Things You Should Know Before You Go Abroad

I'm going abroad. What do I need to know?

Teaching English abroad is a great way to see the world and experience a different culture. But it can be scary to leave the life you know and commit yourself to a job abroad. I know when I decided to Teach Abroad for a year in Chile, I felt like a crazy person. I had a hard time explaining it to family and friends,  and it often felt like instead of explaining what Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) is, I was justifying what I was about to do. No one really understood the concept of living abroad and teaching English, and to be honest, before I started thinking about teaching abroad, I didn’t really understand it either. As I prepared for my teach abroad experience, everything started to get much more real, and when I stepped on the plane to go to Chile I was ready for the experience of a lifetime. Here at CIEE we help hundreds of participants teach abroad every year. Here are some tips to help you prepare for your own teach abroad experience.

Things you should do before going abroad

Let go of things.

Maybe it’s 3 trash bags full of clothes, your old car, your collection of beanie babies, or the goldfish you had all through college. Donate, sell, or trash—you can do it. Besides “things” it’s also helpful to think about people and thought cycles. Are there any relationships you can let go of? And what relationships do you want to hold onto? Are you stuck in circular thinking in any parts of life? Let it go. Simplify life. Traveling light is glorious.

Reflect on yourself.

Travel can be transformational, and it’s helpful to know who you are BEFORE you get on the plane. Think about your cultural programming, your values, your strengths, your weaknesses, your personality, your learning style, your life as you know it. Take self- Write it down. Dig into yourself as much as you can before you step out of your comfort zone. You’ll thank yourself later.

Get curious.

Research the culture of the place where you will be teaching. Watch movies and read novels that spark your imagination and curiosity. Notice differences between your own culture and the culture of the place you will be teaching. Let questions bubble up, and hold onto those questions—there will be ample opportunity to learn more.

Plan, a little bit.

It’s impossible to have all the information before you travel abroad, so don’t plan on having all the information. But, it is worth figuring out some basics. How much money should you have saved? What documents are important to bring with you? Have you done everything you need to get a visa? How will you stay in touch with family and friends? Can you convince anyone to visit you during one of your breaks? Will you book a one-way or roundtrip flight? Do you want to get TEFL certified before you go? What are your top travel destinations around your teaching destination? Most importantly—what are your goals? If you plan nothing else, think of a few things you hope to achieve while you are teaching abroad—it’s the perfect time to think about personal development.

Get excited.

Teaching abroad is an amazing opportunity, but while you prepare it’s easy to let doubt and fear creep in. Don’t worry. Keep an open mind, and with every negative thought that enters your mind take a deep breath and imagine yourself in an idealistic setting abroad: sitting on the beach, on a bumpy bus ride, smiling at the man selling you perfectly ripe avocados. It won’t be perfect and rosy your whole time abroad, but if you can start appreciating the little moments before you even arrive, you will be much happier. Get excited.

Making the decision to teach abroad is the hardest part. Once you decide to go for it, it’s all about figuring out how make the most of the transformational opportunity.