Hi, my name is Noor and I am a Biomedical Sciences student at Queen Mary University of London, currently undertaking a year abroad at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York! In this blog post, I  am going to tell you how to prepare for your year abroad, from choosing where to go to how to make the most out of your experience.

How to choose where to go?

This is one of the first things you have to think about when preparing for your time abroad. It is extremely important to make sure you choose a university and destination that you will love but also be able to afford, as finances play a huge role in your decision. I suggest looking at the list from the GO Abroad team, where they have listed roughly how much it would cost for a year to attend university in a particular country. One of the things I also did was to list all my sources of income and make sure that I would have enough funds to not only cover accommodation and food but transport, activities, and any extra traveling I end up doing! This was where the Turing Scheme really helped as it allowed me to have extra funds for travel which was hugely beneficial! I highly recommend using Turing if you are eligible for it.

You should also research your chosen university a lot by looking at the societies/clubs they have, their location and what their student life is like to make sure you get a well rounded picture. For example, Cornell University is in a city called Ithaca, which has a lot of stunning nature and is unlike a busy city such as London. It is also 5 hours by bus from NYC, so you should be aware that location makes a big difference. And lastly, talk to students who have studied in the country you’re interested in from Queen Mary and ask many questions as ultimately they can give you the best and honest information about their experience. This is one of the things I personally did too which made me feel more confident about my decision. The reason I chose Cornell was because not only is it an Ivy League institution, but I wanted to interact with researchers from Cornell and felt that the students have built a nice community!

How to prepare for your year abroad?

To effectively prepare for your year abroad, along with the things I mentioned in the first paragraph, you should also do these things:

• Make a budget planner – this will help you so much when you have a lot of expenses and need to keep track of your finances. You can make your own really simple one, but also use the one that is available through GO Abroad!
• Use a planner to mark down deadlines – During your preparation in second year, there will be many documents you need to fill out and send, not only to Queen Mary but also to your host university. These can quickly pile up and be hard to keep track of, so make sure to write down those deadlines and ensure you send these off in time. I would also suggest keeping these documents in one folder for your ease.
• Research any cultural differences – as my year abroad is in the US, I feel as though there are not many cultural differences. However depending on your chosen destination, there may be some differences that you may need to adapt to that you may not have known about. Therefore, make sure to research this and think about whether you will be able to adapt.
• Apply for your visa as soon as you can – this is something I want to stress as applying for a visa can take weeks to process and can be quite intimidating. I personally had to send my application 2 or 3 times as they are very particular about what they want. To ensure you are ready in time, make sure to start this application as soon as you get the go ahead.

Things I wish I knew before going on my year abroad:

I feel that because I spoke to many students from Queen Mary that had returned from studying abroad, I had a good idea of what to expect but I will still mention some quick things. I personally commute when I am at Queen Mary, so when I came to Cornell, it was my first time living in dorms with a roommate and so far away from my family. It is normal to feel homesick and have to adjust to living with someone else. Also, at Cornell, nearly all tests and exams are in person and very few lectures are recorded which I did not know until I got here. Therefore, I had to adjust quickly according to how classes are given in the US. In addition, I am also used to big lecture theaters filled with many students for each module, but as you pick your own classes in the US, some classes may only have 5-8 students! These are slight differences which I came to find out once I got here, but other than that and the things I have mentioned above, I think that is all!

How to make the most out of your experience:

To end, I would like to talk about how to go about using a year abroad to the best of your ability. In my case, Cornell is a very academic university and I found that it can become difficult to balance extracurricular activities or hang out with friends. This is something I personally struggled with a little in my first semester as I was still adjusting to a new environment. My advice would be to say “yes” to more opportunities. This seems very self explanatory but can be hard to do once you are in your host university. This semester, I have been doing a lot more with friends, going to events which I never would go to (such as a performance in Korean Drumming!) and taking part in social events. I would also suggest joining societies to do with your culture as that is how I met most of my friends at Cornell! I would also suggest planning trips with friends during any fall/winter breaks as you can explore other cities. I have been to NYC many times now because I have gone with friends or on trips that Cornell organises!

I hope this post has been useful for you to read and you are able to prepare well for your year abroad! It is such an enriching opportunity, so make use of it!

If you would like to reach out or have any questions about anything or about Cornell in specific, feel free to email goabroad@qmul.ac.uk and ask for Noor from this blog!