Study Abroad: Finding a Place to Live

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By the time you're ready to study abroad, you've realized that your living situation affects your college experience. Where and with whom you live can make college more fun or turn life into a total nightmare. The same is true for your study abroad experience: Where you live significantly impacts your experience while abroad, so when given a choice of where to live, choose carefully!

As part of your research, you probably discovered whether the programs you're interested in actually arrange housing or whether finding a place to live is your responsibility. When you need to find your own housing, ask representatives of your program, the international student office, or student housing office at your abroad university to assist you. Ask around to find out what is considered reasonable and fair rent for the city you're living in.

Student housing is at a premium in most countries! Whenever your study abroad program does not provide housing for you, give yourself plenty of time to arrange it.

If you're going on a short-term program or one that requires frequent travel, you may stay in hotels, pensions, or student hostels. If you're lucky, your program offers you a choice of where to live. However, choices probably are limited, and your first choice is not guaranteed because student housing is difficult to find almost everywhere. Space within on-campus dorms usually is the most limited, and many abroad universities reserve only a certain number of rooms for international students.

One way to make sure that you have a pleasant living situation is to inform your program or housing office about any special needs you may have before you're assigned accommodation. Fill out any housing forms honestly. Smoking is far more common and acceptable abroad than in the U.S., so if a nonsmoking environment is important to you, request a nonsmoking home-stay or nonsmoking roommates in dorms and apartments.

Confirm all housing arrangements before you depart. Get the address and directions to your new home. Let the landlord or housing office know approximately what time you will be arriving at so you can arrange to pick up the keys to your place. (The "landlord" in many cases may be your program office or university accommodation office. You will not have to deal with the person who owns the property unless you have to find your own housing.) Also, upon arrival, ask about housing rules and if you're paying rent on a monthly/weekly basis, and find out the most convenient way to get the rent to your landlord.

Living in dorms or apartments

Most study abroad students live in dorms or apartments with roommates from the host country, other foreign countries, or from the United States. You can expect to share your accommodations, regardless of whether it's a dorm room or an apartment, with other students. However, dorms at abroad universities commonly provide students with their own rooms that share an adjoining common room and kitchen with three to seven other students.

Most dorms and apartments abroad are self-catering, which means you prepare your own meals. Meal plans and dining halls in most study abroad situations are very limited when compared with the offerings of U.S. schools.