5 Things You’re Forgetting to do for Your Exchange

 

Exchanges are such an exciting prospect in the life of university students. The opportunity to go abroad and live by yourself in an amazing new country draws a lot of people in, and it definitely should! I was drawn in by the idea of living by myself in Europe and I refuse to be disappointed.

As I know all too well, there is a lot of stuff to do before you leave on exchange. Some, you probably wouldn’t think of before it’s too late. I’ve put together a list of the 5 things I almost forgot to do before I leave on my semester abroad (tomorrow!!) to hopefully ensure you don’t make the same mistakes I did.

5 Things You’re Forgetting to do for your Exchange

Sign up for Registration of Canadians Abroad

With everything that’s going on in the world right now, this is even more important. Signing up with the Canadian government allows them to know what country you are in, just incase something happens. This way, if there are any advisories they can email you, or if you lose your passport, it’s easier for them to get you a new one. It’s super easy to sign up and can be done in under 5 minutes here.

Update your Phone Plan

I’m lucky in the fact that my phone is already unlocked and I’m on a monthly plan. This way, I’m able to change it super easily for my time abroad. But, I’m a crazy lady that needs to keep my phone number. It’s such a pain to switch them and I am willing to pay a small amount to keep my number as is. That being said, I forgot until the very last minute that I needed to change it and rushed to the mall kiosk just to be told that I had to do it over the phone.

Ensure you have enough Luggage

This seems self explanatory, but in reality, a lot of people don’t think of the fact that they actually have to have the luggage to take all their belongings with them! I didn’t even consider the fact that my carry on suitcase was so old the handle was broken and it didn’t wheel properly until the week before I left. Luckily, the Bay has an amazing selection and it just happened to be on sale the day I needed it to be (score!).

Make an Actual Budget

As the fashionista I am, I obviously kept on buying things that I just needed for my time abroad.  Little did I realize just how much I was eating into my exchange budget until the week before when I had a mini panic attack at work! Traumatizing as it was, it really pushed me to make an actual budget to plan out my expenses. This way, I can ensure that I won’t run out of money halfway through, and my clothing addiction can be sustained within a budget!

Bring School Supplies

I realize that although I was always aware that I was going on a semester abroad, it really never occurred to me that I actually needed to bring school supplies. I always have a pen on me, but highlighters, notebooks, and a financial calculator where not on my packing list until it was almost too late. You can always buy some there, but if you’re like me and will pay $7 for a coffee before you shell out the $0.50 for a highlighter, it’s better to bring it along.

So those are the things I waited until the last minute to do, what are things that you forgot for your semester abroad? Let me know in the comments!

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