Get Ready for Your Summer Abroad: Tips from Past Participants!
by Zainab
Here is a helpful list of the best tips from past participants and items to complete before you head off on your summer abroad!
Best Tips from Past Participants:
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Explore on your own – going grocery shopping or doing other errands alone can feel really empowering and help you gain confidence and independence. You also get a sense of the culture without feeling too much like a tourist – Amanda
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Make lists and itineraries – these are helpful for the weekends especially when you may be visiting nearby cities for the day. It’ll save you more time to have an idea or list beforehand so you can actually visit all the places you would be interested in (finding out things about whether they might be closed on that particular day) rather than having to figure the details out when you’re already there. Making lists is helpful to remember important things and to check off items as you go – Teresa
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Say yes to impromptu plans – as much as lists and itineraries can be useful, never feel like you have to stick to them 100%. Give yourself the freedom and flexibility to experience new things as they come. You never know what you might learn about yourself and others, and you might end up making some unforgettable memories – Devarya
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Bring weather-appropriate clothing – if you’re participating in the Oxford program, bringing or buying a raincoat is a great idea because it can get quite rainy, and you’ll be spending quite a bit of time outdoors. This tip can apply to other places as well in terms of brining clothes that are appropriate to your destination’s weather – Teresa
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Eat well – eating well is important on a regular basis and especially important when you’re travelling and staying somewhere for a month. It’s important to keep yourself well-nourished because the days feel long sometimes and with the amount of work and sightseeing, you definitely don’t want to fall sick – Devarya
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Always attend breakfast – rather than eating out on your own somewhere, have breakfast with everyone else in the dining hall, whether at the hotel or the residence you’re staying at. This is a great opportunity to connect with your classmates! – Salma
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Study together – this is great way to make friends and spend time with them while also being productive and working through assignments in a fun environment – Teresa
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Do day trips – I think every past participant will agree that going on day trips are one of the best parts of the program. You get to explore amazing nearby cities that may not be related to your course but still expand on your knowledge and experience. For Oxford, the app Trainline is useful to book tickets and if you plan to travel more than 3 times, it’s a good idea to get the discount pack – Teresa
Essential Tasks to Complete Before Your Summer Abroad:
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Complete the tasks on your post-acceptance portal
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Review and complete important forms and questionnaires and submit them
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Pay your program fees
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Complete the post-acceptance application
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Email about any questions or concerns whether about accessibility or dietary restrictions or other matters
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Re-check all necessary documents and cards you will need to take with you (make sure none are missing or expired – it’s good to check these things and set them aside somewhere safe well before you leave for your program)
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Participate in the Summer Abroad Instagram contests! Okay, this isn’t exactly essential, but you should do it anyway!
Tasks to Prepare for Your Course:
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Do at least some of your course readings ahead of time and take notes
This is a great way to help your future self out for two main reasons: 1) You’ll save yourself quite a bit of time during the program to do things like explore places, experience the culture, go out with friends, and meet new people. Doing readings and prepping for assignments is really the only thing you can do before you’ve arrived there, so it’s best to use that and 2) It can actually be more helpful to you for your coursework because you’ve familiarized yourself with content and that’s puts a lot less pressure on you when you’re rereading or skimming the content a second time during the program. Plus, having handwritten notes that you’ve already made is a great way to get the content to stick in your mind and can help you study for quizzes or tests. Personally, I wish I had done more readings than I did before leaving – I think it would’ve been the biggest help because the few that I did do definitely made a difference.
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Consider ideas for essay topics or other assignments
Like the first point, if you’ve already done some readings and you know what the assignments for the course are, you’ll get a head start if you think about what topics interest you and what you might want to write about. Of course, it’s not set in stone, but it helps to write down some basic ideas. It can be tempting to procrastinate, but you’ll thank yourself later!
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Create a study plan for how, when, and where you want to study and work on course assignments
This is another one of those things that you can kind of plan a little beforehand, although it isn’t uncommon for it to change when you arrive since you’ll have a better sense after the first day or two of the program about what it’s actually going to be like and what your own schedule might be. Creating a study plan will help you manage your time and think about when you want to be doing coursework and when you want to be going out and seeing places. Personally, I tried to keep up with work throughout the week so that on weekends I could go places, especially when going to other cities which you need an entire day for. Then, during the week, when I was free, I would explore nearby places in Oxford itself either on walking tours, with friends, or on my own.
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Email your prof about course-related questions (or just to tell them how excited you are!)
If you have any pressing concerns about the course or you’re feeling anxious about something course-related, you can always email your professor to get clarification. If you haven’t already, watch the instructor interviews and information sessions about your course – there’s a chance your questions/concerns have already been addressed.
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Do some research on field trip locations to
This is a great way to get yourself even more hyped for your summer abroad! Doing research will help you familiarize yourself with the areas and get you to think about things you might want to prepare for those locations (especially if you have certain needs such as dietary ones and want to know what restaurants there might be nearby – knowing these things before hand and taking note of them can make you feel a lot more at ease, especially if you tend to get anxious in new settings.
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Attend the Summer Abroad Coffee Chats!
These will be hosted over the next month or so on Zoom for each program location and they’re the perfect chance to meet others in your programs and your course and form friendships even before you land in your destination. I would highly recommend attending these, turning your cameras on, and enjoying fun icebreakers. But there’s no pressure! It’s meant to be a fun and casual event where you can get tips from past participants and have conversations with fellow 2025 participants.
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Go to the Summer Abroad Meet and Greet event! This is an in-person event for all those participating in the program which gives you a chance to meet fellow classmates as well as your professor in person (you can also pick up a swag bag)
Maybe you’re thinking “Zoom is nice, but I want to meet my professor and classmates in person before the program” well then, this event has got you covered because you’ll be doing just that. Not only do you get to meet people who are going on the summer abroad journey with you, but you can also pick up a Summer Abroad swag bag with some really amazing things.
So, that was Part 1 of this pre- Summer Abroad guide and checklist! I hope you find these tips helpful and if you do, you can always print out the checklist and check the items off as you go.