GENERAL HEALTH during study abroad.

Apart from avoiding crime and mishap, you also want to stay as healthy as possible while you are abroad. Here are some tips.

• Obviously the normal admonitions about eating right, about getting exercise, about getting sufficient rest, about maintaining good personal hygiene and so forth continue to have validity abroad. Because taking yourself abroad removes you from daily routine in the most dramatic way, it may be difficult to maintain the good health habits that you have formed at home. Do make an effort to retain these habits. Not to do so is to make yourself vulnerable to illness.
  
  
• In connection with the preceding comments we want to urge you to pay sufficient attention to stress as an element that can undermine good health and weaken the immune system. For the seasoned traveler and the novice adventurer alike, the business of getting to and operating within a foreign country, of being very much a stranger in a strange land, can be stressful. And stress can be a highly corrosive, if subtle, health problem. Here the admonition to “know thyself” has real force. If you recognize in yourself a special vulnerability to stress—we all share this vulnerability to some degree—it is imperative that you learn effective stress-reduction techniques. Perhaps the simplest stress-reduction measure is simply to share your concerns and anxieties with others—with friends or program officials.
  
  
• Although the state of one’s general health is essentially a personal matter and a personal responsibility, we urge you to be open with study abroad personnel about your pertinent health history and areas of potential vulnerability. As part of your preparations for a Chicago program abroad, you are asked to submit a health questionnaire outlining chronic health problems, medications taken regularly or sporadically, allergies, and dietary restrictions. We expect you to take this questionnaire seriously and complete it fully. Your answers will be held in confidence, shared with study abroad personnel only on a need-to-know basis. Apart from the questionnaire you should feel free to discuss any health problem, current or potential, with the Academic Director of Study Abroad in Chicago or the on-site director of your program. An open and full disclosure in this regard is the best way to keep a health problem from sabotaging your experience overseas.
  
  
• In connection with the study abroad health questionnaire and with the general proposition that the better your health the more you're going to be able to profit from your studies, we would like to suggest that you use your planned adventure abroad as an occasion for a general physical check-up (including a good look at your teeth). A periodic physical examination is, for all of us, a prudent measure. For a student planning international travel, even to a site not normally considered to present special health risks, it is especially recommended. You can arrange for such an examination at the Student Care Center (see below).
  
  
• If you require a special medication, either in regular doses or as a special remedy for medical flare-ups, you should of course make sure that you have a quantity sufficient for the duration of your program overseas. Going beyond this obvious observation, we recommend that you take with you an extra supply of the medication (say, half again the minimum amount needed). Why? Because life is unpredictable, spills happen, bags are lost.
  
  
• If you take a prescription medication be sure to have a copy of the prescription on your person when you make your way abroad. You might also wish to have a letter from your doctor concerning the medication and your legitimate need for it. Such a letter could be a potentially useful show-and-tell document for customs officials.
  
  
• Anyone who needs glasses needs two pairs of glasses. If you use prescription glasses you should carry abroad with you an extra pair as well as your optometrist's prescription (this of course applies equally to contact lenses).
  
  
• Most of the countries to which Chicago sends its students require no special health precautions. Some do. Where special precautions—especially prophylactic measures against endemic disease—are required, Chicago requires program participants to schedule a pre-departure appointment with the Student Care Center (see below) or a family physician. You may also wish to consult the web site of the federal government’s Center for Disease Control.
  
  
• In many developing countries and in certain areas of the developed world, travelers need to be wary of the local water supply. If you are in such a region be sure to use bottled water (for tooth brushing as well as drinking) and refrain from eating uncooked food or food purchased from a street vendor (unless you wash it thoroughly with bottled water).
  
  
• In connection with the previous point, traveler’s diarrhea is the most common complaint of those visiting a developing country. Normally this is a temporary condition whose chief danger—dehydration—is preventable by drinking plenty of fluids. However, if you develop blood in your stool or an inability to take in fluids, you must seek local medical attention immediately.
  
  
• A good general resource for students about to embark upon international travel is the Student Care Center, which is located in Suite R-100 (first floor, R corridor) in the University Medical Center. You can make an appointment by calling 773-702-4156. The SCC personnel are experienced in giving solid information and advice for international travelers and are happy to answer your general as well as site-specific health-related questions. You can also look to the SCC for a variety of laboratory tests, inoculations, and prescriptions.
  
  
• Good health includes good mental health. To repeat what we said earlier, a full (confidential) disclosure of continuing or potential problems is vitally important and indeed expected. If you are or have been prey to emotional problems, we urge you also to take the prudent step of consulting with a therapist at the Student Counseling and Resource Service about your travel plans and about how to insure a trouble-free experience abroad. In regard to our earlier comments about stress, the professionals at the SCRS can be helpful in teaching stress-reduction techniques. The SCRS is located at 5737 S. University Ave. To make an appointment call 773-702-9800.
  
  
• We’re not doctors. To get sound advice before departure consult the Student Care Center or your own physician. To secure such advice as well as treatment while you are abroad, let yourself be counseled by on-site personnel.

TRANSPORTATION SAFETY

Getting from here to there, a significant aspect of life in general, looms very large indeed in study abroad programs. We want you to get from here to there safely. These tips cover transportation at all levels: by air, by rail, and by public transportation within your host city.

• The admonition to "travel light" is not simply a matter of convenience. When you encumber yourself with excess baggage you make yourself less independent, slower, more vulnerable. The more bags you have, the more likely you are to "lose" one, and a snatched bag is difficult to recover when you're weighed down with others.
  
  
• Both in traveling to your host country and in returning to the States, be sure to arrive at the airport well ahead of your departure time and check your luggage early on. Try to avoid flight plans with very short layovers. Even if you make it from one plane to the next, your checked luggage may not.
  
  
• Never leave bags unattended. If you see an unattended bag in an air or rail terminal, report it to the authorities immediately.
  
  
• On trains you should either take your bags with you to the dining or lounge cars or leave a friend to look after them. A stranger you have just met is not, for these purposes, a friend.
  
  
• Don't agree to act as a courier for someone else unless you know the other person well and know the contents of the bag or package entrusted to you.
  
  
• In general everything that we have said about avoiding crowds, being wary of strangers, and staying alert should be applied doubly to airline and train terminals.
  
  
• Public transportation systems in most foreign cities are usually more convenient and user-friendly than ours (also less expensive), and you will certainly want to avail yourself of the buses, trolleys, and subways in your host city. But you need to know the system and where it's taking you. Subways especially, because their underground routes keep you from seeing the passing cityscape, can convey you into areas you would not normally enter on foot.
  
  
• Here are some tips about taxis. While they reduce to near-zero the risk of being pickpocketed, taxis can pose other dangers (you are, after all, entering an automobile controlled by a complete stranger). Make sure that your taxi is a “normal,” properly licensed conveyance and that your driver’s identification is in view (the degree to which this is possible will vary from country to country). Most guidebooks will contain some information about the taxi system and give you the means for making the important distinction between legitimate and illegitimate cabs. (On this topic and on others, it’s important to read the pertinent sections before you arrive in your host country.) Before taking a taxi from an airport, take a second to size up how the cab dispatching system, if there is one, works. Look for an official cab line, perhaps with a dispatcher. Again, guidebooks are usually helpful in this regard. Be wary of drivers who are too aggressive in soliciting business. To avoid being driven in circles as a means of jacking up the fare, you may wish to reach a preliminary understanding with the driver about what constitutes a reasonable fare to your destination. This applies especially to meterless cabs. (Remember that, in some cities, nighttime rates are higher.) Obviously you want to avoid a dispute with your driver, and above all, you do not want a dispute to become violent. Look to police to mediate such altercations.
  
  
• Don't plan to operate a motorized vehicle abroad. Almost all of the overseas venues to which Chicago sends its students have two things in common: 1) public transportation is excellent and 2) strolling is pleasant and edifying. To saddle yourself with a rented motor scooter or vespa or automobile is to complicate your life unnecessarily. You add a distraction from the central mission of your program, and you put yourself in the way of a host of legal/medical problems. Walkers take in their surroundings and learn. Drivers watch the road. Our national obsession with the automobile (and motorcycle) is grotesque and a source of wonder to America-watchers abroad. We urge you in the strongest terms to think of your time abroad as an emancipation from the internal combustion engine. Walk, enjoy the air, take in the sights, connect with your host culture. Don't drive abroad.

SAFETY IN YOUR HOME AWAY FROM HOME. (study abroad)

While the College tries to insure safe housing situations for all participants in its study abroad programs, it is of course impossible to guarantee absolutely safe accommodations. In this regard you must do your part in keeping your temporary home secure. Here are some suggestions.

• Whether you live in an apartment, a residence hall, a pension, or a family, you need to take steps to keep your temporary home "off-limits" to strangers.
  
  
• Whether you are setting out or returning, you should get in the habit of locking your front door as soon as you close it behind you. If you have engaged in the dubious practice of leaving your Chicago dormitory room unlocked, you need to put that sort of naive behavior behind you.
  
  
• Don't admit strangers to your home. Repairmen should be asked for identification.
  
  
• As soon as you arrive in your new abode you should make an inventory of doors and windows and mentally map out a set of escape routes in case of fire.
  
  
• The telephone can be the means of invasive attentions and the harbinger of unsolicited physical contact. The only proper response to a prank caller is an immediate dial tone. If you experience a pattern of harassing calls, report them to the authorities just as you would in this country.

STREET CRIME AND HOW TO AVOID IT.(during study ABROAD)

Petty thievery is as old as cities themselves. Here are some thoughts about how to protect yourself from unpleasant encounters with the criminal element.

• Don't carry with you more cash than you can stand to lose. Traveler's checks are probably the safest way to take money abroad.
  
  
• One of the wonders of the modern world is the automatic teller machine (ATM), which allows the wandering student to withdraw money from his or her US-based checking account while abroad. The usual warnings about ATM use--keep the ATM card safe and inaccessible, keep your personal identification number in your head rather than on paper, avoid making withdrawals from isolated or unprotected locations--apply to ATM's abroad with equal force.
  
  
• Money belts and travel pouches are useful devices for frustrating pickpockets. If you use a billfold don't put it in the hip pocket of your jeans or the inside breast pocket of your jacket. It's much harder for a thief to extract a purse from a front trousers pocket or a pocket inside buttoned-up clothing.
  
  
• Your passport can be as enticing as your money. You should stow it, like your wallet, in a relatively inaccessible pouch or pocket. Or you may wish to leave it at home (that is, your residence abroad) and carry a photocopy.
  
  
• Do make photocopies of your passport and other important papers. Make a list of your travelers' check and credit card numbers. Keep these documents in a separate pocket, pouch, or bag.
  
  
• If you carry a bag keep it close and keep it closed. In crowded or threatening situations hug it to your body. Use only a bag that closes with a snap, tie, or buckle. Never leave your bag unattended. If you place it beside you on a bench be aware of who's nearby.
  
  
• Pickpockets and purse-snatchers often work in pairs. Be aware that an importuning stranger may be a decoy engaged in distracting you from the malicious work of his or her associate. Sad to say, a child may be a partner in this sort of crime.
  
  
• Avoid crowds as much as possible. Public conveyances, because they tend to compress strangers into dense masses, are especially attractive to pickpockets. We would not ask you to avoid such conveyances, but do keep your antennae up.

GENERAL ADVICE for Study Abroad..

Let’s begin with a few all-purpose tips about staying safe abroad.

• Be alert. People-watching is part of the pleasure of foreign travel. It's also part of keeping safe.
  
  
• Trust your instincts. This connects with our first point. If you become aware of suspicious behavior, if you're getting bad vibes from someone on the street, put some distance between yourself and the situation.
  
  
• Be inconspicuous. One travels to see, not to be seen. Clothing or behavior that broadcasts "tourist" or "young American abroad" could bring trouble in your direction.
  
  
• Don't sightsee in large, English-speaking groups. This connects with our third point. It can be fun to wander about with a friend or two, but large groups of young American's (inevitably a bit boisterous) can attract unwanted attention and hostility. Of course one must violate this rule in program-sponsored outings.
  
  
• Avoid "American" haunts. Why hang around fast-food joints and tourist traps when quieter, more "authentic" areas beckon?
  
  
• Be discreet with your cash. Don't flash large sums for all to see.
  
  
• Probably, like most of our traveling students, you will be studying at an urban institution. You should then carry over to your new surroundings the precautionary measures you have adopted in Chicago. Learn which areas are relatively "safe"--safety is always relative--and which are less so. For night trips choose your itinerary carefully. Stay away from suspicious types.
  
  
• Political demonstrations are always interesting. We suggest that you observe them from a distance and that you limit yourself absolutely to passive observation. If the demonstration has an anti-American theme or tone, don't let your wounded pride lead you to shed your anonymity.
  
  
• Naturally you will want to make new friends abroad, and we would not want to discourage you from this. But don't let this quite appropriate goal lead you into an unwelcome intimacy. Allow yourself to be just a bit cautious with strangers. Friendships worth having are often slow to develop. Don't rush it!
  
  
• Once you have arrived at your temporary home-away-from-home, learn where the nearest police station and hospital is. This is not especially burdensome knowledge, and it might turn out to be useful.
  
  
• Use public transportation wisely. By all means you will want to avail yourself of the subway, streetcars, and buses of your host city. But it’s important that you know how the system works and where it’s taking you. More about this under transportation safety below.
  
  
• Stay sober. Although you will likely find the drinking laws in your host country to be less restrictive than those back home, you are urged to be moderate in your consumption of alcohol. To incapacitate yourself with strong drink (or drugs) is to make yourself vulnerable to mischance. Inebriation weakens your judgment, your self-protective inhibitions, and your observational abilities.
  
  
• Perhaps you have read about the confidence games known as "pigeon drops" in Chicago. If a stranger suggests a scheme by which a small investment on your part will lead to a handsome reward, be very suspicious.
  
  
• If you are fearful or confused about anything, share your concerns with the director of your program or the overseas study office of your host university.

Safety Tips For Students Studying Abroad

Congratulations on your impending overseas study! We hope that the experience is both academically and personally rewarding and that you return to Chicago with a larger sense of the world and of yourself as a citizen of the world. Along with these best wishes we should like to offer a few words of advice about making your experience safe and relatively trouble-free. Clearly your living and studying in Chicago has made you "street-wise" in a way that will stand you in good stead abroad. A large part of staying out of harm's way abroad consists merely of retaining this sensibility. Beyond this we should like to make a few specific points and observations. Please read them, think about them, and discuss them with friends.Feel free to bring your questions to the director of your program or to the College Academic Director of Study Abroad.

10 Tips for College & University Student.

Seeing as it’s that time of year again when people start or return to university/college I thought I would share my ten comprehensive tips to get the most from your experience, whether it involves fun, work or finances.

Get organized
As a student you will no doubt have so much paperwork and information coming into you, that it is important to have some system in place so you don’t get overwhelmed, especially with course-related work. There is lots of potential to get stressed out at university, so having a good GTD based system in place to keep you focused and organized is key. Because you have so much freedom as to how you learn and study, it is so much more important that you are able to manage yourself and your time so as to keep you disciplined. Read some of the posts under my GTD catagory to get you started.

Avoid credit cards!
When it comes to credit cards, loans, overdrafts and other similar financial aid, banks and companies are not offering you them out of the the kindness of their hearts. For example, my friend tried to apply for a loan but the bank said he had too good a chance of paying it back in time. In other words it was not to the advantage of the bank, because they would not get the extra benefits of missed payments, interest etc. It was a rare show of honesty but it summed up their attitude. Students are easy targets for them because they know they are typically short of money.

Track your spending
It’s a valuable habit to get into and being a student, with all the difficulties of juggling expenditure, is a good time to start practicing it. Keep a log of how much money you have coming in and how you are spending it. That way you can tell exactly where your money is going and make important conclusions from it. Found out you are spending the bulk of your money on study books? Look at buying them second hand or using the library.

Textbooks
Speaking of books, they are typically very big expense so buy used ones where possible (Amazon, eBay etc) and then sell them on when you’ve finished with them to cut some of the costs. You will very rarely need to keep the books once you are finished the course anyway. It is always beneficial to have your own copy of a book but do also consider whether you can make do with taking what you need out of the library instead (don’t rely on this approach however, libraries have limited numbers of copies and its quite possible you could miss out). There is also the option of sharing a book between small groups of friends.

Nights out
We all know it’s a pretty common thing to do at college/uni; going to the uni bar, parties, nightclubs etc. If you are worried about spending a lot, do what a friend suggested to me and take out a set amount of money beforehand (and ideally when you are sober) and then leave your bank card at home. Another way to save money is to not go out into town, but buy drinks from the shop and drink at home with a few friends. Bars and pubs tend have inflated prices and that’s on top of having to pay to get into places. Shops – and supermarkets especially – usually have really good special offers.

Use your campus
Get to know your campus quickly. It’s where you will spend a lot of your time and by acclimatising yourself to it early, you will settle in much more quickly, making those first few weeks more pleasant. You will also learn the little quirks like the most quiet place to study, or the busiest time in the canteen. By knowing about your campus you will be able to make the most of the facilities. Any half-decent college/university will host plenty of free/cheap entertainment and special events. They are much better for your finances than expensive nights out round town.

Your social network
On top of getting to know your campus, consider getting to know and befriend as many people as possible, whether it be other students or lecturers. It makes acclimatising to university much more easy if you have people you can talk to and trust. It can also open up lots of opportunities. A lecturer you can comfortably talk to may be able to provide advice on your work, and it can be so much easier to do group work if you have friends on your course. Freshers week is great for achieving all this as there will be so many other people in the same position as you. Look to join groups that have the same interests as yours!

Don’t get a car
Cars may be useful, but they can also be extra expensive, especially when you take into account maintenance, insurance and road tax. Where possible live in or near campus so you don’t have to drive. Get used to using public transport as quickly as possible, because it’s cheaper than running a car and you can typically get some form of discount for being a student. The other problem from having a car is all your friends will expect lifts from you which can complicate matters. If you have no problems being a bit cheeky, ask any of your friends with cars to give you lifts instead ;)

Bad influences
At college or university, there will always be kids with rich parents and relatives and those who willfully walk into debt without a second thought. Avoid hanging around them too much otherwise you may find yourself getting involved in their expensive lifestyles also. Beware of lifestyle inflation! If you get accustomed to their sort of living it can be very difficult to drop back down to a lifestyle more appropriate to your expenditure.

Appreciate your time at college/uni
It’s a unique experience that most people can only really go through once so make the most of it. Some people focus so much on the fun side of things that they come away with a poor degree. Likewise some people are so into their work, they neglect to make friends and gain other experiences. You can work hard and play hard!