Preparing for the Journey
As I begin to write this, I am one month, one day, two hours and fifty minutes away from leaving for Prague. It is exciting, but also slightly terrifying knowing I am this close. I started preparing for my trip last fall even though the study abroad advisors at Belmont just wanted me to chill and wait until the spring so they could focus on the students leaving in the spring. I am the type of person that wants to get things that are in the future worked out so I only have the everyday stuff to stress about, which my parents appreciate. I decided my first blog about my experience should be about getting ready for it, so here it goes.
Preparing to study abroad is fairly similar for everyone that decides to go, but there are different factors that can change that. One factor is how long you are going. If you go for just a summer or Maymester, there a couple things you do not have to worry about. The big this is, you do not need a visa. For longer trips, you have to apply for a student visa. My experience with that was kind of stressful. When I first applied, my application got sent back to me right away because I had not gotten papers notarized. Once I saw that, I instantly called someone, met with them to get them notarized and sent my application back the next day. The process takes about 60 days and I was cutting it close, but I have not gotten it back again which I am going to take as a good sign. Second thing you do not need to worry about if you take a shorter trip, at least at Belmont, is getting classes accepted. Belmont does not have a lot of options for longer trips, so I am going through a company called CEA. They had classes that would be offered up on their website and I had to get those approved by Belmont for specific classes. It was not too difficult, but once I could actually sign up for classes, two of the ones I had approved were not on this list. I got two new ones approved for the same credits eventually. I am not saying shorter is better, it depends on what you can and want to do.
Another thing I had to worry about was keeping on track to graduate. Belmont's Computer Science program is fairly small so there are four classes that are only offered during specific semesters. The class I would have had to taken in the fall was also a prerequisite for the class I will take in the spring. Instead, I am taking the class this summer. That along with two jobs has made my summer quite busy, but I know it will be worth it in the end. Also, I was thankful enough to take it as a guided independent study and can just work on it when I have the time. If you do decide you need to do that, make sure the class will be accepted by Belmont. They will tell you this too.
I suggest starting early. It is so less stressful to have things out of the way. There are some things you can do before the school is ready for you to start applying. The first is to make sure you have a valid passport that will not expire for at least six months after you are done. For me, that meant getting a new passport. That application is not as complex as the visa application and you will need it for a visa. Also, you can look for programs. I knew Belmont would not have something for me so I started looking at programs on the websites Belmont is connected with. Remember to be openminded on this. When my sister went abroad toe Prague, I said I would not want to go there because I wanted to go to an English speaking country, but we all know how that went. I was able to apply through CEA before Belmont allowed me to apply. Applying early there got me a voucher for my plain ticket too.
As of now, I am as prepared as I can be. I have gone to the meetings, my classes approved, flights booked, visa application in progress, and finishing up my class. I will have to start packing in a few weeks and get a cellphone when I get there. If you are considering going abroad and need more detail about anything I talked about, let me know! Feel free to follow my blog for updates on my journey abroad in Prague.
