Studying abroad can be an exciting and life-changing experience. However, it can also come with many unexpected expenses and costs. Even if you’re planning to study in your home country or somewhere nearby, there are still many things that you should consider before embarking on this journey.
It takes effort to plan a complete and perfect study abroad setup. However, if you can do the financial planning perfectly, it will automatically be easier to plan higher studies abroad. That will also be in your favorite country or university. If so, it is natural that you would also love to study there. If you want to ensure that your finances don’t get in the way of your studies, here are ten tips:
1. Make a Budget
This is the first factor you need to take care of while planning to complete your study abroad. Once you decide to go overseas for your studies, you must make a perfect budget. When planning your budget, you should save enough money to cover travel and living costs. In addition, your country’s currency may differ from your home country’s, so it is essential to convert prices into local currency when making a budget.
You will also want to consider additional expenses, such as phone plans or wifi access, that you may require while studying abroad. The last thing you want when on an adventure abroad is something small like not having enough minutes on your phone plan to call home!
The best way to avoid this is by setting up a separate account for all your study abroad expenses, which are easily tracked and categorized.
The most popular method students use is a budgeting app on their smartphone or tablet. Apps are great resources that allow users to create budgets, monitor spending, set savings goals, and more! Some apps also make it easy to keep track of all your purchases so you remember everything when it comes time to pay rent (or whatever other bills may be coming up). You can even set reminders if there’s something specific you’d like to buy at some point in time–like new clothes or transportation passes–so that way, nothing slips through the cracks!
2. Start Savings
If you plan to study abroad, you need to start saving as soon as possible. Once you start saving, it will help you have a strong financial background when the time comes. That is why you need to start saving money from the beginning. It will help you greatly if there is a 7% yearly interest on your savings. That will also help you a lot with your budget. So, you will also have to make sure you will make those savings at some perfect place. That is why you also need to check everything accordingly.
3. Look For Scholarships
Once you decide to go and study abroad; then you also need to know that you might also require some scholarships. There are different scholarships that you can get quickly based on your curriculum. It would help if you looked for those scholarships, which will help you financially. The scholarship is one of the most significant factors that you must search for if you want to complete your higher studies abroad. In search of that, you also need to know that there are different local, national, private, and institutional scholarships. You have to know about those to better understand which will help you the best.
4. Look for Part-Time Off Campus Jobs
Looking for a job before you leave is a good idea, especially if you’re applying for a visa. It’s easier to get a job with your visa than without one. You can use the time you’re waiting for your visa to prepare documents such as your CV, which will be sent when employers look at your application. You can also network with other students and professionals already living in the country where you plan on studying so they can recommend opportunities that might suit your interests or background.
Also, while you are in another country to do your higher studies, you must know that there will be a lot of expenses. So, you need to get the amount for those expenses too. So, you can go ahead and look for some off-campus part-time jobs as well. Those part-time jobs will help you get money, which will help you financially. That will make you financially independent from the very beginning.
5. Get a Forex card/ International debit card
You may be wondering, “What is a Forex card?” Forex cards are also called international debit cards. They have the same features as any other debit card but allow you to withdraw money from ATMs in other countries that use a different currency.
For example, if you have USD 1,000 on your Forex card and are studying abroad in England for six months, where £1 = USD 2, then every time you withdraw £100 out of an ATM with your Forex card, it will automatically convert £100 $200. This way, when it comes time for your next semester abroad or even just traveling abroad with friends who want to share expenses evenly, using the same currency makes splitting costs much easier!
6. Consult Advisors
If you are going abroad, you must consult some advisors. An advisor will be the best to help you understand what your expenditures will be in that country. They will guide you through the perfect financial track you must follow. You will get a lot of tips from an advisor as well. Along with everything you will also be able to learn about the transportation and living cost over there. An advisor will be the best person to help you get those details.
7. Be Economical
Once you decide to go abroad, you need to know that being economical is one of the most important criteria you need to follow. Once you are in any other country, you must be frugal. So, you need to look for all the economic arrangements for everything you will require over there that will help you immensely. That will save a lot of money, and you can be within your budget.
8. Discuss With Other International Students
Talking to people who have studied abroad before will be an excellent resource for you, as they can provide you with insider tips and tricks that no one else would know. Talk to your friends or family members who have studied abroad and ask them about what they did and didn’t like about their experiences. Ask them if they would do anything differently, and get their opinions on the best places to study abroad.
9. Educational Loans
While looking to study abroad, you need to go ahead and apply for some educational loans. Once you can provide all the required papers to the bank, you can get an educational loan. If you can’t manage any scholarships or any other way to arrange the cost of your education abroad, then you can also go for this process. However, there will be a lot of terms and conditions that you need to take care of and understand. With that help, you can go abroad for your studies.
10. Know The Dates of Disbursements
If you are going to get financial support from different places, then you need to go ahead and know all the dates for the disbursements of the amount. Once you get to know about that, it will help you to plan everything accordingly. You will also be able to make the running budgets, therefore. This will help you a lot in every step you will need to take while abroad. Of course, that will also include your scholarship amount or your educational loan amount.
Conclusion
We hope these tips have helped you better understand what to expect when you are ready to study abroad. The most important thing to remember while deciding to study abroad is that you’re going to have a lot of fun. It’s exciting, challenging, and rewarding. But it can also be expensive and stressful, so remember that preparation is vital! If you’re planning on studying abroad, try these ten tips to ensure your finances are in order before departure. We wish you all the best in your journey!
