Student to Student

An Overseas Experience Will Change Your Life Forever

By Alaina N. Fields, Spelman College

Studying abroad was a fulfilling experience which resulted in many changes in my perception and understanding of the world; it was an exceptional opportunity to learn first hand about a culture distinct from my own. As a representative of my country, my race, my religion, and my gender, I had an opportunity to learn but also to teach. While everyone’s overseas experience is unique and our responses to change will be as varied as our experiences, there are some things that will help ensure that your transition is a smooth one.

To get the full experience of traveling abroad, one must first be prepared to step out of his or her comfort zone, the area where everything is known and easy. Things will not be the same, so do not expect them to be. The reason that one travels is to experience the new, and this is not possible until you let go of your conventional ideas of what is "right" and "wrong." I have found that one spends the majority of one’s first time abroad fighting the transition--you will save a lot of time and have a much richer experience when you accept and embrace the differences.

To begin with, read up on the history of your host country, including information on the background of the people, common customs and practices, and the economy. But keep in mind that the fun of traveling is sometimes not knowing everything there is to know about the place. I never read the popular guidebooks because I knew that they would influence my perception of the country and its people. That is exactly what I did not want. Instead, I wanted the freedom to form my own impressions and opinions and to explore my new surroundings without a guide.

Practical matters include taking safety and health precautions seriously. Know what to eat and what not to eat and what inoculations are required for the region.

Take care of money matters before you leave. Find out the rate of exchange and plan a monthly budget based on that information. How much is public transportation? How much is food? If you are studying, how much do books and other materials cost? Also, find out how money can be sent to you. Always have some of the foreign currency on you when you arrive because you never know when you will be able to get to a bank. Most countries have banks with automatic teller machines (ATMs), but it is always helpful to have a credit card in case of emergencies.

If there is a number that you will call frequently, work out a telephone billing program with your long distance carrier before you go. In Buenos Aires there were "locutorios"--places to make phone calls where you pay on the spot. This helped me control spending, but I didn’t know that such places existed until after two months of making phone calls with my calling card and paying a surcharge. Of course e-mail is always the cheapest way to communicate.

The single most important part of my experience abroad has always been staying with a host family. This is the best way to totally immerse yourself in the culture. You will eat native foods and listen to popular music. In conversation at meals, and even around the TV set, you’ll learn what is not in textbooks. I wish that before I went abroad someone had stressed the importance of completely immersing myself in the culture. In Buenos Aires, Argentina, I socialized mainly with the North American students in my exchange program. My comfort impeded my learning.

Cultural Immersion

If the country is not an English-speaking country, try not to speak English. Participate in as many activities as possible that force you to break way from what is comfortable. Look for ways to meet local people. Join a cooking class or an art class or a dance class or a gym. If you’re at all inclined, attend a place of worship. Also, try to volunteer in your field of interest. If you are interested in medicine, volunteer at a hospital. In a country that is not English speaking, you can usually get a job teaching English.

One story illustrates how I have applied what I learned abroad to my current interests. While studying in Japan, I got very sick after being bitten by an insect. I later found out that the bug bite had nothing to do with my illness, but at the time I was terrified because I thought that I had contracted some rare disease and that I was going to die in Japan. The fact that I had not gotten the shots I was supposed to have added to my panic. I went to the local hospital and tried to explain my symptoms to the doctor. I panicked because no one there could speak English, and I was afraid that because I wasn’t able to communicate with the doctor he would not be able to tell what was wrong with me. I experienced for the first time what it was really like being a foreigner. I had traveled before, but I had never felt the confusion, the frustration, and the fear that I felt at that moment.

I realized that this is the experience of millions of people daily in this and other countries--people who are constantly neglected, taken advantage of, and misunderstood because they cannot communicate their needs and their fears. Like me that day, these people need an advocate. I decided after that experience that I wanted to open a clinic where there would be doctors who speak different languages and are accessible to all people. Healthcare should not be a privilege extended to those who have a certain socioeconomic status or who are of a certain race or who speak a certain language; it should be a right extended to all people.

Some may think of overseas travel and study as a fun thing to do during the junior year in college, a time to goof off--with the added bonus of another entry on the resume. Of course traveling is entertaining and exciting, and it does look good on one’s resume to have lived in another country. But it is more than that. It is an experience of exchange that will change your life forever.

ALAINA N. FIELDS, who attends Spelman College in Atlanta, is preparing to be a bilingual physician. In summer 1993 she assisted the project manager for the South Africa/South Pacific Program to Eradicate Racism (World Council of Churches), Geneva, Switzerland; in school year 1994 she was a DC Public School Youth Ambassador in Seoul, Korea and hosted a Korean student in the U.S.; in summer 1994 she was an exchange student with Youth for Understanding in central Japan; in summer 1998 she was an exchange student from Spelman College in Oaxaca, Mexico; and in fall 1998 she was an exchange student with the COPA/Butler Univ. program in Buenos Aires, Argentina.