The Global Bachelor's Program at GW has been the single greatest experience of my life. Through it, I have learned new languages, experienced different cultures, visited places I never thought I would see, and learned so much about myself and my ambitions. And because I have loved this experience so much, I always find myself encouraging other people to take the step and study abroad. Since this has been such a wonderful experience for me, I am often surprised to see how much skepticism, weariness and uncertainty many people view study abroad. So I wanted to address two of the biggest concerns people have when they decide whether or not to study abroad. I have observed that these concerns will stop students from ever looking into an experience abroad. Both of these concerns are very valid and important issues to address that I also had myself, yet I am certain that they are more manageable hurdles than initially perceived.
One of the primary fears I want to address is the affordability of study abroad. Certainly, the greatest fear students have about study abroad is the cost. For some people, the fear of the cost prevents them from even exploring the opportunity, there tends to be an automatic assumption that study abroad is out of the price range of many students. Especially since I have done three semesters abroad, I am always asked about how I could afford such an experience. The truth however is for most students, study abroad is more affordable than one might imagine, and with good budgeting, saving, applications for scholarship programs and choice of program, this is one of the most affordable ways to see a different part of the world.
One of the biggest shocks about study abroad is that more often than not, the bill for the semester is lower than what a student might pay at GW. The cost of living in Washington DC drives up our student bill, whereas in abroad programs, the cost of attendance is less money. The OSA even says this in the study abroad tutorials, and in my experience this is the case. So right away, although there are additional costs to study abroad (such as flights and visa applications depending on the program you apply to), students must consider that in the long run, they may end up saving money. These savings are significant, I myself have seen my semester bill reduced by half for some of my study abroad semesters. Once we get past the cost of attendance, thanks to lower costs of living in most study abroad destinations, students will end up saving money throughout the semester. Even when I studied in Paris, groceries, eating out, different activities and pretty much everything else was far less expensive than they would be in Washington DC.
So what are some ways to make study abroad more affordable? Depending on your program, your cost of attendance for the semester may be different. As a general rule of thumb, I have found through my experience and the experiences of others that GW Study Programs provide the lowest rate of attendance for students. These are programs that are run by GW and have GW staff onsite for students. Reviewing GW's Study Abroad tier fees will give a clear estimate of the cost of attendance for the range of different programs the OSA works with.
After you select your program, it is a great idea to examine different scholarship opportunities. During my time studying abroad, I benefited greatly from scholarships offered by GW and provider programs. Whether through GW or a provider, students can also find numerous blog and social media opportunities that further reduce the cost of attendance. Moreover, GW offers a range of scholarships dedicated to students who already receive additional aid programs at GW, such as PELL grant scholarships and Federal Work Study.
The best financial savings I made during study abroad was when I chose a homestay in my Spring Semester at GW Paris. Not only did my homestay come at no extra cost to me, I was awarded the GW Paris Homestay Scholarship, which further reduced my cost of attendance for the semester.
Students looking to save money while studying abroad should also consider the cost of living in the places they will be attending. For example, countries like Switzerland, France, and the Netherlands will have a far higher cost of living than places like the Czech Republic, Argentina, or Peru. Moreover, GW offers a Hidden Gems Scholarship for students attending programs in less popular destinations. Many of these programs already will come at a lower cost, which means the Hidden Gems programs are an excellent way to study abroad on a limited budget.
The Global Bachelor's Program itself helps students greatly with the cost of study abroad. For my first semester, the cohort was issued a flight stipend, and in each semester students were eligible to receive additional awards that helped finance study abroad.
And of course, another important way to finance study abroad is through good savings practices. I was able to afford study abroad through working full time in my summers at a local restaurant. I strongly recommend taking on as much work as possible before a study abroad semester. Although my summers have not been very enjoyable, the savings I made enabled me to travel to 25 different countries in my three semesters as a study abroad student. Thankfully, for student studying in or near Europe, travel is very affordable once you make your transatlantic trip. With budget airlines like Ryanair offering 35 euro roundtrip flights and hostels offering accommodations for 20 euros a night, the amount of money you are able to save in your summers will go a long way. Although it is not the most luxurious travel experience, you will go places you never dreamed of seeing before, and make memories that will last a lifetime.
Altogether, through the reduced cost of attendance study abroad offers coupled with a range of scholarship opportunities and good savings practices, I am certain study abroad will cost less than you might first imagine. Many students miss out on study abroad because they fear they cannot afford it before examining all of the ways they could save money during the semester.
In addition to finances, I often hear students say they do not have the space in their schedules to study abroad. Like concerns about finances, students will oftentimes not further research study abroad because they think they do not have the space in their schedule to do so. But even I was shocked to find out that out of the 45 credits I have taken while abroad, only 6 credits will not count directly towards my degree requirements. In order to get classes to count towards your degree, there is a lot of planning involved. GW CATS is a system where GW professors review syllabi from courses abroad to determine whether or not they will fulfill degree requirements. Through submitting CATS requests well in advanced, students can determine before they even select a study abroad program whether or not certain classes will count towards their degree. Even if a CATS request does not come back directly for the required credit, students can submit course substitution requests to get courses to count towards their degree requirements. At first, I had low expectations for how much credit I could return to GW, but thanks to these programs, I was able to get the vast majority of my course load abroad to count. Moreover, different GW study abroad programs are geared towards different areas of study, which makes selecting a program that is fit for you even easier.
Although there are many concerns and misconceptions about study abroad, finances and space in one's schedule are two of the greatest problems students fear they will face when studying abroad. It is my experience that students will not look into study abroad at all because of these concerns. As I have outlined, neither finances nor scheduling should prevent a student from looking into a study abroad program that is right for them. I hope that this blog post will encourage people to further investigate the opportunities to study abroad, that although finances and scheduling are very legitimate and important concerns to address, they are more easily dealt with than one might initially perceive. Because I have loved my experience so much, I hope that I have helped someone take the first step in having the same experience too.
Blaze Grabowski
Spring 2024
GW Paris - Universite Paris-Dauphine (GW Study Program)
Elliott School of International Affairs International Affairs Major
The Global Bachelor's Program