What Life Long Benefit Does Studying Abroad Bring To You?

What Life-Long Benefit Does Studying Abroad Bring to You?
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What Life-Long Benefit Does Studying Abroad Bring to You?
Studying abroad is one of the most life-changing experiences one can ever have. The boost to one’s education and career from such an experience is overwhelmingly great. In the last three decades, the number of students looking for opportunities to study abroad has surged as students keep requesting and toiling for such opportunities. According to Tara John (2016), the number of international students studying in the US grew to over one million with China holding the largest share of this number at 31.5%. The truth is, this number is expected to continue growing as more parents continue to toil to have their children study overseas. For the US, John (2016) reports that the number of American students studying abroad also grew and currently, there are more than 100,000 students studying abroad. For these students, Europe most notably Spain, Italy, France, and the U.K. seem to be the preferred destinations with China coming in a close second. Different issues from all over the world usually affect these numbers, but so far, the world seems to be breeding a new crop of elites who understand their immediate surrounding as well as that of their neighbors.
It is indeed challenging to study abroad, and there are millions who would have also preferred to further their studies elsewhere. For starters, financial problems or the cost of studying abroad seem to the main challenge (Naffziger, Bott, and Mueller, 2008). According to Jane Playdon (2018), international students in the U.K. are required to pay between £10,000 (equivalent to US $14,130) and £38,000 (equivalent to US $53,700). Playdon continues to state that these figures could grow depending on which degree one is pursuing. In the US, it is more expensive, but according to Bridgestock (2018), it still remains the “top choice for parents considering university abroad for their child.” However, despite being the preferred study destination, parents are forced to cough up to $58,464 “towards their child’s education in the US per year (including tuition fees, transport, books, and accommodation.).” Apparently, the figures provided here are dependent on the university a student wishes to go to. The point being made here is that studying abroad is quite expensive, but the real question people need to ask themselves is, is it worth it. The truth is, studying abroad does not mean one is set for life or that it will be easier to acquire job opportunities later. But could there be certain benefits which come along with choosing to further one’s studies abroad? By elucidating further on the above question, this paper seeks to determine which life-long benefits accrue or come along with the decision to study abroad.
Methods
To have a complete answer and to increase the research’s credibility, the interview method was employed as the preferred data collection tool. On most occasions, interviewees often opt to leave blanks especially when they are asked to explain or elaborate their answer. However, to avoid this challenge, I used more multiple choice questions and managed to get answers on al...