Have you ever been studying abroad?

As a US student, does studying abroad reduce your marketability?

• I'm thinking about studying abroad (freshman). I'm an economics major and was considering LSE, Cambridge, or something of that sort. I've got a couple questions: 1) Does studying abroad reduce future marketability? (Is getting a summer internship more valuable than studying abroad in terms of future marketability? This is just something I'm wondering in the back of my head, I realize the experience of studying abroad cannot be matched by anything but this would be nice to know) 2) Is studying abroad in London a waste of the opportunity? (I've heard London is very similar to the US, however my plan was to schedule all my classes into 3 days and spend 4 day weekends every week taking the eurostar/eurotrain to a different country and exploring the hell out of it) 3) Are there any other good economics schools in other European countries other than London? (People pointed out that my plan above would be easier if I didn't have to cross the The Channel every week. Perhaps I could "home base" my experience in another country?) 4) Does the "prestige"  really matter or should I chose a school solely based off its location? (Would employers be more inclined to hire me in the future if my resume shows that I studied at LSE for a term or is the value in the fact that I studied abroad and not the school I went to?) 5) Is it worth studying a full semester (spring) or should I stick to a summer term of 3 weeks to a month? (I'm worried that missing a semester of school will prevent me from participating in my extra curricular activities and keeping up with my social life at university)  6) Will classes at LSE or other school be tough? I'm sure actual students there are challenged to their limits, but I've heard the abroad classes are no where near as hard as normal LSE classes. Is this true? While academics and learning is important, I do not want to be stuck in my dorm over the weekend because of tests and projects and grades. Thank you! I realize this is a long set of questions but I want to make sure I make the right decision. I really want to experience the study abroad program! Edit: I am NOT using study abroad to increase my marketability, rather asking if doing so will decrease my marketability because of lost opportunity. I value the experience of living in another culture much more than marketability.

• Answer:

  1. I would recommend studying abroad for a semester or a full academic year and saving summers for interning or work, yes. Just because internships are easier to coordinate over the summers. I was abroad my sophomore year, into July of that summer, and then interned the summer after my junior and senior years. 2. Being anywhere in London is never a waste of an opportunity. You might waste it by not taking advantage of what the city has to offer, but that's on you, not the city. 3. You should live in the country in which you're studying. If you decide to study in the U.K., live in the U.K. Study in France, live in France. Germany, live in German. And so on. It is extremely impractical, in terms of time and money, to cross the Channel every week or whenever you need to go to class. It also pretty much wrecks whatever chance you had to get really involved in your school's culture, if your "home base" is across the English Channel. 4. This depends on how your study abroad program works. If your school has a reciprocal thing with LSE, and they have to take you just because of that, then no, it's probably not going to matter. If you're applying for a competitive program independent of your U.S. university, then it might matter more in terms of "prestige." 5. A lot of this is based on finances, but I recommend going for at least a semester to get a more immersive experience. A summer spent studying abroad is more like a long-term vacation or field trip, from what I've seen with my friends. You're mostly with other Americans (not locals), your time is more structured, and you don't really get the sense of living someplace. I'd argue you don't really get it with just a semester either, but that's better than a summer. 6. You'd be studying on LSE's timetable, so yes, everyone studying there for a set term would be there at the same time. The point though is to go abroad and make new friends. You can hang out with American students in the U.S. 7. I didn't study at LSE, but in general, British universities put more emphasis on independent work and less busy work. You might have one or two essays per term, but each one is worth maybe 25% of your grade and they grade hard. Anything above a 60 is considered good; 65 is very good and anything above 70 is exemplary. For non-science classes, your final exam might be worth 50% of your grade. For my undergraduate course at Uni. Reading, I took six final exams, three essay questions for each chosen out of a given ten. 50% of my grade in each class. You're not expected to take tests every week, but you are expected to do your outside reading and research and to retain that. If you fall behind, no one is there to catch you. If you're worried about the integrity of the classes or worried you're not being challenged, talk to an adviser or look into a different program. I would be very leery of any program where you're just grouped together with other Americans. Overall, just some friendly advice: You're way overthinking it. You should study abroad to live in a different country, challenge yourself, meet new (non-American) people, learn a different language, whatever. If your primary concern is your marketability and that's what you're using to determine where to spend possibly 4-6 months of your life, I have to say, you're missing the forest for the trees. EDIT: It would only decrease your marketability if you screwed off and wrecked your GPA (which has happened) or you just didn't get any work experience, but that shouldn't have anything to do with studying abroad. There is absolutely no reason why you can't study abroad and have an internship or more than one internship.