How to Pay for Study Abroad and Save Overseas (Plus: Alaska Airlines’ New Rewards Program and Premium Travel Card)

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I can't believe it's back to school time already.

Not that it matters for us because we're not in school and we are two dinks.

That means no kids.

Well, it does mean there's more traffic in LA now.

You know what?

I see these kids just skip the traffic.

They go somewhere else, like maybe study abroad.

Highly recommend.

So we're going to talk about study abroad.

Welcome to Smart Travel, a deep dive into the tips, tools, and tactics to maximize your travel dollars.

I'm Megan Coyle, and I'm Sally French.

And we're the travel nerds ready to help you plan your next big trip.

And for some of us, that next big trip might be a trip with your classmates and possibly even scoring class credit out of it.

Yep, we're talking about study abroad with a fellow writer at NerdWallet, specifically how to pay for it and plan for it.

But first, our disclaimer, and that's that we will talk about a few credit card companies that are NerdWallet partners in this episode.

That does not influence how we discuss them, though.

The benefits, terms, and fees mentioned were accurate at the time of posting, but things can change.

Some offers may have expired by the time you're listening.

So, for the latest details, follow the links in the episode description.

Lots of news today from Alaska Airlines.

They just launched their new premium airline credit card, the Atmos Rewards Summit Visa Infinite Credit Card.

Woo, that was a mouthful.

Yes.

It has a $395 annual fee.

And with that comes lots of changes, including changes to their new combined loyalty program with Hawaiian Airlines as well.

That's probably not surprising because Alaska acquired Hawaiian last fall.

Finally, now we get details about this new program.

It is not called Alaska nor Hawaiian Rewards.

It is called Atmos Rewards.

We'll have to figure out what that means later.

All right, let's give the people what they want.

What are the details on the new card?

Like you said, Megan, the Atmos Rewards Summit Visa Infinite has a $395 annual fee.

I know that's a lot, but you do get a lot back, including a big sign-up bonus of 100,000 bonus points.

That's if you spend $6,000 on the card in the first 90 days.

Now, premium airline cards usually have two things in common.

airline lounge access and a companion pass.

This card gives cardholders eight passes per year to Alaska lounges.

It's not unlimited lounge access like the premium United Airlines and American Airlines credit cards, but these Alaska passes do allow two accompanying children to come in with one pass.

And And they define kids as 21 and younger.

You know, that's kind of interesting because so many of the premium cards do not allow guests at all.

They don't allow kids.

And I have so many friends with kids who are annoyed by this, but maybe this is a nice card for them.

Yeah, I think this broader definition of children on the Alaska card almost makes up for the fact that it isn't unlimited lounge access.

So one of my sisters is still under 21.

I think this card is still appealing.

And let's also talk about that Global Companion Award.

This one is interesting.

It is not not based on a dollar amount, but instead you get this award that is worth up to 25,000 points.

From there, you can use it on any flights worldwide on either Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, or any of their partners in any class of service that includes business class and first class.

That's huge.

Delta's premium credit cards also have a companion certificate, but it's only good for Delta operated flights.

And that's only on flights operated within the U.S.

or to Mexico, the Caribbean, or Central America.

So all of those are kind of short flights, honestly.

So, not sure how important it is to get first class on those, but Alaska Airlines and its partners do fly all over the world.

And you could use this companion pass to possibly fly over an Atlantic or Pacific Ocean or something like that.

Interesting.

Yeah, I know a lot of people with the Delta companion pass try to game it and they're like, well, at least I'll do my West Coast to New York type trips to sort of maximize it.

But this one, it seems like you could really maximize it way better.

Plus, they announced all those new routes to Iceland and the UK.

We talked about that last week with Tess.

So they're definitely making moves to expand their network internationally.

Yes.

And then there is also a new perk on the Atmos Rewards Summit Visa Infinite.

Say that 10 times fast, unlike anything we've seen before.

And this is wild, Megan.

It is an automatic instant $50 voucher if your flight is delayed by two hours or more for any reason.

I've never seen anything like this on a card.

It's kind of bizarre and it almost makes you wish your flight was delayed.

What do you think of this, Megan?

I think it's kind of random.

I like that it's not formal travel insurance where you have to file a claim because it's just so much work.

I like that it just automatically shows up in your account, but I'm not entirely sure how useful it will be.

I mean, maybe ideas you can get another meal if you're delayed.

$50 is a good amount for two people to eat and meal at the airport, but yeah, I'm really not sure.

And then if your flight really is delayed a super long time, then other benefits just kick in regardless.

So this just seems like you get $50.

I guess it's like a win either way because you win if your flight's not delayed, but then you win if you get the $50.

I don't know, man.

Okay.

And then a few other benefits on this card.

There are no change fees for same-day confirmed changes on your Alaska flights.

Up to $120 in TSA pre-check or global entry credits.

We see that benefit on so many travel credit cards.

And then this card also has the ability to transfer points to hotel partners like Marriott and IHG at a one-to-one ratio.

And then if you're trying to get status, you do get a 10,000 status point head start on earning it.

And we should mention, Alaska is keeping the existing $95 card, which is now called the Atmos Rewards Ascent Visa Signature Card, and also the Hawaiian Airlines World Elite MasterCard.

Okay, and then let's talk about that new Atmos rewards program for Alaska and Hawaiian.

So now miles are called points and elite qualifying miles are called status points.

You can also choose how you earn them, either by distance flown, ticket price, or segments flown.

This is interesting because we used to often see it was just based on distance flown.

And then a lot of airlines said, now we're doing it based on your actual spending, aka your ticket price.

So this is interesting.

You can tailor it to, I guess, what helps you earn the most.

I'm kind of sad that they're losing the moniker of miles, though.

I mean, that just made it feel so like airline related, but now everything's just a point and who knows what a point is.

Southwest doesn't do miles either.

Southwest has points.

So I'm I'm wondering what's happening here.

Alaska Airlines luckily said though that they're not changing their award charts and the points will be worth the same.

So no devaluation there for now.

But they are increasing the number of status points needed for the two highest levels of elite status next year.

I know that was a lot.

You can read our team's articles on all of the changes with Atmos Rewards, the new Alaska Airline Premium Card, their upcoming free Wi-Fi.

We didn't even talk about this, but they also made an announcement about that today.

We're going to link to it all in the episode description.

I am personally intrigued.

You know, I love SFO.

Alaska has a huge presence in SFO.

And you know, I'm also thinking about ditching Southwest.

So maybe Alaska is the way.

Yes, join the dark side.

Come to the One World Alliance with me.

And before we move on, give us the TLDR on the Royal Caribbean Star of the Seas ship that you were on last week.

Yes, Megan.

So I just got back from this amazing cruise.

This is the Star of the Seas.

It is the sister ship to Royal Caribbean's Icon of the Seas, which came out in January 2024.

So pretty similar in terms of size.

It has 7,500 guest capacity, 20 decks, and also similar amenities.

These amenities are amazing.

I am talking about a full water park at sea with multiple water slides.

I am talking about an ice rink.

They had a full ice show with Olympic skaters in the show.

They have this amazing kind of cirque du Soleil-esque show, which features a full pool and there are dive boards that they have divers doing Olympic level dives into this pool.

It is unbelievable.

Even if you just like to walk around, it is so beautiful in terms of all of the art.

They got a ton of local Caribbean artists to contribute art.

It is just gorgeous to look at.

There is a central park area with live trees, Megan.

There are trees on this ship.

I had the best time and I'm already planning my trip back.

Ooh, okay.

Sounds like a Vegas resort or something like that.

You can just have entertainment anywhere you go.

It was non-stop.

We will post your full review in the episode description.

And if people want to see photos, where can they follow you, Sally?

Yes, find me on Instagram.

Save with Sally.

I've got photos.

I've got videos.

And you have to see this video I posted of the family townhouse, which is three stories, including a slide to get down to the lower story.

It sounds impossible to get bored there.

That is correct.

I definitely did not get bored, even for someone like me who is doing 30,000 steps every day and trying to do everything.

I did 30,000 steps on this ship because it's so big and I still didn't even do it all.

All right, let's talk about a trip that you have done a couple times over.

That's right.

Time for study abroad.

Since the school year is just starting, we wanted to talk about studying abroad.

That's a lot of people's first taste of traveling on their own and paying for it themselves to a degree.

You know, Megan, my first international trip was in high school.

I was an exchange student, which is kind of study abroad.

In Germany, they call it Auschaus Schuleren.

And then in college, I also did a study abroad in, again, Germany and Costa Rica.

Where did you go?

I studied abroad in college in New Zealand for a whole semester, but we did a little bit of traveling around.

So we did Australia and also Fiji.

Okay.

We have a pro to talk about it.

Yeah, but before we get too far, let's introduce our guest, Eliza Haverstock, is a fellow writer at NerdWallet who covers higher education and student loans.

Hi, Eliza.

Welcome to the show.

Thank you guys for having me.

I'm excited to be here.

And I studied abroad too in college in Lyon, France for a semester.

So you speak French?

I do.

I'm pretty good.

Don't test me on it right now, but we won't.

The podcast is in English.

Don't worry.

Let's start with the basics.

When should students start planning if they want to study abroad in college?

It's really important to start planning ahead.

So if you want to study abroad in the spring semester, you probably are going to start applying in the fall.

Shorter term programs over like summer, winter break, or at least a few months in advance also.

So I would just say like reach out to your study abroad office.

They're super helpful if you have any questions about deadlines or anything like that.

Now, there are many different types of study abroad programs.

I told you in high school I did an exchange program.

Then there's study abroad.

There are third-party programs.

You can just enroll direct through your college.

Can you walk us through each of these types of programs and maybe the pros and cons why you might choose one?

Yeah, definitely.

So you have the three big ones there.

The first kind of main program is an exchange program or a program that's kind of run directly by your university here in the U.S.

That's usually kind of the easiest option because your university at home will help you kind of guide through logistics, might help you set up housing.

Sometimes, you know, a student from a school abroad will come to your U.S.

school and you'll kind of take their place as an exchange program.

And then typically you pay roughly the same amount of tuition that you do at your home university and you can easily use your financial aid.

For example, if you are in state college, you know, you'll probably pay that same tuition while you're studying abroad, which can be nice.

The second big one are like third-party study abroad programs.

So these are private companies that offer a study abroad program.

So you see a lot of these advertising on social media and on college campuses.

With these, you need to check with your home institution to see if they accept the class credits.

And they do tend to be more expensive because sometimes you'll be with other American students at a center abroad.

The program might have kind of built-in trips and things like that.

So just wanting to keep in mind there.

Is the benefit of that versus just enrolling directly maybe just because your college doesn't offer a direct enrollment program?

Yeah, yeah.

So the third big option is direct enrollment.

So that's separate than like the exchange programs or the third-party ones.

And that's if you want to go somewhere where your school doesn't have something already set up, or maybe you really want to be immersed and be maybe the only American studying in your program, something like that.

In that case, you can kind of reach out to schools abroad and see if they'll take you for a semester.

And then you have to go back to your home university and see if they accept credit.

So prices can vary quite a lot.

You know, if you're enrolling directly, sometimes it can be really cheap, sometimes more expensive, but it might also be the most immersive.

Yeah, and I'm curious if you have to reach out to them and see if they'll take you.

What are the odds of that?

Will they take you?

Or is this like really, you have to go above and beyond and do the legwork?

It just completely depends on the school and the country.

So your study abroad office might be able to help you narrow down programs or help you apply for them.

But, you know, sometimes you're going to be applying just kind of like as a new student.

So you might have to go through more applications.

So the cost of living can also vary wildly depending on where you decide to go.

How should students be thinking about that when they're picking where they want to study abroad?

Yeah, definitely.

So, I mean, it's just like the U.S., you know, so there are big cities, New York and LA, is going to be much more expensive to live in than like a college town, a smaller city or more rural area.

So just think about that when you're studying abroad.

If you're studying abroad in Paris or London, you know, your housing is probably going to be much more expensive.

Your food costs will be more expensive.

But if you want to travel, it might be easier to get to the airport and get cheap flights versus if you're in a smaller town, a university town, your housing and food and everything will probably be much cheaper, but it could be more expensive to travel.

So I think that's a really important thing just to look at when you're considering programs, where you want to be and where you kind of want to spend your money.

I loved when you said the cost can be similar if you enroll through your school.

I was like, that's the cost for the credits.

But I went to school in Missouri and the cost of living was much cheaper than what I was paying in Germany to actually live and exist.

Yeah, that's definitely a big difference.

All right, well, we will talk about paying for things, and that is coming up after the break.

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We are back with Eliza.

She is talking about the costs of study abroad.

Now, we have to talk about financial aid.

Can people use existing aid packages?

I'm thinking things like federal loans or grants for their study abroad.

Absolutely.

I'm glad you brought that up because I think that's a big misconception about study abroad that, you know, you have to have a lot of money or savings to do it.

But really it can be financially accessible.

So if you receive federal student loans or Pell Grants, things like that.

In more cases than not, you can use that for your study abroad program.

The one big exception is you can't use any like work study money because you probably wouldn't be able to do your work study.

Right, because you wouldn't be working.

Yeah.

Although maybe in the Zoom era, I don't know what college is like these days.

Maybe people can.

Yeah, that is a good point.

So you never know.

You'll have to check with your study abroad office for that.

And technically, as we talked about before, like you might pay your in-state tuition rate.

And there's also a lot of different scholarships out there that can help with the cost of flights and housing and things like that.

And would those be study abroad specific scholarships?

Yeah.

So there's one big scholarship program that I wanted to call out, which is called the Benjamin Gilman Scholarship.

So if you already receive a Pell Grant, which is available to need-based students in the U.S.

and you don't have to repay that, you're also eligible to apply for this Gilman Scholarship through the State Department.

And through that, you can get up to about $5,000 to study abroad, sometimes a bit more if you're studying certain languages or if you're in the STEM fields.

So that can be a really valuable tool.

And then beyond that, you know, I would say reach out, do some research and see if sometimes a foreign country might offer scholarships for exchange students, different private organizations, things like that.

And what's the best way to do that research?

Someone just Google like study abroad Germany scholarship?

Yeah, I mean that's a great way to start.

But also the U.S.

State Department has a really solid database for study abroad scholarships, including ones from foreign governments.

So I think that's a really good tool as well.

And then just reaching out to your financial aid office and your study abroad office at home, a lot of times they'll have ideas and even like just like a list of scholarships that you might not have thought of.

And I know a lot of people say, I don't want to write the essay.

I won't even get the scholarship.

These things are one in a million.

I'm going to get it.

Is that true?

Are they one in a million?

Or are there lots of scholarships available?

I think it really depends.

You know, I mean, the scholarship like the Gilman program, they award grants to a lot of students.

I don't have the numbers, but for these more private scholarships, I always say it's just worth throwing your hat into the ring.

You know, I think a lot of students feel similarly.

You know, why would I apply?

But at that point, if no one's applying, then maybe your odds are better.

So, you know, it's always worth it.

You might get a few thousand dollars you wouldn't have otherwise, and that can really make the difference in being able to study abroad or not.

Yeah, absolutely.

And Eliza, I wanted to ask about students who are at community colleges or non-traditional vocational schools.

Are study abroad programs still accessible to them?

Yeah, absolutely.

A lot of community colleges are kind of increasingly offering study abroad options.

So not even just for a full semester, but a lot of times their study abroad options might be more flexible.

So summer programs or programs over a winter or spring break.

And you can also use that Gilman scholarship I mentioned if you're at a two-year community college.

I'd really recommend just reaching out to, you know, your advisors at your community college and kind of doing some research, but it's definitely an option.

I actually did a winter term study abroad in Costa Rica.

And, you know, because it was shorter, it inherently was not as expensive than doing the full semester.

Of course, it was more expensive per day, but it is still if you want that experience and can't afford the full semester, that's a good way to go.

Yeah, and you might get like an extra class credit, too.

We should talk about other costs besides the tuition, because when you are living abroad, you are paying for more expensive food, you're finding housing.

What are the other costs that people should be aware of before deciding to study abroad?

There are quite a few maybe unexpected costs.

One of the big ones even that I encountered were visa fees.

So, you know, it's like, I knew in theory I had to get a visa, but then I didn't realize, you know, you might have to pay one or $200 for the appointment.

You might have to travel to an embassy or a consulate to have your visa appointment.

You know, you might.

have to get travel health insurance.

And exchange rates are also something that can impact the cost of things and those just can fluctuate.

So even if you have a certain cost of living or budget in mind, it might look a little different when you actually start your program.

And that's just important too to have emergency funds just for kind of any unexpected things that might come up.

I always think it's good to pad your budget by 10% just for that extra emergency just in case.

And then there are always just the cost of travel that all travelers experience.

I'm thinking about things like, do you need a cell phone plan?

When I studied abroad, I did not have a cell phone plan because that was back in the day.

We just went for it, no phone.

But I think most people want to have those things as well, something to consider.

I will say that's the nice thing about studying abroad with a program that works directly with your school or even one of those third-party companies.

Because when I went abroad, they set up all of that.

for us.

Like they gave us a cell phone actually and helped us get the visas that we needed.

So if you need support with that kind of stuff, I definitely recommend reaching out to your school study abroad office because they have a lot of experience with helping students with that kind of thing.

Okay.

How should students go about building a budget ahead of time?

Like, are there tools to help with that?

We've talked about a lot of unexpected costs, but they need to start somewhere with their budget, right?

Yeah, absolutely.

And I think a lot of schools, even I had to do this, will require that you go through a worksheet that they provide and kind of build a budget for your study abroad.

It's really important just to figure out how much your housing costs be, how much, you know, do you want to pay for food every month?

How much extra do you have to pay for travel expenses?

Maybe before you go, it's a good idea to kind of try and save up money.

So maybe maybe trying to pick up a summer job or an internship the year before you go study abroad can be a great idea.

You can also be creative.

You live in an apartment instead of dorms.

You could try and sublet that out when you're studying abroad.

I had a friend who, you know, offered to rent her car out to someone else for like $1,000 when she was gone for a semester.

So just kind of things like that can help you have a little bit more flexibility in your budget when you're abroad.

I like that creativity.

I also love with study abroad, you are traveling with other college students.

So it's most likely that many people are in the same budget.

When I was in Germany, I had a friend and we found this pasta place where you could fill up your plate with as much pasta as you could.

So we just like stacked the plate as high as possible and they just like split a bowl of pasta and we're like, this counts.

This is our breakfast, lunch, dinner for each of us over the whole day.

So you can really leverage your friends to find ways to save money as well.

Look for hostels when you're traveling on the weekends.

Travel by train often is more affordable.

In the US, you might be used to, you know, taking lifts and Ubers everywhere, but often in places like Europe, the train system is so good and you can really find affordable fares that way.

I would think about budgeting as like kind of like the way you think about budgeting when you're in school already.

It's like you have maybe 30% going towards your housing costs and another 30% maybe for essentials like food and stuff like that.

I think thinking about your budget, because you will be living there and thinking about it the way that you normally think about your budget is helpful as well.

Yeah, but I also love when you travel internationally.

It seems like there's so many student discounts, things like that, that I'm like, this is almost a good time to study abroad because in many ways you can get into a museum cheaper when you're a student than when you are an adult.

That's very true.

And like I remember even in France, when you're a student, you got to pass to like 10 different cultural events for free that you can use.

Oh, nice.

So there's all kinds of things.

So ask your friends you meet in the program.

Ask the study abroad coordinators, people at your school that you'll be studying at.

There's a lot of different discounts out there that you can get when you're a student.

Now, we talk a lot about credit cards on this show.

I want to talk about credit cards in the realm of study abroad.

And there are many credit cards focused on students and focused on students studying internationally.

What are some of those credit cards you might recommend and what should people know?

There are a few different credit cards that are designed more for study abroad.

You might need to be an authorized user on the card.

You know, maybe it's a card that your parent took out, especially if you don't have a big credit history.

Those can kind of help you avoid international credit card fees.

It can help you start building a credit history, which can improve your credit score in the long run and kind of just help you build those good financial habits of paying off your credit card bill monthly and not letting a balance grow.

But it definitely is kind of risky.

You have to really manage it and stay on top of it.

So it's just something to talk about with your family if that's something you're thinking about doing.

Definitely risky, I think, in the sense of people might feel like they can overspend.

A lot of people see, oh, I have a $5,000 credit limit, so I can spend $5,000.

And that's not how that works.

You do need to pay back the $5,000 you spent.

So you can only spend it if you truly want to pay it back.

But also, I think, you know, when you mentioned it's risky, in a lot of ways, I say credit cards are one of the safest ways to pay.

That is absolutely true.

Cause, you know, you have protections against fraud and things like that.

And it can be safer than carrying around cash with you all the time, especially if you're traveling around.

So that's a really good point, too.

And some of these cards, you know, you're able to build airplane miles, which you guys are the experts on, not me.

But, you know, that can help defray some travel costs, costs, which can be a really cool thing to do.

And often, you know, if you're only paying with a debit card, there might be some sort of fraudulent expense on there, and it is very difficult to get that sorted out versus a credit card.

I will say the credit requirements to qualify for a travel credit card on your own are actually kind of high.

And it can be really difficult for students to qualify just because they don't have enough income or enough credit history.

So I would definitely recommend talking about these types of credit cards if you want one with your family.

I found that the authorized user route is the best way to go to be able to get travel rewards while you're studying abroad, but also, you know, be able to qualify for the card.

Eliza, you did mention something about fees.

We see international fees, foreign transaction fees is typically what we'll see on a card.

Now, many of the cards we talk about on this show are those really, really high annual fee cards.

Those are probably something that a student is not going to have.

Those really high annual fee cards almost always do not have foreign transaction fees.

But it's really important with a student focused or maybe a beginner credit card, look out for whether the card charges foreign transaction fees.

I say the best card for students traveling internationally is any card with no annual fee that does not charge foreign transaction fees.

That is a great point.

And one tip I think that you guys had in your newsletter recently was that, you know, if you're paying and it gives you the option of paying in the local currency versus US dollars to choose a local currency, right?

Yes, I'm so glad you called out that tip.

A lot of people just say US dollars because that's what I have and that's what I know what it is.

I don't know what, you know, this number in yen means, so they go for US dollars.

Do the local currency.

And same with Uber.

Uber also will try to charge you in US dollars, but it is actually better to charge in local currency.

Absolutely.

Let's zoom out a little bit.

I want to talk about, you put all this planning into studying abroad and all this money into it.

Why do you think studying abroad is worth it?

I mean, I think we're all huge fans of study abroad, so maybe we're biased, but you know, I really think it's a kind of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

You might not get the chance to live and study in a foreign country for months at a time again in your life, or you know, it might be under different circumstances.

So, you know, I think that's really cool about study abroad.

And it also just can be more affordable than you think.

So it's much more accessible.

And there's a lot of data from employers out there saying that they appreciate study abroad experience and applicants, especially in this globalized world.

And even if you study abroad somewhere with different, speaks a different language too, having language skills can be really valuable down the line.

I agree.

And it's so much easier to learn a language when you're in the country.

I'm trying to do Duolingo for certain languages at home.

It doesn't hit the same as when you're actually ordering in the country.

And study abroad is just fun too.

It's like you can just have an adventure.

You don't know how it's going to go.

It's a great time for personal growth and kind of discovering what you really value in life.

It feels like a very safe way to try travel out if you've never done it on your own yet.

A lot of these students are young adults and they're traveling for the first time.

So I thought it was really fun to find out like what my travel style was, what I even like doing when I travel or who I travel best with.

I feel like there were so many like soft lessons in studying abroad as well.

Megan, I want to know what your 19-year-old study abroad style was.

Oh, I mean, budget core for sure.

Yes, yes, budget core.

Me too.

I told you about the plate of pasta.

Yeah, I definitely stayed in a lot of hostels, but I actually found a new love for the outdoors when I studied abroad because New Zealand is just so beautiful and it's actually very safe.

It's not like Australia where they have like really scary spiders or like even in the U.S., like there won't be any bears that come at you when you're camping in New Zealand.

So I found that, oh, I love being in the outdoors.

And so planning my vacations and my travel around seeing beautiful places in the world is something I learned during study abroad.

New Zealand, no bears, no spiders.

I love that for a hot take.

I wouldn't say there's no spiders, but no scary spiders.

You know, I studied abroad in Costa Rica and I felt so bad.

There was this girl and she woke up and there was like this giant spider just like on her bed.

Oh, no.

So go to Costa Rica if you want that real adventure.

Yeah.

All right.

I think it's time that we roll along to Eliza's hot take.

Now, every show, almost every show, we say something that's like kind of unhinged, kind of wild.

You can go out on a limb and say something.

So tell us, what is your hot take?

And sometimes we call these hot takeoffs.

Oh, I like the hot takeoffs.

Well, I don't know if mine is super controversial, but I think if English is your first language, you should study abroad in a non-English speaking country.

So, you know, the UK is great.

I'm sure New Zealand is really cool.

I've never been, I would love to go, but I think it can be a really enriching experience to study somewhere else, you know, having to solve these big problems on a day-to-day basis.

Like, how do I communicate the post office what I'm trying to say?

You know, you need to figure out how to say it or how to communicate it in a different way or find someone to help you.

So it's also a really cool context just to have like living in the U.S.

of, you know, what it's like for other people who are coming to the U.S.

to be somewhere where English isn't their first language.

So that's my hot take.

Eliza, I have a hot take.

That's not a hot take.

Well, I think that's definitely the best take.

Use this time to learn another language.

I can think of something spicier, maybe.

I love it.

I love it.

Take an overnight bus.

That's another one.

Okay, that one is like more adventurous.

I like that.

I will take them both.

Just so you can practice sleeping straight up or what?

I just built character.

It builds character for sure.

I think I was on one and they just like stopped on the side of the road for an hour and we're like, we'll get there eventually.

So okay.

And then how's this for the real hot take?

When you're going to do it, don't tell your parents because I know my parents would be like, don't do that.

Yeah, I would agree with that as well.

Eliza, thank you so much for joining us on this episode of Smart Travel, telling us all about study abroad.

Yes.

Thank you guys so much for having me.

Thanks, Eliza.

Now, if you've got questions about study abroad or budgeting while abroad, whether or not you're a student, email your questions to travel at nerdwallet.com.

And if you have a hot take about travel, email us at travel at nerdwallet.com as well.

I kind of think it would be fun to share some listener hot takes in our hot take off segment.

I think it'd be fun too.

You can also let us know what you think of the show by giving us a star rating or leaving us a review or comment on your podcast app.

And make sure you subscribe to follow Smart Travel on your favorite podcast app.

That includes Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and iHeartRadio.

When you subscribe, you also get those episodes automatically downloaded.

This episode was produced by Tess Viglund and Hillary Georgie.

Claire Soci helped with fact-checking, and Nick Chrismy mixed our audio.

And for our disclaimer, we are not financial or investment advisors.

The information provided here is for general educational and entertainment purposes.

It may not apply to your specific circumstances.

What happens in Study Abroad stays in Study Abroad.

So we hope you're inspired to keep your passport full and your wallet even fuller.

Thanks, everyone.

See you next time.

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