Are you thinking about how to make your free time an unforgettable experience in a foreign country but also have the “excuse” to learn a new language? Our experience as travellers, workers, students and polyglots has given us more of an anecdote and some tips on how to make the most of these sabbatical weeks, getting to know people, new cities and enjoying the most. Here we go:
Do you need a boost? Find scholarships to study abroad
There are several apps that connect companies and institutions but one of our favorites is Scholarships. It has an enormous database of national, institutional and private scholarships to study all types of studies abroad. Filter by your country of origin, preferences and languages and cross your fingers! You could be living in the city of your dreams sooner than you think!
Choose the language
Every country has its tricks, you will not learn the same Spanish in Madrid as in Veracruz, nor will you have the same experiences with Italian in the north as in the south of the country. Each country has its own soul, its cultural charm and that can help you to decide what kind of experience you are going to live.
Before you leave you can start learning with some interactive apps, those that even make you repeat a word to see if you have pronounced it well. We love the best known apps Babbel or Duolingo, although we are also in love with these new options like Speaky, a social network where you can find people from other countries and chat with them or make a video/voice messages so you can improve the language, while they do the same. Check out as well Fluentu, an innovative app that has thousands of videos and games to make you enjoy learning while on the subway or waiting for the bus.
Choose a good program
When you study abroad you might think of spending your entire time only learning a language and studying hard to pass an exam, or combining your class time with leisure, activities, excursions and trips. However, you have so many other options like studying sports, arts, painting or doing a specific course of economics in another language, if you already have some notions, to boost your career while learning a language. A good option to see different schools and opinions is the web comparator My Language Travel, at the moment they have no app but you can check the thousands of schools and programs around the globe that have reviewed on the web.
Get lost only when you want
Finding in your new host city your new friends who are in that downtown bar that you can not remember might be difficult. Finding your family or the tour guide can be a bit hard, too. Now that roaming in Europe and most of the world has been eliminated, it is time to take advantage of technology and use the most powerful tools in geolocation. Wave application is an app that allows you to open a map with your friends and share with them your location in real time. You will see how you both move around the map, just as you do in real life. You will also be able to see how to get to the meeting point you have set or just approach one of your friends, while you see him on the map and chat with him.
If your parents or soulmate are curious about you, you can also open a Wave with them, and show them how cool you are walking down that famous street, while you see them in their home city.
Break up with the paperwork
Perhaps it is the first time you travel so far, or at least your first experience to study in another country. The paperwork can become overwhelming, to make it easier use Passport and Visa app. With it you can find all the information you need, from the visa and the passport, to all the medical papers or certificates of studies you need in your country of origin. Is very simple to use: put your country of origin and the destination and you will see in a single screen what you need and how to get it to go to study a foreign language.
Now you are all set up! Have you found a nice program to study abroad a language? Let us know your tips!
Pablo Clemente Pérez 