Should I send my child abroad?

Written by Melvyn Chong, August 2017

One should not look solely at cost when considering whether to send their child overseas for studies. As much as cost is a factor, the benefits that you attain from it is far more positives than that of negatives.  Here are 5 reasons why going overseas is more than worthwhile.

Fine-tuning your Character

With everything so readily available within hands reach; there may just be some important values, personality, traits and characteristics that are scarce in this day and age. Studying overseas places one in an unfamiliar location, you are also forced to do the seemingly simple tasks that were neglected in our everyday life. These tasks could be as simple as keeping your area or household clean, throwing out the trash, washing the dishes, cooking or managing the household as a whole. Additionally, you will have to deal with your room or housemates, neighbours and neighbourhood. These tasks, as simple as they may seem, are also time consuming, thus you will learn how to adapt them into the day and into your busy schedule, training your time management skills. Thus, going overseas for your studies provides you with the opportunity to be more matured, responsible and independent.

Exposure is Key

Exposure is usually one of the key factors differentiating graduates during job interviews. Having gone through living and studying overseas may not only enable you to the benefits listed above, rather your existence in a foreign country will also grant you better understanding of the country’s culture and environment. This is important as you no longer will have a mindset where its subjected to and only applicable to the country that you grew up in, instead you would have a better knowledge of the outside world and foreign country.

Immersing yourself in another culture widens your knowledge on diversity, which brings you greater cultural intelligence, allowing you to deal with relationships and social situations better in the future. Additionally, since the experiences gained from an international environment is not transferrable; it helps you with stand out from the crowd.

Logic of Networking

As cliché as it sounds, this caters you the opportunity to build and expand your personal network of international contacts. Opening doors for resources, referrals and career positions, which may be more than a simple helping hand in the future. The term networking doesn’t always refer to the requirement of attending talks and events; it also includes how you socialise with your peers, school mates or colleagues. These informal chats and friendships often lead to future opportunities, giving you an incentive to sharpen your soft skills. Since, after all it’s not always about whom you know but who knows you as well.

Countless Opportunities

Studying in a different country qualifies you to participate, attend and be part of events that may not be available in your home country. During your stay, you should not only focus solely on studies. Rather, take the initiative to seek out new and challenging courses or professional experiences of your interest. Since examinations and assignments do not always accurately capture an individual’s true potential, you may utilise this moment to showcase your skills by participating in events, clubs, interest groups or competitions. Best yet, if these activities are collaboratively organised with an organisation or company, this would be a moment to show case your abilities, as this would be equivalent to an “on-the-spot” interview. Giving you the potential chance of being offered an internship or job offer, before your graduation!

Potentially Cheaper

There is always a misconception stereotype placed on the idea of travelling overseas to further your studies, that it is acutely expensive and beyond budget. The truth is that it turns out that it may not always be the case. There are many scenarios whereby travelling overseas may in fact be within the affordable price range or on par compared to studying at your current location. For instance, your selected University of foreign origins may have a favourable exchange rate. On the side note, Singapore is notably one of the most or the most expensive country to study in.

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www.studyabroadlife.org