{"id":198,"date":"2019-03-20T12:43:56","date_gmt":"2019-03-20T12:43:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/?p=198"},"modified":"2019-03-20T12:43:56","modified_gmt":"2019-03-20T12:43:56","slug":"meera-ved-2011-12-national-university-of-singapore","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/2019\/03\/20\/meera-ved-2011-12-national-university-of-singapore\/","title":{"rendered":"Meera Ved, 2011-12, National University of Singapore"},"content":{"rendered":"

10 ways studying abroad enhanced my degree<\/strong><\/h3>\n

I\u2019m pretty sure all new Geography undergraduates will have sat through a ‘What is Geography?’ lecture at some point in their academic lives. After my semester abroad at the National University of Singapore I don’t think I would be able to sit through such a talk without screaming out ‘Studying abroad’. Taking part in a student exchange encompasses the discipline throughout.<\/p>\n

The language of study in Singapore is English so there were no language barriers plus my grades counted as credits towards my degree so I did not elongate the time taken to complete my degree. Here are ten ways various experiences and opportunities gained through studying abroad enhanced my Geography degree. Even though Geography is awesome I do note not everyone studies it at university…some reflections highlight the advantages of studying abroad for any degree and are not Geography or language specific at all<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

1.Varying perspectives on global issues<\/strong><\/p>\n

Academic institutions naturally adopt priorities and theoretical approaches which mirror the interests of their geographic region.\u00a0 Most of my modules had elements of higher detail towards South East Asia. This was great at it enabled me to understand how a different society approaches global issues.<\/p>\n

2.Global student life<\/strong><\/p>\n

Being an exchange student seemed like one of the easiest and cheapest ways to live in a different country, especially with regard to accommodation. The exchange student lifestyle also meant I was able to meet others from across the globe with similar mind sets towards exploring the world!<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0Increased global adaptability and understanding<\/strong><\/p>\n

Knowledge of how global stakeholders interact can be applied to any career sector. Studying abroad also shows you (and future employers) that you can adapt to, plus thrive in, unfamiliar settings.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0Greater cultural understanding<\/strong><\/p>\n

Living in Singapore for a semester enabled me to experience various festivals and celebrations; Spending Chinese New Year in South East Asia was brilliant as I felt I got the true authentic experience. On an academic note, spending time in a different country for a prolonged time can help improve understanding its public views and how these interact with national and international policy. This experience enabled me to become more sensitive to analysing circumstances and issues based on the situation and stakeholders involved.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0Practicing the logistics of travel<\/strong><\/p>\n

In some ways studying abroad is like a field trip; just without teachers or lecturers telling you what is interesting to look at in an area. It was down to me to explore Singapore and other parts of South East Asia efficiently. This required lots of research, planning and a smidgen of luck but the feeling of achievement at the end was so worth it! Plus I was able to tailor my experience to specifically meet my needs and interests. It led me to practice dealing with new systems and policies; even applying for a visa can be a learning curve when you are abroad!<\/p>\n

6.\u00a0Two universities in one degree<\/strong><\/p>\n

Through studying at NUS I was able to experience things my home university could not offer, such as being a campus university. Additionally, most universities which offer exchanges are in or close to cities, and cities are the place to be for a multitude of exciting events!<\/p>\n

7.\u00a0Region specific modules<\/strong><\/p>\n

Where better to take a module like ‘Economics of South East Asia’ than in South East Asia? I even studied Singapore specific modules which enabled me to get a detailed academic understanding of the country whilst also exploring it for myself.<\/p>\n

8.\u00a0Different approaches to study<\/strong><\/p>\n

Even though all lectures were in English, I got to experience different teaching and assessment styles. Consequently, I tried out different learning techniques and found new ones which I can now implement to my learning back at my home institution.<\/p>\n

9.\u00a0Getting closer to opportunities for global work experience<\/strong><\/p>\n

Some of my fellow exchange friends managed to secure internships or work experience placements for after exams ended. This was a fantastic opportunity for them to gain global experience which can be very attractive to future employers as it shows the ability to work well in new environments.<\/p>\n

10.\u00a0Regional \u2018base\u2019 for travel.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Studying abroad gave me a base for exploring South East Asia. Singapore acted as a springboard to hop over to other exotic countries. A weekend trip to Malaysia from London would sound ridiculous but is a case of a few hours coach journey from Singapore. Simple joys of geographical proximity! It was also great to be able to suss out the region from Singapore, which is a very established global city, before venturing to other countries which are still undergoing development.<\/p>\n

Reflections from home<\/h3>\n

I feel I gained more insight in to myself and global contemporary issues than I could have imagined. The experience not only made me more confident when meeting new people in unfamiliar surroundings but also made me feel very positive and excited about my future as it made me realise global opportunities and experiences are possible to reach (albeit with a pinch of organising and perseverance). Here are some ways various experiences and opportunities gained through studying abroad enhanced my Geography degree and contributed to personal development.<\/p>\n

Varying perspectives on global issues:<\/strong>\u00a0Most of my modules had elements of higher detail towards South East Asia. This was great at it exposed me to how a different society approaches global issues, enabling greater sensitivity to analysing issues based on stakeholders involved.<\/p>\n

Global student life:\u00a0<\/strong>Being an exchange student seemed like one of the easiest and cheapest ways to live in a different country. One of the highlights of my overall exchange was most definitely meeting a diverse array of intelligent people from all over the world with the same outlook towards travel and exploring new countries.<\/p>\n

Increased global adaptability and understanding:<\/strong>\u00a0Knowledge of how global stakeholders interact can be applied to any career sector. Studying abroad also shows you (and future employers) that you can adapt to, plus thrive in, un-familar settings.<\/p>\n

Greater cultural understanding:<\/strong>\u00a0I had the opportunity to experience various festivals and celebrations. Spending Chinese New Year in South East Asia was brilliant as I felt I got a true authentic experience.<\/p>\n

Practicing the logistics of travel:<\/strong>\u00a0It was down to me to explore South East Asia efficiently; tailored to my needs and interests. This led me to practice dealing with new systems and policies; even applying for a visa can be a learning curve when you are abroad!<\/p>\n

Two universities in one degree:\u00a0<\/strong>I was able to experience things my home university could not offer, such as being a campus university. Additionally, most universities which offer exchanges are in or close to cities, and cities are the place to be for a multitude of exciting events!<\/p>\n

Different approaches to study:<\/strong>\u00a0Even though all lectures were in English, I got to experience different teaching and assessment styles. Consequently, I tried out different learning techniques and found new ones which I can now implement to my learning back at my home institution.<\/p>\n

Regional \u2018base\u2019 for travel:\u00a0<\/strong>Singapore acted as a springboard to other exotic countries. It was great to be able to suss out South East Asia from Singapore, which is a very established global city, before venturing to other countries which are still undergoing development.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

10 ways studying abroad enhanced my degree I\u2019m pretty sure all new Geography undergraduates will have sat through a ‘What is Geography?’ lecture at some point in their academic lives. After my semester abroad at the National University of Singapore I don’t think I would be able to sit through such a talk without screaming … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Meera Ved, 2011-12, National University of Singapore”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":599,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,3],"tags":[12,30,29,28],"class_list":["post-198","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-asia","category-outgoingstudents","tag-asia","tag-national-university-of-singapore","tag-nus","tag-singapore","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/198","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/599"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=198"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":199,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/198\/revisions\/199"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=198"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=198"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kcl.ac.uk\/kingssas\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}