Four criteria to consider when choosing a country to study in

 Four criteria to consider when choosing a country to study in

Phan Quoc Dung, who studied masters in Germany and Denmark under an Erasmus Mundus scholarship, shared the criteria for choosing a country to study abroad from his own experience.

As a mentor (advisor) for many students, I noticed that many of you choose a country to study in the "a dua" style, which means that when you see a close friend studying in the UK, you also want to go to the UK or see the US as "the best", so I decided to going to America. This type of choice can have many consequences such as wanting to change your mind at the last minute, having to drop out of school because of difficulty in integrating or not being financially responsive.

To limit the above problems, I think you should pay attention to four criteria when considering a country to study abroad:

1. Hobbies

Criteria and also the first "filter" I want to use is preferences. More or less, each student always has in his mind the "promised land". Those first impressions can come from movies, books or pictures you have accidentally seen. Studying abroad is a better opportunity to fulfill your dream of setting foot in a certain land.

I used to be overwhelmed by the ancient scenes, with palaces, castles and time-stained streets of Europe. So when thinking about studying abroad, I set the goal of going to European countries first, even though I did not know which country in this continent I would go to at that time.

Phan Quoc Dung lives in Dresden, Germany, where he studied for the first year of a master's program in Forest Management under an Erasmus Mundus scholarship. Photo: Character provided

Phan Quoc Dung lives in Dresden, Germany, where he studied for the first year of a master's program in Forest Management under an Erasmus Mundus scholarship. Photo: Character provided

2. Majors

The most important thing when studying abroad is studying. Everyone wants to find a suitable study program, at a prestigious school with a long track record in teaching and training. This search is not difficult because there are many prestigious rankings such as those of Times Higher Education (THE), QS or US News & World Report. You can completely look up this information based on the needs of your major and start zoning the most suitable schools.

For example, I want to study Forest Management abroad. Combined with the destination of European countries, I started looking for rankings of training schools related to forest management. I need to know the information that this industry is trained in which European countries, which schools are reputable and which programs make me feel excited and want to experience?

If more than one university or country matches, see the next criteria.

3. Financial conditions

This "filter" is very important in realizing your dream of studying abroad. If you study abroad on your own, you need a program with a tuition fee that is suitable for your economic conditions and your family. If you apply for a scholarship, you will also need enough support to live and study while you study abroad.

As soon as you have seen the schools you like, start looking for information: How is the scholarship payment? How much is tuition? How is the rent and living expenses? What are the other surcharges?

After locating a few schools in Germany, Denmark and Sweden, considering my family's financial condition, I decided to look for scholarships. There are many scholarship programs from full to partial to choose from. Finally, I tried my hand at the Erasmus Mundus scholarship, a master's scholarship funded by the European Union. This is a full scholarship that not only supports tuition fees but also provides monthly living expenses. It is suitable for students who do not have large enough financial conditions to pay like me.

4. Desired Experience

Last but not least is a combination of several criteria that can help you further narrow down the countries in your sights. Geographic location, climate, weather are external factors that can directly affect your life.

If you have a poor tolerance for cold and hate long winters, the Nordic countries are definitely not the promised land to you. Let's turn to the southern area, where there is plenty of sunshine and beautiful beaches. If you are a travel believer, choosing countries located in the center of Europe such as Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic will make it easier for you to move and travel to countries in the union.

For the cultural and community aspect, it is not difficult to find information on the Internet. In particular, you also need to pay attention to the Vietnamese community living, studying and working in that region or country. A strong community can support you in the first few days of your new life.

In the process of researching and orienting to study abroad, if you can skillfully combine your desires and criteria in a reasonable way, you will find a suitable destination, helping you to have a better experience.