Staying Safe on Study Abroad: Remembering Street Smarts

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Safety probably isn't your first concern, although it may be your parents'. However, if you're not safe, you'll have a hard time enjoying your experiences. Safety abroad really boils down to common sense and following many of the same rules and precautions that you follow at home. Keep in mind that your level of safety depends on where you study abroad. Some places are safer than others and some may be safer than where you study in the U.S. I felt as safe in Dublin as I do in Boston. If you currently study in a rural area where you don't worry much about dorm safety, walking home at night, or locking your car doors when you go to the grocery store, then studying abroad in a sprawling metropolis may seem less safe than staying home. But safety is all a matter of perspective, where you're coming from, and what your experiences have been.

The first step to staying safe is becoming familiar with the area in which you live and go to school. Ask other students, campus security, your program director, or the International Student Office for local safety information.

• Find out which areas of your town or city are safe and unsafe during the daytime and at night. Avoid dangerous areas where you could become the victim of a crime.
• Don't use shortcuts, narrow alleys, or poorly lit streets.
• Try not to travel alone at night.
• Keep a low profile and try not to stand out as a foreigner or tourist. In most places, wearing tennis shoes, baseball hats, jeans, or sweatpants are dead giveaways that you're American. Observe the local standards of dress - and don't hang a camera around your neck.
• Never, ever discuss travel plans or personal information with strangers.

Aim to blend in. Speak the language of your host country instead of English. Also, speak softly. Americans tend to speak loudly and this attracts attention. Don't frequent American hangouts like McDonald's - pickpockets can linger around looking for unsuspecting American students.

Warding off pickpockets

When you're out and about in your host country, pay attention to your surroundings just as you would in any public place. Remember that crowded elevators, festivals, market places, subways, train stations, tourist sites, and marginal areas of cities are prime locations for thieves and scam artists. Beware of strangers who approach you offering bargains or to be your guide.

Petty theft is rampant in many countries, and foreigners are almost always a favorite target. Pickpockets often have an accomplice who jostles you, asks you for directions or the time, points to something spilled on your clothing, or otherwise distracts you by creating a disturbance as the pickpocket runs off with your money. Wear the shoulder strap of your bag across your chest and walk with the bag away from the curb to avoid drive-by purse-snatchers.

A child or even a woman carrying a baby can be a pickpocket. Beware of groups of vagrant children who create a distraction while picking your pocket.

If you're confronted by a thief, don't fight back. Just give him what he asks for. Give up your valuables. Your money and passport can be replaced, but you cannot.

Use the following tips to keep yourself safe on the streets:

• Try to seem purposeful when you move about. Even if you are lost, act as if you know where you're going. Consult maps very discreetly.
• When possible, ask directions only from individuals in authority.
• Avoid public demonstrations and other civil disturbances.
• Learn a few phrases in the local language so that you can signal your need for help, the police, or a doctor.
• Make a note of emergency telephone numbers you may need: police, fire, your hotel, host family, roommates, program director, and the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.

The U.S. Embassy is available to help you if you're the victim of a crime. Every embassy has an officer on call 24 hours a day to assist in an emergency and help you get in touch with medical care or police.

Staying safe aboard public transportation

As a student studying in a foreign country, you are probably not going to have access to a car. Wherever you're going, you'll likely be relying on your own two feet or public transportation to get you from place to place.

The consular information sheets on the State Department Web site, www.state.gov/travel, list whether a country has a pattern of tourists being targeted by criminals on public transport in the "Crime Information" section. Even if your area isn't listed, always carefully watch your belongings while you travel.

Taxis

In cities, taxis are often the safest way to travel at night, but remember to keep your wits about you. Take only those taxis clearly identified with official markings. Beware of unmarked cabs or drivers soliciting passengers in train stations or airports: They may take advantage of you or take you somewhere you don't want to go. Never get into a taxi if someone is already in the backseat. Never put your bags in the taxi before you get in - the driver could take off with your stuff! Try to become familiar with routes to and from your destination so that taxis don't take the longest and most expensive routes possible.