STUDENT FOCUS
Study Abroad
Self-Discovery By Ailidh Brown, BA (hons) Journalism Fourth Year Student Last year I studied in Toronto, Canada for a semester. It was such a rewarding experience, filled with self-reflection and self-discovery. I’d like to share some of the lessons I learned in the hope that they may be helpful to others who are considering studying abroad.
1. Be Self-Confident
Studying abroad pushed me to navigate numerous challenges and make important decisions without parents or close friends nearby for guidance. I came back a more confident and self-assured person.
2. Accept your Individuality
You won’t be best friends with everyone you meet – and that is ok. I’ve learned to be more secure in my individuality and to do my own thing instead of following the crowd. Learning to let go and not take things personally was a tough but vital lesson to learn.
3. Trust
I found myself in a couple of tricky situations abroad and was helped immensely by the kindness of strangers, without whom the situations could have been much worse. Of course, it’s important to exercise your best judgement when approaching strangers for help – but I learned that, usually, people mean well.
4. Accept the Unknown
Not knowing exactly where you’re going can actually be advantageous. Not having one specific goal in life can make for immense flexibility and open-mindedness.
5. Forgive your Mistakes
Life is a learning curve and nothing taught me that more than studying abroad. While it was a fantastic experience, there were mistakes made along the way. Prior to studying abroad I would have been more critical of these mistakes, but the experience taught me to take them in my stride.
6. Live for the Moment
I was only in Toronto for a very short period of time. For once in my life I wasn’t having to work and had no commitments other than studying and exploring my new surroundings. With this realisation it was important to enjoy things one day at a time.
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