I can confidently say my study abroad experience with CIEE has been amazing, and I wouldn’t have traded it for anything else!
Leela Prodhan
Thinking about studying abroad? You will be by the end of this article. Here are some of the most compelling reasons to study abroad.
Key Takeaways
- Studying abroad can help students experience different teaching styles, classroom expectations, and academic perspectives.
- International learning can make subjects feel more practical by connecting courses to local places, communities, and case studies.
- Living abroad can build independence, adaptability, confidence, and self-awareness.
- Study abroad can support communication skills, cultural understanding, and language confidence.
- Students can use study abroad experience to strengthen resumes, career stories, networks, and future opportunities.
Academic Advantages of Studying Abroad
So, why is study abroad important? The first and most obvious benefit of studying abroad is that you'll gain academic advantages. Students aren't just reading about places from a distance; they're surrounded by new academic expectations, social contexts, and ways of thinking. You'll understand your subjects more deeply by learning in new academic contexts.
Studying abroad can expose students to teaching styles, class discussions, field learning, and academic expectations that differ from their home campus. This can help students see their subject from a different angle and understand how knowledge is taught, debated, and applied in different contexts. It can also help students gain new perspectives and communicate across cultures.¹⁰
You Experience a Different Education System
- See how classes, assignments, and discussions work outside your home campus.
- Compare different approaches to teaching, grading, and independent study.
- Learn how another academic culture expects students to participate and prepare.
- Understand your subject through a different national or institutional lens.
- Gain new academic perspectives by studying in another country.¹⁰
You Learn Through Real-World International Experiences
- Connect course topics to the places, people, and institutions around you.
- Learn through site visits, field activities, community projects, or local case studies.
- See how academic ideas apply beyond textbooks and lecture halls.
- Use the destination as part of the learning experience, not just the setting.
- Build cultural understanding through structured study abroad experiences.¹
You Strengthen Language and Communication Skills
- Practice speaking in everyday situations, not only in language classes.
- Build confidence asking questions, joining conversations, and solving small problems.
- Learn how tone, gestures, and politeness can change across cultures.
- Improve listening skills by hearing different accents and communication styles.
- Use language learning as part of a wider cultural experience abroad.⁴
A strong study abroad program should connect the destination to the course, not treat it as a backdrop. Site visits, local case studies, community projects, museums, labs, fieldwork, and language practice can all turn the experience into structured learning. Studying abroad can support academic growth while also helping students build cultural understanding and personal confidence.¹
You Build Global Knowledge in Your Subject
- Study your field from a different cultural, political, or academic perspective.
- Compare U.S. approaches with international examples.
- Learn how local history, laws, industries, or communities shape your subject.
- Understand why the same issue can be studied differently in different countries.
- Develop broader academic knowledge that can support future study or career choices.¹⁰
Personal Growth and Development
If you're on a budget, you may be thinking "why should I study abroad?". A period of study abroad may dent your bank balance, but it may also completely change you as a person, and for the better. Living in another country is a new way to make decisions, solve problems, and manage daily life in a way you never had to before. These kinds of experiences, which are sometimes awkward and uncomfortable, can help you grow personally as you learn more about yourself and how you respond to new challenges. Independent research has also examined how study abroad can affect students academically, professionally, and personally.⁶
of respondents.²
You Become More Independent
- Manage your own schedule, budget, meals, travel, and study routines.
- Make decisions without relying on the same support systems you have at home.
- Learn how to handle daily tasks in an unfamiliar environment.
- Build maturity by taking more responsibility for yourself.
- Return with more confidence in your ability to live and study independently.²
Studying abroad can feel challenging at first because students may need to adjust to new routines, social norms, transport systems, food, housing, and communication styles. That adjustment period can help students become more patient, flexible, and confident when solving everyday problems. Learning how to adapt to a new environment is one reason study abroad can be valuable beyond the classroom.⁴
You Learn How to Adapt to New Situations
- Adjust to new routines, expectations, and ways of doing things.
- Learn to stay calm when transport, housing, classes, or plans change.
- Become more flexible when everyday life works differently from home.
- Practice solving problems in unfamiliar cultural and academic settings.
- Build adaptability by living and learning in a new environment.⁴
You Gain Confidence and Self-Awareness
- Discover what you can handle when you are outside your comfort zone.
- Become more aware of your habits, values, strengths, and assumptions.
- Learn what kinds of challenges help you grow.
- Build confidence communicating with people from different backgrounds.
- Develop personal growth that can continue beyond the program.²
Professional and Career Benefits
Better grades, personal growth, and life-changing experiences will stick with you after graduation, there are plenty of reasons why you should study abroad. Your professional future may be shaped by your time spent abroad. Whether it's future work, internships, graduate study, or job applications, employers value those who can communicate across cultures, adapt to unfamiliar settings, and explain what they learned from international experience in new places. Language skills are one thing, but spending time abroad will benefit your career in more ways than one. IIE research also connects study abroad with employment-related skills such as adaptability, communication, and problem-solving.³
of surveyed alums build job skills.⁸
You Build Skills Employers Value
- Strengthen communication skills by working with people from different backgrounds.
- Develop adaptability by handling unfamiliar settings and expectations.
- Build problem-solving skills through travel, study, and daily life abroad.
- Learn how to collaborate across cultures.
- Gain job skills that education abroad helped more than 90% of surveyed alumni build.⁸
You Make Your Resume Stand Out
- Show that you completed academic work in another country.
- Highlight fieldwork, research, service learning, internships, or project-based experience.
- Mention language practice or cross-cultural communication where relevant.
- Connect study abroad to skills such as adaptability, teamwork, and problem-solving.
- Use clear resume language that links the experience to career prospects.⁷
Students should not only write “studied abroad” on a resume. They should describe what they did, what changed, and which skills improved, such as communication, adaptability, teamwork, intercultural awareness, problem-solving, or language confidence. Clear resume language can help students connect their study abroad experience to future career prospects.⁷
You Expand Your Network and Career Opportunities
- Meet classmates, professors, program staff, and local contacts abroad.
- Build relationships with people who may support future study or career plans.
- Stay connected with alums from the same program or destination.
- Learn about international graduate study, internships, or career paths.
- Use education abroad as a career catalyst after graduation.⁹
| Category | Reason | What students gain | Supported by reference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Academic Advantages | You Experience a Different Education System | Exposure to different class formats, expectations, grading approaches, and academic perspectives. | 10 |
| Academic Advantages | You Learn Through Real-World International Experiences | Course learning connected to site visits, field activities, local case studies, and structured cultural experiences. | 1 |
| Academic Advantages | You Strengthen Language and Communication Skills | More confidence using language and communication skills in everyday and cross-cultural settings. | 4 |
| Academic Advantages | You Build Global Knowledge in Your Subject | A broader understanding of a subject through international examples, institutions, and perspectives. | 10 |
| Personal Growth and Development | You Become More Independent | More maturity, responsibility, and confidence managing daily life abroad. | 2 |
| Personal Growth and Development | You Learn How to Adapt to New Situations | Greater flexibility when adjusting to unfamiliar routines, expectations, and cultural settings. | 4 |
| Personal Growth and Development | You Gain Confidence and Self-Awareness | Personal growth, confidence, and a clearer understanding of strengths, habits, and values. | 2 |
| Professional and Career Benefits | You Build Skills Employers Value | Career-relevant skills such as communication, adaptability, problem-solving, and collaboration. | 8 |
| Professional and Career Benefits | You Make Your Resume Stand Out | Clear resume examples that connect study abroad to skills and career prospects. | 7 |
| Professional and Career Benefits | You Expand Your Network and Career Opportunities | International contacts, alumni links, and potential study or career pathways after graduation. | 9 |
The value of study abroad does not end when students return home. Alums can continue to draw on the experience when applying for jobs, explaining their skills, building international networks, or choosing future study and career paths. Education abroad can help students build job skills that remain useful after graduation.⁸
References
- CIEE. “Benefits of Studying Abroad: Getting Started.” CIEE, https://www.ciee.org/go-abroad/college-study-abroad/get-started/benefits-study-abroad. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- Institute for the International Education of Students. “Alumni Survey Results.” IES Abroad, https://www.iesabroad.org/about/alumni-survey-results. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- Institute of International Education. “Gaining an Employment Edge: The Impact of Study Abroad.” IIE, https://www.iie.org/publications/gaining-an-employment-edge-the-impact-of-study-abroad/. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- Institute of International Education. “The Top 10 Reasons to Study Abroad.” IIE, 24 Feb. 2025, https://www.iie.org/blog/reasons-to-study-abroad-day/. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- Institute of International Education. “U.S. Study Abroad.” Open Doors, https://opendoorsdata.org/annual-release/u-s-study-abroad/. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- NAFSA: Association of International Educators. “Independent Research Measuring the Impact of Study Abroad.” NAFSA, https://www.nafsa.org/policy-and-advocacy/policy-resources/independent-research-measuring-impact-study-abroad. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- NAFSA: Association of International Educators. “Résumé Boosters: Connecting Study Abroad to Career Prospects.” NAFSA, 12 Jul. 2022, https://www.nafsa.org/ie-magazine/2022/7/12/resume-boosters-connecting-study-abroad-career-prospects. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- The Forum on Education Abroad. “Alumni Report How Education Abroad Positively Influenced Their Career Success.” The Forum on Education Abroad, 13 Oct. 2025, https://www.forumea.org/news/alumni-report-how-education-abroad-positively-influenced-their-career-success. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- The Forum on Education Abroad. “Education Abroad: The Career Catalyst.” The Forum on Education Abroad, https://www.forumea.org/education-abroad-the-career-catalyst.html. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
- U.S. Department of State. “Why Study Abroad?” USA StudyAbroad, https://studyabroad.state.gov/value-study-abroad/why-study-abroad. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
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