need to go out and experience the gains and losses associated with international study. It is this very factor that allows students to tolerate a high degree of ambiguity, which in return, makes them successful personally and professionally once they return to their domestic country. The Abroad Student Network would like to thank our readers for utilizing this blog and wishes international students the best of luck during their future world study experience!
13 Things I have Learned in Accounting 255 this Semester
Heading into the Summer 2011 semester I was curious about how many topics and assignments would be covered in Accounting 255 during a condensed four week course. To my astonishment the course took me over a wide variety of subject matter related to the class, while even allowing me to learn of critical concepts related to electronic business management. This blog post will allow users to discover the course concepts and relevant information in which I was able to pull away from my Accounting 255 class. The 13 things I have learned from the course are listed below:
- I was able to set up a free website and blog, which I have discovered to be extremely useful in this new age of social communication. I learned that these two means of communication are not very difficult to maintain and will be essential if I am to further my social network in the future.
- I learned the value of creating a planning page for my website and blog as I could have lost sight of my overall goal and stages needed to accomplish it without a written planning page.
- Prior to taking Accounting 255 I was not aware of the specific types of blog posts such as a “sneeze page” or “list post.” I originally believed that blog operators just freely posted anything they wished.
- My website and blog allowed me to create a donation page in which users could freely make contributions as they please through a PayPal account.
- An interesting concept in which I was able to pull away from the course was a task in which I submitted my URL to search engines. I found this to be a critical take-away from the course if I am to drive more traffic towards my website or blog in the future.
- I was not aware that niche keywords were a critical factor in driving user generated searches towards my website and blog prior to participating in Accounting 255.
- Before taking Accounting 255 I was not conscious of how contact widgets operated on websites. After creating one through Kontacr I now know that users basically just input a question into the widget, and then the widget forwards the question to the site operator’s email.
- Accounting 255 allowed me to create my very own CafePress products and advertise them on my website and blog.
- Later in the course I found that I was able to advertise relevant Amazon and ClickBank products on my website and blog.
- I was able to add create an account and add Google AdSense to advertise on both my website and blog, which I have never done prior to this course.
- I never realized that it was so easy to attain a website privacy policy by simply copying a HTML code from a website and pasting it to a newly created webpage.
- Prior to taking Accounting 255 I was not aware that a Google affiliate in Google Analytics could track my webpage information.
- The creation of outbound links to other websites is critical in generating more traffic to my website and blog, along with building credibility. In the past I would have never posted links to other websites on my own site prior to taking Accounting 255.
In the future, both personally and professionally, I hope to become an expert at utilizing some of the critical concepts learned from Electronic Business Management, Accounting 255. The course has allowed me to grow as an individual as well because I now know that I am capable of pulling away all of this information from the course in such a short period of time.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Benefits of International Study According to StudyAbroadResearch.org
A small website titled Study Abroad Research has actually made some of the best findings related to cultural and language after abroad study. The main page of the website consists of the organization’s purpose and establishment as the group of twenty-five researchers across the United States are working towards common goals. These goals are stated as, “1) to facilitate research on the learning of language and culture during periods of study abroad--mainly by American college students; 2) to provide information to the public concerning research on learning that occurs during study abroad by these same students.” A fact which truly stuck out to me was that less language proficient students demonstrated the biggest gains while abroad. On the other hand, some of the most interesting facts were derived from international students who studied in Japan. The group’s findings stated that ideas in Japan were exchanged through storytelling, such as folk stories, and self-assessments related to language were more valid after the experience. Other additional facts stated on the website proved that host families and group affiliations can have an influence on reading a foreign language, along with the interesting detail that international students are more critical of their classroom instruction while abroad. The Study Abroad Research group has many more interesting details related to international study on their website which could get overlooked by students if they don’t look it up. International study abroad students will only benefit from reviewing this groups research as it is better to be proactive for abroad study and reactive.
A List of Quotes from Previous International Students
Although Illinois State University’s Study Abroad Pre-Departure guide has a wealth of resources and information in it, one interesting page stuck out to me. The page was titled, “What I Wish Someone Had Told Me Before I Left Illinois,” as this section went on to only discuss quotes that previous Illinois State University study abroad students wish they would have heard before they departed. This blog post will not include all of the quotes from previous students, but will list the most important ones although this information can be found on page 15 at http://internationalstudies.illinoisstate.edu/downloads/2010Pre-DepartureGuide_001.pdf. These quotes should not be taken for granted as they can truly aid future study abroad students in their upcoming travels. The quotes are listed as follows:
- “Try not to choose only Americans as friends because you are already comfortable with them. Meet as many people as possible.”
- “Pack light! Almost everyone over packed.”
- “Take advantage of everything! You will be homesick, but it goes away so fast and before you know it you’re back, and wish you were still there!”
- “It’s a different system over there; you can’t realize everything before you go – so be calm about it.”
- “Don’t be shy about the language. Just get out there and speak – no matter how many mistakes you make. You will get your point across even if your grammar isn’t that good.”
- “Studying abroad was the greatest adventure of my life! I can’t wait to do it again!”
Hopefully students will make an honest effort in implementing these quotes into their future international study experience. Sometimes listening to fellow peers is the best way to get a point across and this point may have been made from the previous quote listing from Illinois State University study abroad students.
Illinois State University Office of International Studies & Programs (2011), “What I wish someone had told me before I left Illinois,” Study Abroad Pre-Departure Guide, http://internationalstudies.illinoisstate.edu/downloads/2010Pre-DepartureGuide_001.pdf, June 28, 2011.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)