Let’s Go Abroad
Studying abroad can be one of the greatest decisions of your college career. Exploring and immersing yourself in a new culture has many personal benefits. It can improve your outlook on life, spark creativity, allow you to connect with different cultures and people, and create lifelong memories. However, studying abroad can be expensive. So, how can you afford to study abroad while already living on a college budget?
Create a Budget
Creating your budget should be the first thing you do when considering studying abroad. You will need to identify if you can afford to go abroad. This should be done months in advance before boarding your plane. This budget should be as in-depth as possible. Identify and estimate all foreseeable costs, (passport or visa applications, tuition, books, housing, meals, bottled water, plane and train tickets, transit (i.e. metro or taxi), souvenirs, and any possible excursions. Once these costs are estimated, you will need to look at your current bank account and other resources you will have access to such as scholarships, work income and financial aid to cover the total costs. Do you currently have enough money from these combined resources to pay for the trip?
The peer counselors at Powercat Financial are great at helping students identify their current budget. If you are not wanting to come in to Powercat Financial to create this budget, you will need to first find a budgeting tool to use. We have a spending plan worksheet that you can access HERE, or I would suggest making a free account at www.mint.com. When starting your budget go through and identify if your expenses are a need or a want. Since we are trying to save for a study abroad trip, I would highly suggest that you cut down on the wants in your life. By cutting down on the wants you can put that money towards studying abroad. Another suggest I will make is to create a separate savings account that is strictly for going abroad. This way you can keep everything separate. If you have a job, consider putting 10-20% of each paycheck into the new savings account. Another great way to pay for the semester abroad is to apply for scholarships. K-State studying abroad scholarships can be found here: https://www.k-state.edu/abroad/current-students/funding/scholarships.html.
Does your Credit/Debit Card Work in Foreign Countries
Congratulations, you are in your study abroad program! You are now ALMOST ready to board your flight. You will now need to figure out if your current credit and/or debit card can work overseas and incur if any swipes made overseas are subject to additional fees. You can easily check with your bank on this matter and if need be, obtain a card that does not have costly fees. It is also extremely important to put each card you plan on using overseas on a travel notice. This way your card will not be frozen by your bank.
Establish an Emergency Fund
Finally, you will need to prepare for any surprises that can affect your finances and your abroad experience. You can include an emergency fund in your initial budget. You never know what can happen (losing your wallet, pickpockets, extra travel, etc.) be prepared for the unforeseeable. It is important to always have a back up plan.
If you need help budgeting for your semester abroad or any other financial need, please visit Powercat Financial and we will love to help you! All appointments can be made on our website: www.ksu.edu/powercatfinancial
Eli McDonald
Graduate Assistant
Powercat Financial
302 K-State Student Union, Third Floor
918 N. 17th Street
Manhattan, KS 66506-2800
785.532.2889
www.k-state.edu/powercatfinancial
