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While such a step is significant for one’s career and knowledge bank, it doesn’t mean that it is easy. More often than not, international students find themselves in the midst of a foreign culture, language, and atmosphere. The cultural shock, if not dealt with properly, can affect academic performance, lead to homesickness and insomnia.

If you are an international student, you would want to make the most out of the exciting experience of studying in a foreign university. To ensure that the cultural shock doesn’t disorient you, here are some steps you can take.

1. Begin by Accepting that Your Feelings Are Valid

Invalidating your feelings and emotions and thinking that you are overreacting can end up backfiring. The best way to deal with culture shock is accepting that the concept is normal and occurs to a lot of people. Recognizing the presence of the issue is the first step towards recovery!

Remember, it is not about you. There is nothing wrong with you. You are not incapable of fitting into the environment. Instead, you just need to give yourself time to adjust. You will be surprised that even the natives of the country can experience cultural shock.

For instance, there are a lot of excellent universities that offer executive MBA in Florida. People from various states of the US, along with international students, opt for such programs. US citizens from places like California or LA experience a culture shock in Florida too! Any place that is unfamiliar and has its own way of living can produce this effect. So, you are not alone.

2. Keep in Touch With Your Loved Ones

A great way to combat homesickness that comes as a symptom of culture shock is to stay in close contact with your family and friends from back home.

And don’t just talk to them about the weather. Instead, let them know about your inner turmoil and feelings. This will help you in letting it all out. Not to mention that your loved ones can provide you with a better escape route since they know your personality in and out.

One of the greatest things about living in this era is that we can easily connect with our loved ones back home. Think about the days when the sole way of communicating cross-country were letters and expensive phone calls!

With the rise of the internet, you can now video chat with your family. Make use of the various apps around you. The more you feel familiarity around you, the easier it would become to overcome the culture shock.

3. Never Miss Out on Orientation Day and Programs

The culture shock international students experience stems from the unfamiliarity that is around them. If one is able to combat this, it is automatically easier to feel better.

This is why it is highly advised that you attend the orientation sessions and programs organized by your university. Every university dedicated a day or week in introducing the new batch to the campus life.

These sessions tend to include ice-breaking programs, game nights, campus tours, informative talks about the different programs at the university etc. Various top universities further take it up a notch and tailor a separate program for international students. These programs aid in acclimatizing the students to the culture of the country as well as building a support network.

When you are feeling down and frustrated, you might think about missing such programs. But don’t do so. Fight the feeling. Put on a brave face and attend it all. You are bound to feel better by the end of it.

4. Try to Socialize

Regardless of whether you choose a university in your home country or a foreign one, you need a support system to make it through the four years. And this support system must be from the university. After all, no one else can understand and help you with your everyday struggle as good as someone who is going through the same thing!

This is why it is essential to make friends. By socializing and making friends, you can deal with the culture shock as well. How so? Well, suddenly, you will feel that the country doesn’t feel as complicated and new to you anymore. This is because you now have someone to turn to at times of need!

Socializing in a new country and college can be hard. An excellent way to break the ice is by joining the different clubs and societies. Some places even offer specific clubs for international students.

By becoming an active member of any society, you are passionate about will allow you to find like-minded people. Try to befriend international students specifically. They will be able to relate to your culture shock struggle as well as offer solutions that worked best for them.

5. Understand that Isolating Yourself is Not the Answer

One of the first things you would want to do when you start feeling the cultural shock is shutting yourself in your hostel room. Getting out of bed and making an effort to explore the city and your university may seem like the ultimate struggle.

But, isolating yourself from the world will only make it worse. The more time that goes by, the harder it will be for you to gel into the environment.

You are not alone. There will be various other students in your university going through the exact same struggle as yours. Reach out to them. Learn the native languages if you have to. Making an effort to overcome the culture shock is actually all it takes to overcome it eventually!

You Can Manage It!

With these five tips and a positive outlook on the situation, one can undoubtedly manage and overcome culture shock.

This feeling is fleeting. It will pass.

Learning the English language is no easy feat. Apart from the actual language itself, you must learn the various etiquette tips for using it. When it comes to a professional work setting, here are a few of the most common etiquette tips.

Tips for Emailing

Email is a very popular way to get into contact with others without having to pick up the phone. Due to the easy accessibility of email, you can send a message around the clock. You should always ensure that you’re using a professional email address when talking with business associates. Never use personal email addresses as it can seem unprofessional to the recipient. Make sure that when you reply to messages, you’re only replying to those who need to read your response. Don’t reply to all the people included in the first message if there isn’t a need to.

While much online communication tends to veer towards the casual and ungrammatical, professional emails should be reread and follow standard English rules. Begin with a salutation or greeting like “Hello (name),” and end with something like “Best, (your name)” or “Sincerely, (your name).”

Tips for Phones

The phone has always been the traditional form of contact for businesses. However, the way the phone is used is a little different these days. Instead of just talking, you can now text associates throughout the day. You can even implement a text message system for business purposes to respond to customers. While texting casually, people often use emoticons and abbreviations, but in a professional situation it’s best to limit abbreviations and misspellings. Abbreviations like ‘u’ can seem very informal in a professional environment. However, texts do not need to begin, or end, with greetings or names if the person already knows you. If contacting someone for the first time through text, it is standard to begin with a brief introduction: “Hello (name), my name is (your name), from (business).”

Tips for Skype

Skype is a very popular video chatting software that is utilized by many businesses who are having meetings with various people. It’s always important that you have your Skype chat set up in a quiet environment where the person on the other end doesn’t have difficulty hearing you. You should always look at the camera when you’re talking with others instead of your screen. This helps to appear as if you’re talking more directly with the person than when looking down at your screen. Skype is used by many businesses for remote or initial interviews, so learning good Skype habits can help you in your professional goals. Practice and make sure your microphone can pick up your voice.

Tips for In-Person Communication

When it comes to talking with a person face-to-face there are some necessary etiquette tips you need to be aware of. First, in America especially eye contact is seen as respectful and necessary. You want to ensure that you’re making eye contact. Don’t divert your eyes to your phone, a television, or another area as it will have the other person thinking that you’re not fully listening to them. Don’t be afraid to use hand gestures when talking. However, be mindful of the other person’s personal space and ensure your gestures aren’t invading it. If you are unsure of how you’re coming across, remember that mirroring other people’s tone, volume, and pose can help establish connection. Practice beforehand with native speakers who can notify you of specific communication quirks you may not be aware of.

Professional communication etiquette is something that every country has. When it comes to those in the United States, we have some cultural etiquette practices that define how we talk to one another. The above four groups of tips should help you to succeed in the professional world as an English-language learner.
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Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger.She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most of her time hiking, biking, and gardening. For more information, contact Brooke via Facebook at facebook.com/brooke.chaplan or Twitter @BrookeChaplan

So, you’re looking for some quick ways to help you along in improving your English? Of course, you won’t be able to master any language rapidly, but you certainly can take the necessary steps to improve English fast.

How to Improve Your English

​To be frank: there are several ways to improve your English.

Don’t think of this as “ways” but rather “avenues” to improve your English skills. I have listed out four pillars which you must absolutely focus on: listen, write, speak, and read. These are the things that best encompass the totality of language competence; practice them and you’ll be well on your way to improving your English Skills.

It should, however, go without saying that these suggestions can only take you so far. If you want the most thorough and effective way to prepare for ESL, you’d be wise to look into tutoring — taking lessons and learning from a teacher are some of the most potent ways for you to improve your English as a second language.

Listen

Listening is vital, you no doubt already know this. Through listening, you are able to immerse yourself in understanding how words are spoken, how things are pronounced, enunciated, etc. It may seem passive but listening is most certainly an active and deliberate behavior on your part — you must put effort into it.

Here’s a handy little list if you’re wondering about what sorts of things you should be listening to:

• Podcast, these are great because they allow you to hear genuine long-form discussions and, best of all, there’s a podcast for practically every subject or interest out there
• TV/Movies, many casual forms of entertainment have been shown (albeit anecdotally) to radically improve the language capabilities of non-English speaking viewers.
• The News, not only is it a great way to stay informed but it also provides you with a simple and concise form of English meant to deliver a message as efficiently as possible
• Again, listening is not passive. However, that doesn't mean that it can’t be fun — it’s just a matter of finding things that you want to listen to that will also serve the purpose of helping you to learn English faster.

Write

Writing is also a major aspect of language that you need to grasp. It will improve your English grammar, it will improve your English vocabulary, it will improve your English. Period.

Sure, it may seem a bit intimidating but, for now, you merely want to start small with your writing capabilities and work your way up gradually. Here are some things you can try to improve your writing:

• Journaling, it's a great way for you to begin conceptualizing your thoughts and feelings and projected them outward in English (it also boasts quite a few mental health benefits as an added bonus)
• Write down words and phrases that you hear and would like to retain
• Comment and discuss on places like Reddit

These are all great ways to bolster your skills as a writer while also being relatively casual and stress-free.

Speak

You’ve no doubt thought to yourself, “how do I improve my English speaking?” Simply put, it’s really just a matter of finding someone who you can talk to. Whether it’s a friend, colleague, or teacher, what’s most important here is being able to practice your abilities.

If, however, you seldom have anyone to speak English with, you can also do a couple of things on your own. Namely, speaking and recording yourself. This is a great way to assess your skills and objectively look at ways to improve.

Read

Reading is the highest intensity of all the 4 pillars. It’s something that you need to diligently work towards in letting your brain acclimate to processing words (and perhaps even characters) that it’s never seen before.

With that being said, you ARE reading this. All things considered, you must be doing fairly well in the reading department.

In order to further improve your skills, you might want to consider picking up some reading materials of your choice and dedicate a good hour or so a day towards reading in English. You don’t have to read 500 pages a day like Warren Buffet, but give yourself some dedicated English reading time each and every day.

Conclusion

Like I said, these are essentially the 4 pillars of a language. If you want to begin the process of improving your English you’ll need to focus on these in some capacity.

You can choose to tackle them however you’d like: whether it’s one at a time or all at once. It really all depends on how confident you are with each aspect of the language but be aware enough of your strengths and weaknesses to know what you need to prioritize.

Connie Benton is a passionate traveler, freelance writer, and guest contributor. You can reach out at conniebentonlive@gmail.com.

In most cases, learning a new language is hard - especially if you are learning a language that has nothing in common with your native one. For example, for an Englishman, it will be easy enough to learn Spanish, but very difficult to learn Chinese because of the strong difference between language groups and linguistic constructions. However, this is surmountable if you develop the right habits in learning a foreign language. Below we have compiled seven of the most important and effective ones.

Everyday Learning

The habit of learning a language should be a habit. This is the first rule of success. There are many studies that describe the mechanism of habit formation and give different time periods necessary for its consolidation - from two weeks to a year, but in any case, the strength of your habit will depend only on the amount of effort and determination.
Therefore, the first habit of successful students studying a foreign language is daily learning. Even if you study the language 30 minutes a day every day for six months, you will already feel the result. 30 minutes is not so much, and the first task is to turn 30 minutes of language learning per day into your habit and not deviate from this task, regardless of external circumstances.

Everyday Practice

However, it is not enough to learn the language every day - it is necessary to practice every day as well. Yes, at the first stage it will be just a repetition of new words and phrases, but further tasks will gradually become more and more difficult. There are a lot of exercises for daily practice - for example, reading news in the language you are studying, watching movies and videos, listening to podcasts, reading books in the original, all kinds of cards, memos, mobile applications and much more.

Making the Focus on Real-Life Language
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If you have ever studied a foreign language, then you probably noticed that most programs and courses (especially in higher education institutions) are aimed at remembering all grammatical constructions, but ... feel a stupor when you need to answer the simplest question in real life. Successful language learners know about this pitfall, therefore, constantly strive to learn the language in the form in which it is spoken. They do not focus on rules that exist only in books. They focus on a lively conversation, proper pronunciation, and most importantly, understanding the real speech of native speakers.

Going to the Goal

It is a trend to know several foreign languages, but the trend is not something long-term motivation can hold out on. You need a deeper goal than just being trendy. So, for example, those who want to work in the IT field, begin to learn English for programmers - with an exact understanding of why they need it. So, those who want to move to Japan or China begin to learn these languages, because they understand that it will be difficult to get used to a new country without being able to exchange at least a few phrases with local residents. Therefore, the goal is what will move you along the path of language learning every day. Find this goal before starting your study.

Taking Every Opportunity to Learn

For successful language learners, language learning becomes their lifestyle, and they use every free minute to do it. They learn the language while they stand in line or use public transport, they communicate with native speakers on social networks and on special sites, use applications to track performance, ask themselves questions in a new language, answer them themselves, and always carry a textbook with them - in case a free minute appears.

Reviewing and Refreshing Their Knowledge

The features of our memory are such that any information that we receive and supposedly remember still disappears after some time. Only those data that are used and repeated daily or almost daily pass from the category of short-term memory to long-term. This is exactly the result that you need to strive to learn a new language. And that is why successful students from time to time return to topics and materials that have already been worked out in order to move this information from the short-term use compartment to the long-term one.

Making Use of Mistakes

Mistakes and even bad results are still results, and this is an indicator that you are not standing still.  This is an indicator that you are striving for knowledge, but at the moment you missed something or did not work out to the end. This is an indicator that you need to go back a little and close a certain gap in knowledge. Successful students perceive their mistakes in this way. This is not a reason to abandon your goal and quit learning a language - this is an occasion to improve your knowledge. And this is only good if the error surfaced in the learning process, and not in the process of actually using the language - this would cause much more inconvenience in the latter case.

Conclusion

​Learning a new language is a complex and time-consuming process. And it’s better to be prepared for this in advance. However, the right habits can simplify your path and increase your effectiveness. And the most important habit to achieve this is constancy and improvement.

Frank Hamilton has been working as an editor at review service Online Writers Rating. He is a professional writing expert in such topics as blogging, digital marketing and self-education. He also loves traveling and speaks Spanish, French, German and English.

Whether you consider yourself a born wordsmith or feel like written language is the absolute bane of your very existence, you’ll have no choice but to write your fair share of essays throughout the course of your higher educational career. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you’re studying — you’re going to have to write papers on it. Not just one, and not just once. Even if you’re a mathematician or chemist, you’ll still have to know how to wield the English language in a way that’s effective enough to set up an argument and prove it using whatever evidence has been made available to you by your research and studying.

Writing Techniques

Lucky for you, writing that perfect college essay doesn’t have to involve as much trial and tribulation as you might feel like it should. In fact, there are a few great techniques we’ll talk about that will help make your writing more effective, and a few things you can avoid that will help you keep from looking like you don’t know what you’re talking about.

Addressing Audience

How you address your audience is a key part of any piece of writing, and when you’re writing an academic essay, research paper, or the like, you’re going to want to make sure you avoid any kind of second-person or first-person language. Don’t say “you,” and don’t refer to yourself as the speaker of the essay. The idea, when you’re writing an essay, is that you’re presenting an argument and then backing it up with evidence that shows it to be irrefutable fact, no matter how you slice it. As such, the linguistic presentation of your essay should suggest complete objectivity.

Avoid Plagiarism
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Of course, one of the main don’ts of writing your college essay is making sure you avoid plagiarism, whether you do it intentionally or otherwise. It’s regarded by pretty much every seriously university as a major offense and can sometimes even wind up being punished by expulsion. The thing is, plagiarism can happen completely on accident, simply by you not doing your work carefully enough. The whole point of you writing an essay for college is displaying that you understand the material well enough that you can distill the main points of your argument effectively and in your own language. If you’re using the language of the sources you’re using for your research, then it becomes clear that you don’t understand the material in the way that the course requires.

Assessment Success

Whether you’re participating in clinical nurse specialist online programs or studying to earn your PhD in mathematics, it’s important to understand the basics of writing a good essay. No matter what you study, you’ll have to go through your general education track, and even when that’s done, it’s doubtful you can get through even the most numbers-oriented major without having to write some essays here and there. With the few tips and techniques, we’ve discussed, you’ll be able to avoid getting anything less than the stellar grades that you know you deserve.

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Linda S. Davis works as an English teacher at a local college. Besides, she is a highly experienced editor at 500 word essay. By the way, she is a great speaker and communicator.

College essays can be an exercise in frustration for those who aren’t adept at writing. Not all of us intend to have careers that will involve a whole lot the written word, and while communicating well is an important enough skill, it’s not always vital to know how to write a good argumentative essay. Nevertheless, as a college student, you'll have to write more than your fair share of essays whether you’re studying biology, engineering, or poetry. Luckily, there are a few easy tips that can help you come up with a great essay topic pretty much every time. Once you learn the steps to writing an effective argument, it becomes clear that there are plenty of formulas you can follow to put together a solid paper, all that’s required of you is coming up with the information to fill it in.
 
Make an ArgumentWhile this doesn’t mean you have to be contentious, it does mean that your essay should argue a point. That is, it should make a statement in the introduction to essay (and title), and then the body of your text offers the evidence that proves your claim. It’s less about coming up with something brand new or enlightening, and much more about showing that you can posit an argument, then back it up with a well-reasoned argument.

Go for Something Covered in ClassIf you can find a way to connect your essay topic with something that was covered in class, you’ll not only have an easier time writing it, but you’ll be able to connect with the teacher’s lesson plan in a way that shows that you’re genuinely involved in the class. This also makes it easier to supplement your research with notes from class.

Think Outside the BoxWhile every essay doesn’t have to be a revelation, it definitely helps to make an effort at approaching your topic or assignment from a unique perspective. If you can come up with a topic that perhaps examines or approaches the subject in a new way, then you’ll be able to write a paper that your professor notices and probably appreciates a lot more than the same old boring topics everyone else turned in.

Keep It SimpleOriginality is great, but getting too complex with your topic can be alienating and confusing. It’s never fun to give your professor more homework by creating a confusing and dense essay topic that’s harder to understand than the argument itself.

Ask for HelpIf you need to visit your professor’s office hours and don’t be afraid to ask for some help picking out a killer topic for your essay. This shows that you’re taking the initiative to get ahead in class, but that you aren’t afraid to admit when you’re unsure of your work. Humility goes a long way, even in a school setting.
Whether you’re working on an online MBA healthcare administration or a four-year university major track, there are a lot of ways that you can help yourself get ahead when it comes to picking a great essay topic. It’s the first and most important to coming up with a great essay, so it’s good to arm yourself with the right strategies as soon as you get started.

College Essay TopicsThis is not an essay that you will be writing for grades. The college application essay is the most important essay that you will write in your life since it will decide and determine your future education.

Hundreds of students like you will be applying to study at the college and each one of them will be writing an essay. To get selected for college, your essay should not only be well written but must also be honest and true to your personality. The purpose of college application essay is basically to test your writing skills and your ability to structure thoughts in an organized manner so as to express a point.

Selecting a good topic for your essay should be your first priority. The topic must not only be strong but should have a focus and the arguments that you put across for it must be valid. In other words, your essay topic must reflect your strengths and not your shortcomings.

Your essay should effectively highlight all your strong points, so choose a topic that inspires you. It would also be better if you select a topic that is relevant to the course that you are applying for at the University

List of Topics1.             Five things that you are scared of
2.             Most happy moments of your life
3.             Most sad moments of your life
4.             One person who influenced you the most
5.             One person whom you admire the most (Must be from your circle of friends and family)
6.             Why do you think kids run away from home?
7.             Recession in USA – How it affected me?
8.             Do you feel that Death Sentence will wipe out crime in the society?
9.             Effects of Global Warming
10.         Online Books Vs. Paperbacks. Will the online books replace regular books in the near future?
11.         How did the earthquake and tsunami in Japan affect you?
12.         Discuss your goals and career path after college?
13.         Your reasons for selecting this college.
14.         What are your strengths and weakness and how do you plan to overcome your weakness?
15.         Two important world events that has affected you personally
16.         Historical personality that you admire and why?
17.         National monument that fills you with inspiration
18.         Most influential book that you have read so far
19.         Places that you would love to travel to again
20.         The jobs that you have held so far and what you learnt through them
21.         The toughest job you have held so far and the toughest boss you had to deal with
22.         What do people think and say about you? Do you agree with them?
23.         Does your car reflect your personality?
24.         Your relationships with the opposite sex.
25.         The most meaningful relationship that you have held so far with the opposite sex
26.         What would be the worst nightmare that you have had so far?
27.         10 things that you worry about everyday
28.         10 things that you wish you hadn’t said
29.         What do you think about parents divorcing and its effect on children? (Write from your experience or from your friends’)
30.         Your favorite musician and reasons why you admire him or her.

There are many personal topics given in the list above. But do remember, that this is an essay and not a diary entry. Even if your essay is about a personal subject, there is no reason for you to get too personal about it!

Bio author:
​Nicholas H. Parker is an English teacher with a huge experience. He likes using different methods of teaching such a CLIL. Besides, he writes articles at BuyEssayClub.com to share his knowledge with others. He tries to keep up with advancing technology. For example, he is highly interested in the web design sphere. 

The last social activity of the year for Rice Intensive English Program students was a holiday party followed by a trip to the Houston Zoo Lights. We closed the year with a bang! Students gathered in the Dean’s Commons to eat pizza and sing holiday carols. After a collective rendition of “Jingle Bells”, a group of energized students hit the dance floor and moved to Latin rhythms like merengue.
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The celebratory mood carried on when, one hour later, students and teachers boarded a classic yellow school bus that took them to the Zoo Lights. For some students, it brought back childhood memories of riding the school bus in their home countries, while for others it was a symbol of the American way of life. The bus ride was a perfect opportunity to share special stories and celebrate togetherness. There were sparkles of joy and anticipation in the cool December air.

The Zoo Lights were spectacular! Throughout the holiday season, over 24 km of LED lighting illuminate the zoo’s historic oak trees, line its pathways and bring to life curious animal shapes. A remarkable group of over sixty students and teachers managed to stay together while they meandered across the monumental structures and shimmering designs. Students at the beginner levels of English were leading the bunch with their vibrancy and cheer. The chilly weather provided the perfect ambiance for the holiday-themed activity and made it a necessity to indulge in a cup of hot chocolate. As a perfect close to the festive evening, students met Santa and Mrs. Claus. A few may even have told him what presents they want to find under the tree!

When asked what was his favorite thing at Zoo Lights, one student said, “I saw a giraffe with wonderful friends”! What more can one ask for? From all of us at the Intensive English Program, we wish all our friends and followers a wonderful and magical holiday season!

Author: Milagros Lugo-Amador, Assistant Director 

For more information:  Rice University Intensive English Program

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Textbooks–they’re my own personal form of Ambien. I’ve never been able to figure it out, no matter what it is, one page and I’m out like a light. But let me play with my iPod and the music carries me for days. I boast about being able to learn an entire new song in just a few hours.
You might not think of it as studying but in a sense that’s exactly what you are doing. You listen and repeat, listen and repeat, until the lyrics are permanently implanted in your head. And unlike material gained through books, songs can radiate through your head for days or even weeks before they’re entirely flushed down the drain.
So, what better way to study English than learning it through song? You get to learn vocabulary while hearing its proper pronunciation, though you might want to stay away from rap or anything too modern for now, since colloquialisms are best learned at a more advanced stage, when you can tell the difference between correct and incorrect idiom usage. Below are some quick tips on how to study your lyrics:

1. Pick a song that you like but that is not too complex. It’s extremely important that you get the correct lyrics so that you can decipher the right meaning of the song. There are a lot of great sites to get accurate lyrics.
2. Read the lyrics in their entirety. You don’t need to understand everything but try to see if you can at least get a good feel for what the song is about. Is it a romantic song? A sad song? A happy song? Is it abstract or literal? Try to compare and contrast the English song to something familiar in your native tongue. It’ll help you see similar and cultural differences from your own.
   
3. Re-read and circle all the words/phrases you don’t know and would like to learn. Sometimes context clues will give you a better understanding of what the word means but if necessary, by all means look up their exact meaning in a dictionary. A dictionary might also be useful in finding other interesting phrases or words.
4. Hear the song three to four times before you decide to chime in karaoke style. Read the lyrics a few times right before bed and also try listening to the song while you sleep. Even in your slumber, your brain will still retain the information. Listen and repeat until you got it down.
   
5. Test yourself. There are  many websites such as  Lyrics Training that are especially designed to help non-English speakers learn the language. As a series of song lyrics run down the screen it's up to you to fill in the missing words. You can choose from a huge selection of contemporary songs in their bank that are divided into easy, medium and hard difficulty levels.

About the author: Diane H. Wong is an English teacher. Moreover, she works as an editor for DoMyWriting.com. Besides, she likes elaborating her own strategies of learning languages. 

International students have the benefit of experiencing new cultures as they pursue their education. While it is wonderful to have the opportunity to see the world, it can get a little scary to enter a new country where you might not know the primary language. Learning to speak English takes time and practice, and your desire to visit another country gives you the perfect chance to refine your skills. In the meantime, you can use these tips to make it easier to travel as a student until you have a firm grasp of the language.
 
Brush Up on the Basics

The English language has several key phrases that help you get through many common social situations that you encounter while traveling. For instance, you should know how to say your full name along with where you are going. You should also know some proper greetings and polite sayings such as how to ask for help or directions. Remember that the smallest amount of vocabulary can help you handle the largest amount of social interactions.

Put Essential Information in Writing

There are times when it is easier to communicate with pre-written language. For example, you can get custom engraved luggage tags that list important information such as your name, home address, and destination. This can help you to avoid trying to navigate your way through a conversation with people at the airport who may not understand your language. You can also pre-print a few of those key phrases that you have trouble remembering. This way, you can just point to them when you encounter a challenging conversation.

Use a Language App

Technology is an asset for international travelers. Make sure to keep your cellphone powered up so that you can access your favorite language translation app. You should make sure to download the app and practice using it before you head out for your trip. In a pinch, Google tends to have a translation function in the search bar that is easy enough for most students to use.

Practice Talking as Much as Possible
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Finally, don’t get so hung up on being nervous that you forget to try out your English speaking skills. Go ahead and try to speak the language to the people that you meet. It’s okay to let them know that you are still learning, and remember that most people can understand you if you take your time to get most of the words right. Practice helps to give you confidence as you spend more time in your new country.
 
As you travel, most people that you meet will be excited to hear that you are learning English. You’ll also discover that immersing yourself in a new culture allows you to experience the language in ways that you cannot at home. From making your way through the airport to sitting down in your brand new classroom, using every method that you have available to communicate enhances your experience.
 
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Author Bio:
Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most of her time hiking, biking, and gardening. For more information, contact Brooke via Facebook at facebook.com/brooke.chaplan or Twitter @BrookeChaplan