EC - Study Aboard, Does it help??

[Doctorsoon2011]

I have been accepted into Oxford study abroad program. I know Oxford is one of the top universities in the world and Im excited to take advanced physics courses there. However, the cost is outrageous 40,000 dollars for a semester. I have many scholarships and so i will end up paying only 15-20 thousand to go. A big reason I want to take on this debt is because I know how good it would look to go there. OR would it?

Im curious how the medical school committee would look at such a EC? Would it be worth the investment? I am not looking at going to a top 20 medical school...

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[mauberley]

I have been accepted into Oxford study abroad program. I know Oxford is one of the top universities in the world and Im excited to take advanced physics courses there. However, the cost is outrageous 40,000 dollars for a semester. I have many scholarships and so i will end up paying only 15-20 thousand to go. A big reason I want to take on this debt is because I know how good it would look to go there. OR would it?

Im curious how the medical school committee would look at such a EC? Would it be worth the investment? I am not looking at going to a top 20 medical school...

You can get into a non-top 20 med school without having studied abroad at Oxford.

 

[1TB4RKSB4CK]

40k a semester? HELL NO!

 

[AZFutureDoc]

Ahoy ye matees! All abOARd!!!

 

[CodeBlu]

Ahoy ye matees! All abOARd!!!

 

[NightGod]

Do it for the experience, not for the application bullet point because it's only marginally useful in that context. Experience wise, I believe you'd be a fool not to do it if you can come up with the money. $15-20K for a year overseas at Oxford sounds like an insane bargain to me. Just make sure you don't let your GPA slip and you should be golden.

 

[pitutinho]

While obviously this would look good on a resume as not necessarily everyone studies abroad and especially not advanced physics at Oxford it is an exuberant amount of money... Unless you're rich or are willing to make the investment I'd say you're much better off trying to find another EC and saving that money for med school.

 

[metaphase]

This person is obviously not telling the truth. Applicants for any of Oxford's programs start in the fall, only go through certain highly regarded US institutions, and make a full commitments to attend. This guy's "timeline" is made up, and almost every college with exchange agreements with Oxford would be of high caliber enough to charge students identical tuition for abroad programs as they do their own.

I call shenanigans.

*Also, for anyone seriously interested in studying abroad, I did so twice (Paris the summer after my freshman year, University of Edinburgh first semester of Junior year) and it was entirely helpful, both culturally and academically. Feel free to ask questions.*

 

[pitutinho]

*Also, for anyone seriously interested in studying abroad, I did so twice (Paris the summer after my freshman year, University of Edinburgh first semester of Junior year) and it was entirely helpful, both culturally and academically. Feel free to ask questions.*

What did you study when you studied abroad and how much did it cost?

 

[EsseQuamVideri]

I have a hard time believing a semester at Oxford would cost you 40K through any program that Oxford has affiliations with. If you really did receive an offer through an independent study abroad program, it may be a phony.

I also did a study a "study abroad" semester. Highly recommend the host family option if it's available to you. Much quicker language learning and a much deeper understanding of the culture. Oxford would be pretty cool though and you'd get the prestige oohs and aaahhhhs if that's what you're into.

 

[DinoSaysRawr]

My pre-med advisor just informed me that they're doing a study abroad program for Summer 2012 at Oxford as well and invited me to attend. If you decide to go, please, come back to this thread (or PM me lol) and let us know how it goes!

As far as the status of the EC, to mimic what others have said, I wouldn't do it simply because it'll look good on your CV. I would do it to enjoy the experience and to become introduced to a different part of the world. Overall, I don't think it's going to really help, but it definitely won't hurt, unless you're paying 40k/semester.

 

[SilmeUF]

Given the price of that program for one semester, I would double check that it is legitimate. I can't imagine any school affiliated programs would charge that much, or maybe I'm just cheap?

I've been over here in Oxford since April in a research program. I got about $3000 for housing costs (staying in a fellow's accommodation), and another $1000 for food, travel, etc. My PI let me sit in on all the biochemistry classes until the students left at the end of term about a month ago. So I didn't take any classes officially, but the cost to me was $0.

Basically what I am trying to say is I had more or less the same experience that you would have without that massive bill. Sure, I will never have those BCH credits on my official transcript, but if you are just going for the shock value of Oxford on the resume, I think (ssNMR characterization of AMP's and cell-penetrating peptides... at Oxford) or something like that would work out just fine. If you took classes officially instead of doing research, same deal.

So look around and see if you can make it over here for a term or two for less money, and still take classes officially.

 

[SilmeUF]

This person is obviously not telling the truth. Applicants for any of Oxford's programs start in the fall, only go through certain highly regarded US institutions, and make a full commitments to attend. This guy's "timeline" is made up, and almost every college with exchange agreements with Oxford would be of high caliber enough to charge students identical tuition for abroad programs as they do their own.

I call shenanigans.

*Also, for anyone seriously interested in studying abroad, I did so twice (Paris the summer after my freshman year, University of Edinburgh first semester of Junior year) and it was entirely helpful, both culturally and academically. Feel free to ask questions.*

That is awesome that you studied at Edinburgh. I flew up there just for pleasure a few weeks ago; loved the entire city and the countryside. I climbed up to the top of the Salisbury Crags, and wow, what a view.

 

[Deathstar]

Study abroad because you'll enjoy wherever you go. I don't know how adcoms think but using study abroad as EC sounds like a joke.

 

[Person0715]

Study abroad because you'll enjoy wherever you go. I don't know how adcoms think but using study abroad as EC sounds like a joke.

+1

Don't study abroad because you think it will please adcoms. Do it for the experience. As someone previously mentioned, you should definitely look into staying with a host family. More cultural immersion than staying in a college dorm or a flat with other college kids studying abroad.

 

[vanhor25]

Study abroad because you'll enjoy wherever you go. I don't know how adcoms think but using study abroad as EC sounds like a joke.

I disagree, I think using study abroad as an EC bullet point could really help your chances depending on how you played the card. I talked to my adviser about it (because I plan to study abroad for a major-related program) and she said that studying abroad not only shows that you are willing to not only go above and beyond (financially and experience-wise,) but also could be looked at as someone who is interested in cultural diversity. the way I see it and from what I've learned here on SDN, I believe the adcom would be thoroughly impressed.

 

[angleslam08]

I disagree, I think using study abroad as an EC bullet point could really help your chances depending on how you played the card. I talked to my adviser about it (because I plan to study abroad for a major-related program) and she said that studying abroad not only shows that you are willing to not only go above and beyond (financially and experience-wise,) but also could be looked at as someone who is interested in cultural diversity. the way I see it and from what I've learned here on SDN, I believe the adcom would be thoroughly impressed.

+1, the others are just being debbie downers imo

 

[Person0715]

I disagree, I think using study abroad as an EC bullet point could really help your chances depending on how you played the card. I talked to my adviser about it (because I plan to study abroad for a major-related program) and she said that studying abroad not only shows that you are willing to not only go above and beyond (financially and experience-wise,) but also could be looked at as someone who is interested in cultural diversity. the way I see it and from what I've learned here on SDN, I believe the adcom would be thoroughly impressed.

Study abroad, for the most part, is definitely a good thing in terms of widening your own perspective, unless you do things like that bogus semester at sea program you see being advertised on college campuses everywhere - can you say booze cruise?

Anyway, it seems that the OP is doing study abroad mainly to impress adcoms. While it might be looked upon favorably by some people, it is probably not the trump card s/he thinks it is. Participating in a study abroad program solely for this reason is quite silly IMO, especially with the enormous debt the OP has to shoulder in order to even afford it.

 

[Doctorsoon2011]

This person is obviously not telling the truth. Applicants for any of Oxford's programs start in the fall, only go through certain highly regarded US institutions, and make a full commitments to attend. This guy's "timeline" is made up, and almost every college with exchange agreements with Oxford would be of high caliber enough to charge students identical tuition for abroad programs as they do their own.

I call shenanigans.

*Also, for anyone seriously interested in studying abroad, I did so twice (Paris the summer after my freshman year, University of Edinburgh first semester of Junior year) and it was entirely helpful, both culturally and academically. Feel free to ask questions.*

Made-up? Do you think I have nothing else to do with my life. Yes it is a real program . It is through a well known program and someone went through the same program from my college two years ago. I am going in the spring and it counts as two semesters (6 months) over there. The cost includes everything (living, food, travel, big plane ticket ect.) I will post back when I have more time but here is the website for proof. http://www.arcadia.edu/abroad/default.aspx?id=6853
It has a fee link there where you can look at the expenses. No Oxford is not 40,000 in tuition but thats what it will take to get me there and back...

I will reply to more tomorrow... short on time... Thanks for all the responses!!!

 

[Doctorsoon2011]

Given the price of that program for one semester, I would double check that it is legitimate. I can't imagine any school affiliated programs would charge that much, or maybe I'm just cheap?

I've been over here in Oxford since April in a research program. I got about $3000 for housing costs (staying in a fellow's accommodation), and another $1000 for food, travel, etc. My PI let me sit in on all the biochemistry classes until the students left at the end of term about a month ago. So I didn't take any classes officially, but the cost to me was $0.

Basically what I am trying to say is I had more or less the same experience that you would have without that massive bill. Sure, I will never have those BCH credits on my official transcript, but if you are just going for the shock value of Oxford on the resume, I think (ssNMR characterization of AMP's and cell-penetrating peptides... at Oxford) or something like that would work out just fine. If you took classes officially instead of doing research, same deal.

So look around and see if you can make it over here for a term or two for less money, and still take classes officially.

Okay, so lets start with it being a legit program. It is through Arcadia University which is, well, a university. Anyone can apply but few are selected. A big thing that helped me is that I am a physics major and not many physics majors apply...

The price - They give food, Local travel, and personal things about 6-7,000 (for 6 months, could be a little high??). Tuition is 26,000 which is for two semesters of full time classes. Then Living expenses= 5-6,000. Total mid 30,000 to 40,000. Seems outrageous! However, I would pay about 20,000 to live here and go to school (for 6 months).

It sounds like it is cheap for you because you are not taking classes. This sounds really neat but I need to take my classes and if I go I would want to take the classes... Do they seem harder?

I want to go for the experience... I mean who doesn't?! The reason for the post is to see how the admission committee would view this... Would it be a big deal? Thats what I keep trying to figure out.

I have already decided im going 🙂. One day ill be a doctor with 20,000 in the bank and think "damn, I should of went on that once in a lifetime trip".

 

[EsseQuamVideri]

Okay, so lets start with it being a legit program. It is through Arcadia University which is, well, a university. Anyone can apply but few are selected. A big thing that helped me is that I am a physics major and not many physics majors apply...

The price - They give food, Local travel, and personal things about 6-7,000 (for 6 months, could be a little high??). Tuition is 26,000 which is for two semesters of full time classes. Then Living expenses= 5-6,000. Total mid 30,000 to 40,000. Seems outrageous! However, I would pay about 20,000 to live here and go to school (for 6 months).

It sounds like it is cheap for you because you are not taking classes. This sounds really neat but I need to take my classes and if I go I would want to take the classes... Do they seem harder?

I want to go for the experience... I mean who doesn't?! The reason for the post is to see how the admission committee would view this... Would it be a big deal? Thats what I keep trying to figure out.

I have already decided im going 🙂. One day ill be a doctor with 20,000 in the bank and think "damn, I should of went on that once in a lifetime trip".

I think it'd be a great experience; no doubt about it. However, this attitude is pretty common among premeds (ado's in general): "I'll have all the money I need one day so I can be lax with my finances now."

That being said, I spent about 10K on my study abroad semester, which is also outrageous. I loved it, had a great host family that I'm still close with, traveled a lot, learned another language, and made friends and contacts all over the world. BUT, with a little more effort, I probably could have gotten a similar experience for the same price as a normal semester if going through a different program (financial aid didn't count for me).

I caution you against borrowing so much against your future capital. This is an investment in your education. What if something drastic happens and you can't go to medical school? You'll be saying, "Damn, wish I hadn't been so reckless even though I had a hell of a time." Food for thought

 

[SilmeUF]

I see, that is just a projected cost. Well in that case, I would suggest eating cheaply and seeing what you can do about housing, (long term hostel stay vs. uni accommodations.)

If staying in the US is going to run around $20K, then two semesters at Oxford for $10K more doesn’t seem so bad. I can't speak for the relative cost of other programs, because I just don't know where the average falls.

As far as the AdCom's perception, who knows? Certainly it is better than just holding down a part time job over the summer. It sounds like you are going because it is something that you want to do, in which case, don’t worry about how it will look. It will be an amazing experience and I'm sure you will be asked to talk about it during interviews, where it will have more of an impact than on the secondary.

As far as the classes, it is just a different system. The biochemistry majors here at Oxford seem to be taking multiple in-depth courses covering specific topics in biochemistry by their second year. If anything, it just seems like they have the GenChem/Orgo/random science prereqs finished sooner than their US counterparts, or are exempted from them, and move into the real BCH courses sooner. The material isn't any more challenging than what I saw at UF, but they have a lot more to play around with than the one big undergraduate BCH course that I took back home.

 

[Deathstar]

\
I have already decided im going 🙂. One day ill be a doctor with 20,000 in the bank and think "damn, I should of went on that once in a lifetime trip".

\

 

[Doctorsoon2011]

I caution you against borrowing so much against your future capital. This is an investment in your education. What if something drastic happens and you can't go to medical school? You'll be saying, "Damn, wish I hadn't been so reckless even though I had a hell of a time." Food for thought

Very good point! As a physics major with previous engineering internships I am still set up to be an engineer... Which is still no excuse, I completely agree with conserving money and I live by those standards very much. However, Oxford is where much of the physics came from. I think it is worth the investment as far as personal gain.

When I first started college I read an article about getting into medical school (its been a while!). The doctor was saying that if you had lower grades and MCAT scores that you will still get in if you have something interesting. I remember him giving NASA as an example (which is funny because I later went on an internship with NASA). Anyways, I was curious if this held any water? I think it makes since to say that things like NASA and Oxford are unique and would make your app more interesting. I could see this helping with finding a job. Anyone think they got in due to some neat unique experience?

 

[Doctorsoon2011]

I see, that is just a projected cost. Well in that case, I would suggest eating cheaply and seeing what you can do about housing, (long term hostel stay vs. uni accommodations.)

They have a option at the start of the trip that I can live there for two weeks, in the dorms, and try and find other living accommodations. This seems kind of scary because what if I cant find anything? You think it would be better for me to do this? I have tried Craigslist but cant find anything that is better. Can I live with you ?

 

[Doctorsoon2011]

Just to update this thread. I did end up study at Oxford. In fact, I am here right now! It has been amazing and worth every bit of the 15 grand I ended up borrowing to come here.

 

[Snuke]

I did a study abroad for the semester in London, and the price was 25-30k. Since my school is significantly more, that didn't phase me in the slightest.

What no one has yet mentioned is how often interviewers will ask about your trip. I did a combination of classes and research in London, and 90% of my interviewers wanted to hear more. Anything that starts or continues a conversation in your favor is the best thing that can happen on the interview trail. Hopefully, if they're talking enough abou you and what you've done, they won't ask any gotcha questions or delve deeply into ethical questions.

You have to give them conversational fodder, and an abroad experience is an excellent one.

As for whether you put it as an EC, that's up to you. If it becomes particularly meaningful and you do something interesting, I'd put it down. Even if all you write about is your broadening cultural awareness (and how a country so close to the US politically and linguistically can still seem so foreign), then an interview might think and ask, "oh, how so?"

What would you be doing, just classes? Keep in mind that adcoms will see them but unless you put it down as an EC it will not be highlighted and may be missed.

Bottom Line, OP - do it regardless. It will be an amazing experience whether or not you put it down on your app or not. It's cliche, but studying abroad really does broaden your mind.

Edit: fail for not seeing the date. Oh well, still applies. OP, are you going to put it down?

 

[andrew3077]

I spent a semester in Spain last year, and I cannot recommend it more to anyone. Met so many new friends, had so many great experiences, and had a lot of fun. I learned so much about the culture by living there and became so much more independent. I spent probably $5000 on room, board, and classes, after scholarships.

When my interviewers saw that I had studied abroad, they kept asking me questions for almost 5 minutes just talking about my experience and how it changed me. Do it for the experience and the conversation in the interview will be a bonus.

 

[Doctorsoon2011]

I did a study abroad for the semester in London, and the price was 25-30k. Since my school is significantly more, that didn't phase me in the slightest.

What no one has yet mentioned is how often interviewers will ask about your trip. I did a combination of classes and research in London, and 90% of my interviewers wanted to hear more. Anything that starts or continues a conversation in your favor is the best thing that can happen on the interview trail. Hopefully, if they're talking enough abou you and what you've done, they won't ask any gotcha questions or delve deeply into ethical questions.

You have to give them conversational fodder, and an abroad experience is an excellent one.

As for whether you put it as an EC, that's up to you. If it becomes particularly meaningful and you do something interesting, I'd put it down. Even if all you write about is your broadening cultural awareness (and how a country so close to the US politically and linguistically can still seem so foreign), then an interview might think and ask, "oh, how so?"

What would you be doing, just classes? Keep in mind that adcoms will see them but unless you put it down as an EC it will not be highlighted and may be missed.

Bottom Line, OP - do it regardless. It will be an amazing experience whether or not you put it down on your app or not. It's cliche, but studying abroad really does broaden your mind.

Edit: fail for not seeing the date. Oh well, still applies. OP, are you going to put it down?

I am taking only classes here. The stuff I am taking will be really interesting to admin. For example, I am taking Biophysics. I will still have a year to graduate and plan to work as a physicist for a few years ( 3 at most) before applying to med school. When I apply I will put it down. I studied abroad before, in India (and I am not Indian) and also did an internship at NASA. I would guess a million questions will come from this alone (and I have not even started about my 3+ year of research, awards ect). I never thought it would help me with my interview! Thanks for the post!