Last year (Spring 07) UNCC sent me to study at Macquarie Uni in Sydney, Australia. In two days I’m leaving for Mannheim Uni in Germany via Dublin, London, and Paris. Completing a degree takes most American students 4-5 years, but there’s no reason you have to spend all of them stuck in Charlotte. The Office of Education Abroad will send you elsewhere for up to three semesters! I’m here to show you the good, the bad, and the ugly about studying abroad with UNCC.

4 Misconceptions about Studying Abroad

  1. “Studying abroad is prohibitively expensive”

    If you play it smart, you can save tons of money by traveling as a student and taking advantage of the deals UNCC has worked out with places all over the world. Normal tuition at Macquarie is AUD $8,600 per semester, or $7,433 USD. However, as a UNCC exchange student, you’re only responsible for the same UNCC tuition you would pay staying in Charlotte. I paid $2,148 in tuition and used the other $5k to learn more about windsurfing and Australian beer. Plus, UNCC offers a variety of scholarships for students in particular fields or with certain destinations. This semester I’ll be spending less to live in Germany and travel throughout Europe than I would spend at home in my ultra-cheap UT apartment eating Ramen.

  2. “My GPA isn’t high enough to study abroad”

    Grades help. Definitely. But they aren’t as important as you probably think, or John McCain wouldn’t even be a contender. Do you have a 2.0 or better? Congratulations, you’re eligible!

  3. “Studying abroad will delay my graduation”

    UNCC is great, but there are plenty of other places where you can find classes to fulfill your degree requirements. Depending on what kind of crazy scheme you can talk your department chairs into signing off on through your Exchange Agreement (more on this later), you can even give yourself an academic boost.

  4. “I don’t speak another language, so I can’t go anywhere”

    Other than the obvious UK, Ireland, Australia, and Canada, plenty of universities offer courses in English specifically for uncultured people like you and me. Also, you might be surprised by places where English is an official national language. Malta, anyone?