Category: News

1. Make friends at language camp.
For many exchange programs, you may spend a few weeks at language camp with other exchange students before going to your host family. This is a time to make friends! I promise, these students will be your lifesavers on your fall breaks or long weekends. My favorite moments were being able to visit these guys when I wasn’t in school. Be social.

2. Spend time with your host family.
It’s easy to hide away in your room when you’re in a new environment stuck in a house with strangers. But take the courageous step and spend as much time as possible with them. If everyone is watching TV downstairs, go downstairs and watch TV. If the family goes to church on Sunday, go to church on Sunday. If your host mom asks if you want to go to the grocery store with her, go! You are in your host country to learn, and spending time with your host family is the best way to do it.

3. Avoid the computer.
Talking to your family and friends back home is essential, but not for hours a day. If you’re on the computer all day, you’re probably not speaking your host language or learning about the culture (which is why you are there!). It is too easy to feel inadequate or become jealous when you see friends back home posting photos together, or when other foreign exchange students are posting about their awesome new friends. Give yourself a computer limit and also limit the time you spend talking to your parents back home.

4. Ask about the house rules.
A common reason for tension between host parents and exchange students is not communicating each other’s expectations. Even if your host parents don’t tell you the rules, ask them–What is the curfew on weekdays and weekends? How does the wi-fi work? Are there rules about the computer? What can I eat out of the refrigerator? Can I invite friends over to the house? These questions might feel silly, but it’s better to know the rules upfront than three months into the exchange after breaking the rules and not knowing.

5. Culture shock is real.
You might be the most accepting person on the planet until you’re three months into your exchange and turn into a racist bigot. Culture shock is a cycle, especially during a 10-month exchange. Everything will be exciting and new at first, then it loses its charm a few months later, then you hate everyone around you a few months later, and then there’s a moment where it finally hits: hey, this isn’t so bad… this is great! The hardest time for any exchange student is generally October through December–the holiday months. Remember this, remember it is normal, remember you can do it and it will totally pay off.

I wrote a post about the different phases of culture shock. Read here!

6. Be honest.
Don’t let anger or sadness wallow up inside of you. Open up to your host parents and tell them how you feel. If you usually spend an hour to yourself after school to relax, let them know you need that time. If you’re having a hard time in school, tell your teacher you’re struggling with the language–more times than not, they will make an exception for you. If your host parents offended you at dinner, don’t let that stir up inside of you–let them know. You come from a completely different culture. This is a learning experience for everyone.

7. Say yes to friend invites.
Especially at the beginning when you’re the cool, new, exchange student. Say yes to everything (except drugs…)! Diskos, birthday parties, study sessions–if you say no a lot at the beginning, they’re least likely to keep asking you later on. It might not always be the best time ever like with your besties back home, but it’s all about experiencing a new culture and getting to know other people’s perspectives (and you need to get out of the house!).

8. You’re going to look stupid and that’s okay.
How can you not look stupid? You’re a 17-year-old speaking with an 8-year-old language proficiency. People will say to you, “He’s so cute,” or “Isn’t she adorable?” and you’ll want to throw a rock at them, but hey! You’re learning a different language! You are living in a different country! Be patient. Keep trying to speak the language. Let them laugh at you when you say “you taste good” instead of “you have good taste.” Be vulnerable and keep going. You’ve got this.

9. Say thank you. A lot.
We’re often so shy as foreign exchange students. We’re not fluent, we’re different than everyone else around, and sometimes our tongue just doesn’t want to speak the host language that day. But ALWAYS remember to say thank you to your host family. They’re doing a huge favor taking you in. Even if you’re shy, they need to know that you appreciate them or they will start to worry.

10. It’s normal to feel weird when you come home.
Culture shock keeps going, even when you’re back home. You might have a hard time speaking your native language or even articulating your experience. Your friends will ask, “How was Germany?” and you won’t know how to respond. “Good” doesn’t cover 10 months of anyone’s life. Your own country will give you culture shock, like your extremely loud friends, or the jokes people make. Give it a month of two and it will wear off. You are going to have so much fun!

What did I miss, wanderlusters? What were important things for you during your foreign exchange?
To those of you going on a foreign exchange, what are your most excited about? What are your concerns?

If you haven’t heard, universities around the world are offering their courses online for free (or at least partially free). These courses are collectively called MOOCs or Massive Open Online Courses.

In the past six years or so, close to 800 universities have created more than 8,000 of these MOOCs. And I’ve been keeping track of these MOOCs the entire time over at Class Central, ever since they rose to prominence.

In the past three months alone, over 200 universities have announced 600 such free online courses. I’ve compiled a list of them and categorized them according to the following subjects: Computer Science, Mathematics, Programming, Data Science, Humanities, Social Sciences, Education & Teaching, Health & Medicine, Business, Personal Development, Engineering, Art & Design, and finally Science.

If you have trouble figuring out how to signup for Coursera courses for free, don’t worry — here’s an article on how to do that, too.

Many of these are completely self-paced, so you can start taking them at your convenience.

More info you can find here

One of the Erasmus student exchange programme’s latest enrollees is Miguel Castillo, an 80-year-old Spaniard from Valencia who will next week go to the Italian city of Verona as part of his university studies.

The retired notary, who is married with three children and six grandchildren, studies history at the University of Valencia. Shortly after retiring, Castillo suffered a heart attack and underwent a quadruple bypass. Ever since he has had a new lease on life.

“Shortly after recovering, I said to myself: ‘I would like to do something that isn’t typical of a retiree. History always interested me, I’m interested in all of it, particularly contemporary subjects,” Castillo told Spanish news agency Efe.

The octogenarian has no qualms about his advanced years in comparison to his course mates and insists he feels like one of the other students: “The treatment I get is excellent, age is not a problem.”

That is why Castillo did not think twice about applying for an Erasmus scholarship after he was encouraged to do so by one of his professors. His family have already started making plans to visit him during his time in the north of Italy.

It won’t be the Spaniard’s first experience of Italy. Before he became a notary he was a professor at the University of Barcelona, during which time he spent two months in Rome and Bologna.

He also visited Verona 42 years ago with his wife to see the legendary Greek opera singer Maria Callas in concert. “That is why I chose Verona,” he revealed.

“To people who are my age, I urge them not to stay at home and to instead open themselves up to the world, because we can still give a lot to society and we can get a lot in return,” he added.

Castillo will be taking advantage of Erasmus +, the European Union’s latest iteration of its hugely successful student exchange programme, which is estimated to have involved nearly 9 million people since it started 30 years ago.

Fears have been raised lately that the United Kingdom’s participation in the scheme may be jeopardised due to the country’s decision to leave the EU. Despite indications that Westminster intends to push for continued involvement, there is still no official policy.

Erasmus architect Dr Hywel Ceri Jones recently warned that if the British government does not guarantee British citizens the continued right to benefit from Erasmus the impact on Wales would be “massive”.

The programme’s future within the EU looks more secure though after the bloc’s budget boss, Günther Oettinger, pledged to protect Erasmus from any cuts as the Commission begins in earnest to think about its next Multiannual Financial Framework.

Octogenarian Spaniard enrols in Erasmus scheme

After moving to a new city, one of the great ways to meet people and give back to your community taking advantage of volunteer opportunities. Local community service may once have been something you did to amp up your resume, but it’s also an important part of being a good citizen. Thinking about volunteering is one thing, but actually getting out there and doing it can give you the opportunity to truly make a difference in your community. When you’re new to an area, it can be difficult to know exactly where to begin: What areas have the highest level of need? Where can your skills be put to good use? To get the ball rolling, use these resources to find volunteer opportunities around your city:

VolunteerMatch

The online community connects volunteers with nearby nonprofits who are in need of assistance. There are currently 93,045 participating organizations around the world, and more than 7 million volunteers have been matched since the organization’s inception. On the website you can search for local volunteer opportunities by cause–everything from arts and culture to health and medicine. You can even tailor your search based on your age group. Browse through listings and find one that speaks to you.

Do Something

Specifically geared toward the 13- to 25-year-old crowd, Do Something is the U.S.’s largest nonprofit helping young people affect social change. Do Something currently spearheads three national campaigns: 25,000 Women, Birthday Mail and The Bully Text. Young adults can participate in these programs without ever having to leave their apartments. The website also has tons of resources and project ideas covering a variety of causes, including education, animals and natural disasters.

National Organizations

If there is a national charitable organization that you are passionate about, you may be able to contribute to its cause right in your own community. For example, ASPCA has a search tool on its website that helps you find local animal shelters looking for volunteers. The Red Cross also has tons of information on its website about ways you can volunteer in your community or help out at a blood drive. Browse the website of your favorite nonprofit and chances are it will have information about volunteer opportunities.

United We Serve

The Obama Administration has made a big point of ramping up the volunteer efforts of Americans across the country, and United We Serve is a part of that initiative. The website contains information about causes like helping to end childhood hunger in the United States, and you can sign up for service projects and access resources like toolkits to start your own community initiative.

All for Good

If you were hoping there was a simple search engine out there for volunteer opportunities, you’re in luck! Like VolunteerMatch, All for Good if a massive database of community service opportunities across the nation. You can search by cause or topic, and tailor your search to encompass opportunities in your area, state or those you can contribute to no matter where you are.

The seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in Romania,5.2% was well below the European Union average of 7.7%, in July 2017, according to data published yesterday by the National Statistics Institute (INS) and by Eurostat, the European Union Statistical Office.

According to INS data, the number of unemployees with age between 15 – 74, estimated for July of 2017, was 478,000 people, rising over last month (461,000 people), but declining compared to the same month of the previous year (525,000 people). In the year, the number of unemployed decreased by 9% in July and with 14.8% in the first seven months of the year, actually due, according to economists of Transilvania Bank, the positive climate in the area of exports and private consumption, but also migration. Exports grew by 10% in the first part of the year and domestic consumption by 8%.

Tensioning the labor market is a sign of overheating the economy and, although economists do not yet speak of severe corrections, they are considering a trend of change. “Statistics show the prospect of inflexion in the labor market, after the positive evolutions in recent quarters, amid rising wage pressures and rising economic policy risks, with an impact for the medium-term investment climate”, said Andrei Radulescu, senior economist of Transilvania Bank.

“We expect inflection (change of trend, descendant, ascendant) for the unemployment rate, scenario backed by the prospect of the end of the post-crisis economic cycle by increasing costs (wages and funding) and risks to medium-term macroeconomic stability “, he added. However, his analysis indicates an unemployment rate of 4.9% in 2018, compared with an anticipation of 5.2% in 2017.

According to data published yesterday by the NIS in July 2017 the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.2% increasing by 0.2 percentage points compared to the previous month (5.0%).

Unemployment in Romania is one of the smallest in the EU. According to Eurostat, the highest rates are recorded in Greece (21.7%) and Spain (17.1%), and the lowest in the Czech Republic (2.9%) and Germany (3.7%).

Unemployment rate, adjusted series, in the euro area was 9.1% in July 2017, the lowest level since February 2009. In July, the unemployment rate was 10%.

In the European Union, the unemployment rate was 7.7% in July, the lowest since December 2008.

Over 18.9 million people were unemployed in July, in EU, 14.8 of which are recorded in the euro area. Compared to last month, the number of people without jobs increased by 93,000 in the EU and by 73,000 in the euro area.