Study Abroad - Dealing with Homesickness

Studying abroad is a big decision to make. If you haven’t traveled abroad or traveled by yourself you may be homesick. You will need to prepare for these feelings of being homesick, it’s very natural. Despite the outcome of how prepared you are and how excited that you feel about living and studying in a foreign country, you will inevitably miss your home, friends, and family members. The feelings of sadness and loneliness are not uncommon for university students who decide to study abroad and travel abroad for the first time. Listed below are six simple steps to help curb and possibly cure your feelings of homesickness.

1. Be Prepared. When you pack your things for your study abroad program in a foreign country, include a few things that will help remind you of home. Some common things are: photographs of family members and friends, CD’s or MP3s of your favorite music, and even a copy of your favorite magazine can all help still feel connected to home.

2. Increase Your Network of Colleagues and Friends. By increasing your network of friends, this will help you keep busy and will help you fight off loneliness by participating in activities with others. You will even find that many of your study abroad colleagues will have feelings of homesickness as well, so by sticking together, you will be helping each other out.

3. Stay Busy. It is easy to keep busy by immersing yourself in your studies. Participating in extra-curricular activities with your fellow students will certainly help you fight off any feelings of loneliness that you may be experiencing. It will be hard for you to feel homesick, if you are constantly busy.

4. Talk to Others Regarding Your Own Feelings of Homesickness. Building friendships and relationships with your fellow study abroad students is a great idea to combat your homesickness. Chances are pretty good that they will be feeling just like you. See if your study abroad program or university abroad will offer any type of counseling services.

5. Call Home to Talk to Friends and Family. Keep in touch with those that you care about back at home by giving them a call every now and then (something easy to do with an international cell phone). Another way to communicate is by emailing all of them on a routine basis. It is very important for you to stay in communication with those you love while you are far away studying. It makes the space between you smaller.

6. Be Positive. Stay positive with yourself by making lists of all of the great experiences that you have while you are studying abroad. Keep in mind that you will be going home after your study abroad program is over. Don’t let your feelings of homesickness stand in the way of a wonderful experience, who knows when you’ll have another opportunity like this. When you start to feel homesick while you are studying abroad, take out your list and read it to remind yourself what a great opportunity it truly is.