I knew that going back to school in my forties would be difficult. However, I did not realise how complex it would be until my second day in Dublin. As I walked outside, I noticed that I could not tell the difference between the street and the sidewalk (or pavement, as the Irish say).

When choosing where to study abroad, hearing from current students is one of the best ways to get a feel for what a university or country is like. Here, students from a range of universities in Europe share some of their top tips and the biggest challenges they faced when studying abroad. 

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Studying abroad can be an experience that is rich in opportunities for gaining new skills. But it also comes with plenty of unknowns, from navigating visa requirements to finding accommodation in an unfamiliar city.

The idea of studying abroad started early for me. When I was a child, my parents would take me to France in the summer and it became my second home. When I started studying French and Italian literature at LMU Munich I knew that if I got the opportunity I wanted to spend a term in France. 

I come from a small village in Uttar Pradesh surrounded by lush green crops and mango orchards.

My father works as a farmer and my mother is a homemaker. Like my family, the major occupation of people in my village is farming, and had VidyaGyan School not selected me in 2012, I would not be sharing my study-abroad experience here.

I grew up wanting to explore the world. I knew that if I travelled, I would meet people with different cultures and languages. I would see what connects us all as human beings. 

As an anthropology student, I believe our values and beliefs are best developed by seeing the world and experiencing new things. This attitude led me to travel out of China and into Europe.

International education focuses on the application and practice of knowledge, the development of critical thinking and the enhancement of soft skills, which is what I wanted. 

Why Europe? Why the University of Amsterdam? 

I always knew I wanted to live abroad. During my junior year, I studied in Sydney, Australia and completely fell in love with it. My time studying abroad had such a significant impact on my love for travelling and learning about other cultures that I knew I wanted to experience that again. As I approached the end of my senior year of college (fourth year), I started researching how I could find my way back overseas. 

Germany is a popular destination for international students. The high standards of German universities allow students to develop contacts, expand their knowledge and refine their skills for their chosen career paths at the early stage of studying.

As well as all this, there is so much for students to do while in Germany – whether it’s visiting historical landmarks, exploring nature or sampling the local cuisine.