Tips for Making Friends When Studying Abroad

Are you going overseas as an exchange student or for a working holiday?

Both are great ways to improve your English skills, plus you get to experience many new things in a fresh environment: new culture, new foods … new friends?

How do you make friends while studying abroad? It can be challenging, but it isn't impossible!

If you're planning to go overseas, or if you're struggling to make friends in a new place, we have some suggestions to help you!

Attend School Events

Your school knows that making friends is an important part of studying abroad, so it will likely hold events designed for people to meet. Go to them! There will be people there like you who want to socialize and have the best international experience they can.

No matter who you meet, you have two things in common: You're students and you're away from your home countries. That's enough to get started! A simple "Hi! Where are you from?" can begin a nice conversation.

For more suggestions, read our article on tips for small talk.

Join Study Groups

Study groups are a great way to "kill two birds with one stone" — or do two things at the same time.

Helping your partners will improve your English, but they can help you as well — especially if your native languages are different.

Also, working together can create a stronger connection with your partners, which could lead to fun activities that aren't related to books or classes.

Join a Club

Just like in your home country, joining a club is a great way to meet people with similar hobbies. See what activities your school or study program provides. You can also search sites like Meetup to find other activities offered in your area.

Groups that meet regularly are best because they allow you to see people often; if you only meet once, it's easier to lose contact if you don't work to stay in touch.

What if you can't find a club that interests you? Try starting your own! This leads to our next suggestion …

Try Something New

If you're introverted and normally spend weekends or evenings doing solo activities, it will be difficult to make friends.

If you're serious about meeting people, you'll need to try something new. That might mean contacting others to meet instead of waiting for someone to contact you. It might also mean doing activities you've never tried before.

We've already suggested joining clubs, but you don't have to stick to activities you already know. In fact, you shouldn't!

Have you ever tried rock climbing or taken a dance class? What about bowling? Team sports and other activities that require partners are great choices for making friends.

Be brave and keep an open mind. After all, learning and growing is the reason you're studying abroad, isn't it?

A Final Important Tip

While you're out making friends, it will be very easy to spend a lot of time with people similar to you, either in language or culture. But the friends you make will have a big effect on how much your cultural and language skills improve.

So if you really want to get better, get out of your "comfort zone" and try to meet people from places that are different than your own.

Wrap-up

Studying abroad can be exciting and educational. But to get the biggest benefit, you'll need to share your experiences with friends.

Look at the activities your school offers and join clubs in your area. Be active in contacting people and don't be afraid to try new things. Remember, if you wanted a safe, normal routine, you could have stayed at home!

If you'd like more suggestions, book a lesson with an Engoo tutor. Some of them have studied abroad too and can offer more useful tips to help you.