Academic Essay #2 Throughout my life, I’ve been very intrigued by the multiple countries of the world. For example, I’ve tried to convince my parents to allow our family to host a German student, or at least allow me to go overseas. To my surprise, my parents denied both proposals both years. Although our family goes on vacation during the summer, we’ve just been to seven different states, Puerto Rico, The Dominican Republic, and The Virgin Islands. We have never been toward Europe or South America. I have still never really gotten a taste of different cultures, or at least as much as I would like. Fortunately enough, during my visit at Ashland University, my guide told me about the study abroad program and how he went through it. The study abroad program is a program that you can partake in during your junior or senior years of your college experience. Those who qualify for this program receive the opportunity to further their education in diverse parts of the world. This was very promising news to me and allowed my parents and I to develop a plan for when I attend college. Almost every college, big or small, has a study abroad program. My course of action will be first to check whether or not the college of my choice has this program. Next, near the end of my sophomore year in school, I will meet with an advisor to be sure I’m eligible for the program. You need excellent grades and attendance in order to be able to pursue studying abroad. I very much plan on doing my absolute best during my college experience. Afterwards, I’ll need to develop my campaign for obtaining the necessary amount of money for my trip. It goes without saying that studying abroad is not cheap by any means. Among the various strategies of obtaining money: you can fundraise, obtain a sponsor, and/or utilize money you have saved up. Finally, after I have all the money and necessities to study abroad, I will pick where I am going to travel to. To my knowledge, students have the choice of going anywhere ranging from Costa Rica to England. Of course, where I go will differ depending on my major, preference, and knowledge of the education in the given area. Having this base of information that I do really excites me for my future education. One of the many advantages/benefits of studying abroad is the impact it will have on my life after college. When you study abroad your education grows exponentially faster than if you stay at home. Studying abroad can help you understand the interdependence of the U.S. and other countries, enhance your sense of independence/self-confidence, and increase your proficiency in a foreign language. These qualities could, for example, help me secure a prestigious occupation. It would put me ahead of many other people having the background knowledge of different cultures. Adding to that, speaking multiple languages would help my cause as well. As of now, I’ve been fluent in both English and Spanish for a large portion of my life. Given the opportunity to travel abroad, I’d pursue learning another language or two. Studying abroad can help me gain an advantage if I would like to further my education and go to graduate school. I’ll be prepared to adapt to unfamiliar environments, learn from different teaching style, and effectively communicate among diverse groups of people. These skills will greatly appeal to graduate school admissions. With that being said, I hope I get the opportunity to study abroad, thus improving my lifestyle in the future.