Posted by: Kadiri Alex

For: Crystalinks Education

Being an African myself, I can much relate with the thoughts quite a few of us have regarding higher education. Most of us happen to believe in a variety of myths and have a lack of knowledge about anything or everything that happens outside the shores of Africa.

Let’s bring that to an end here with these 5 factors that you should consider important when looking for a study abroad opportunity, and the 5 most common misconceptions about studying abroad.

1. Expenses

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Dreams to Study Abroad is avoided in most cases owing to the expenses one may face through it. But dare not leave your dreams aside if you believe in your candidature. There are various options you can look into:

  1. Fully Funded Scholarships
  2. Studying and look for low tuition fee countries e.g. Germany
  3. Managing Living Expenses with part time jobs

2. Courses

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The Foreign Education system is very different to our African Education System with respect to courses and subjects you undertake.

Always feel free to experiment with your choice of courses. I have seen many of my fellow classmates using their credits to learn a musical instrument along with the core mechanical modules.

You have a choice at the start of your semester to try all the courses offered in your department for your specific field of study and then later decide over the modules you like to pursue.

3. Professors

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You should never hesitate to meet your professor owing to doubts with your queries being relevant or not. In fact most of the professors welcome their students to help them with any issues they come to face.

In my personal experience my tutor was the first point of contact between me and my university. Anything related to course, accommodation, job or even personal issues, I always went for guidance to him.

4.Weather

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This comes with no Surprise as most of us either underestimate or overestimate the weather conditions abroad. It’s cheaper and smart to buy your winter clothes from the visited country instead of paying huge bucks for an overpriced imported and cheap material in Africa. Also it could save you some space in your luggage.

In countries like The UK, the weather is usually pretty unpredictable.

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5. Job

It’s not just about getting a high paid job in US. Its also about making the most of your time while studying abroad. So don’t be driven by scores and aptitude alone. Spend some time in activities and participate in some contests. They not only help you develop some people skills along with exposure to ideas, but also add a value to yourself as an individual and the much cared resume you wish to show your employers.