Really need advice

tazbars

Hey everyone! I'm really in a dilemma, i'm supposed to be going to america next semester (10th August-22nd December) but I'm really having doubts. I have always been homesick on previous holidays and the thoughts of 5 months away from my friends and family is making me feel sick. The main factor i suppose is leaving my boyfriend. I want to make the most of college etc but I really dont know what is best for me. Everyone is telling me different things and I really need to decide fast. Any help would really be appreciated

445279.ie

Once in a lifetime opportunity - go for it!

I always regret not going to the States when I had the opportunity nearly 20 years ago.

tazbars

i know it is a great opportunity but im really young and have years to travel - im worried that if i go ill be too lonely to enjoy myself.

Claasman

Sounds like an amazing opportunity, and will probably be invaluable experience for future career/study. It will be tough, but just make sure you get involved in loads of stuff over there to get your mind off the homesickness. With skype/im these days, it mightn't feel so bad.

SarahBeep!

Go.

Sure you can come home of you're not happy!!

You can sit in UL in November saying 'at least I gave it a go' instead of 'I should have at least tried'.

Not saying you'd necessarily come home though

Nokia08

Hey,

From my experience, I am currently in america, I couldn't deal with it but thats because I had a death in the family, someone very close. I Became too homesick after that and it actually made me sick so i'm coming home on monday. I went alone and didn't know anyone really, If your going for study abroad you'll be fine you'll be with other people in similar situations and around your own age. Something that I didn't have.

Hope this Helps
All the best

tazbars

Thanks for all the advice and sorry to hear about your family member Nokia08, that is really tough. I didn't realize coming home was an option though? how would i sit my exams? its the thoughts of five months if was 3 i'd be grand just its such a long time . I am lucky enough though to be going with two close friends.

Nokia08

Well i suppose its different for me, I am on Co-op rather then study abroad.
Thanks tho.

Jamie Starr

I'm going to Holland for 5 months in August and even though I'm going with a guy I barely know, and I've never lived away from home for more than a month, I'm very excited. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity, not because I think Holland's going to disappear in three years' time, but because I doubt I'll ever go there, or anywhere again as a university student.

I think if you can stand three months, you can stick it out for five. I'd say by the time three months are up you'll be dreading the last two passing quickly. You're going with two friends as well, so you'll have people from home (in a way) to fall back on.

If you really don't think you can hack it, talk to your university. They can give exemptions, but it's usually for very extreme personal or financial situations. Best to get in touch with your Erasmus officer and detail your feelings about going abroad, they could give you assurances and the details of a student who went to the same university in America, with whom you could chat with too.

Best of luck anyway in whatever you decide to do.

Edit: Just saw your post saying you're on Co-Op....well, some of what I said might still be valid

tazbars

No this is just my co-op semester - unfortunately i did not get a co-op. Next semester I am due to study in America for a single semester. I suppose leaving my boyfriend is what is really throwing me, he's my best friend i couldn't imagine being away from him for that long. As soppy and all as it sounds :rolleyes: just to justify my original statement - i have always been a homesick person and not enjoyed travelling.

Mossin

tazbars wrote: »

Hey everyone! I'm really in a dilemma, i'm supposed to be going to america next semester (10th August-22nd December) but I'm really having doubts. I have always been homesick on previous holidays and the thoughts of 5 months away from my friends and family is making me feel sick. The main factor i suppose is leaving my boyfriend. I want to make the most of college etc but I really dont know what is best for me. Everyone is telling me different things and I really need to decide fast. Any help would really be appreciated

Hey Tazbars,

I'm a recent UL graduate and I emigrated to the USA 3 months ago. While its not exactly the same situation as you're in, I still had to endure the indecision that accompanies the process of moving abroad for any period of time. I came to the states on my own, and the thoughts of leaving all my friends and family behind was tough to bear, and tbh the initial week was torture for me here, but once I settled in I became a new person, and now I love it here, and am thinking of extending my stay for a longer period of time.

Hope this helps! and good luck with everything

CiaranMT

Go for it OP. You only live once.

tazbars

really? ye it is the initial few weeks that I presume will be the hardest. I've never been one who enjoyed traveling and i'm just worried that if I leave now because its supposedly an amazing opportunity that I just won't be happy - maybe i'm just not ready.

NeirBot

You very rarely regret what you do, only what you don't do...

Getting out of your comfort zone is what growing up is all about, I try to do so as often as I can, scary at times but rewarding.
I'd go for it, if you hate after a few weeks then you can always come home, but if you do go give it a real shot and it could be the experience of your life.

ergonomics

I used to be incredibly homesick. I could barely last a week without going home so the thought of spending a semester in another country petrified me. I'm so glad I did though because I had a fantastic time, made great friends and grow up a lot.

I found that for the first week or two I was homesick. I was actually physically sick at times because I was so homesick and I thought I'd never manage the whole semester. Once I got settled the homesickness passed though. I tried to keep busy and stay positive. Friends and family are always at the end of a computer or phone if you need them after all!

Snappy the Moose

I have yet to meet somebody who hasn't fallen in love with the US. It is torture for a few days but it eventually came to the point where I was getting lambasted for not ringing home enough.

Go hit that shít up and get your feek on holmes!

Mossin

tazbars wrote: »

really? ye it is the initial few weeks that I presume will be the hardest. I've never been one who enjoyed traveling and i'm just worried that if I leave now because its supposedly an amazing opportunity that I just won't be happy - maybe i'm just not ready.

After spending 3 months here, I've come to realise what I missed out on by not doing study abroad/erasmus during my undergraduate time in UL.

Its not for everybody, but as a lot of people have said, it's better to have at least tried it, and then you can have no regrets!

Skyrim

Has anybody gone on erasmus in America or Canada? I've a few months left to make a decision and saving up as much as i can. Missing the family will be a blow but thanks to the likes of facebook, it makes the blow softer, the way i see it is I'm looking at new surroundings while also studying subjects i love.

Skintwin

I'd say go.
You're going with two close friends, which is a big plus. Even if you get homesick you'll have them close by that you can go and have a cry (sometimes that's all you need) and then you could all sit down with a cup of tay and a hang sandwich and watch Fair City on the iPlayer or something.
I think that if you don't go, you'll probably end up regretting it later, and wishing that you'd done it while you had the chance.
It will probably be one of the best experiences of your life, and if you get on well with people, you'll always have someone to stay with over!

Weeshie

Definitely GO!!!

I was in your situation years ago during college over a boyfriend, I chose not to go and it was a HUGE mistake! You're very lucky to have the opportunity, and doubly lucky to be going with good mates who'll support you. Five months is nothing really, think how quickly a semester passes here, and that's when you're in lectures and doing assignments!! Five months in the US will fly - go for it girl!!! Best of luck xx

thisisapen

Well, I've never been to the US, but I went to Japan for Coop and I say definitely go for it! The first few weeks are always the worst, but if you can make it through that then you'll be fine.:o