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Campus Location: AD 201F
Phone: (619) 594-2200
Email: ksabol@mail.sdsu.edu
Step One: Setting Goals
To find the international experience that is the best fit for you, it is important to think about your goals and set your priorities as early in the process as possible. Here are some questions to ask yourself:
- Where do you want to go? Are you interested in a particular region or country? Why are you interested in this location?
- What kinds of classes do you want to take abroad? What requirements or interests do you hope to fulfill?
- Major requirements
- Minor requirements
- General Education (lower- or upper-division) requirements
- Learn a language
- Other areas of academic interest
- Do you want to study one topic intensively or take a variety of courses?
- When do you want to go? How long do you want to study abroad?
- Full year
- Semester
- Short-term (Summer, Winter, or Spring Break program)
- How immersed do you want to be in the culture? Do you want to take regular university classes with host-country students? Do you want to participate in a home-stay program where you will be housed with a host-country family?
- What language experience do you have? Do you prefer to take classes in English or do you have enough language to do coursework in the host-county language?
- Do you hope to do an internship or find a job while abroad? What about a volunteer experience?
- How great of a factor is cost when selecting a program?
Now, prioritize your preferences. Try ranking the factors that you have identified above. If time limitations are the biggest factor, but geographic location is also important, place the number 1 next to your program length selection and the number 2 next to your geographic location, and so forth. It will be helpful to summarize your priorities in a goal statement, such as:
“I am looking for a semester-long program in China for Fall 2010 that will provide maximum immersion and will allow me to take fulfill some of my General Education Explorations requirements while studying introductory Chinese language and Chinese culture.”
Cassie Conboy
Visiting Stonehenge, UHP Oxford Summer Program
This kind of goal statement can be revised as you learn about the range of opportunities available, but it will also be very helpful in narrowing down your choices and finding the program that is the right fit for you.