There is nothing scarier than moving abroad, especially to a place you know nothing about.Just like other expats (although I'm not one because I haven't left yet), I had no idea where to begin with uprooting my whole life and moving to an unknown land. Since I have done my fair share of research and I know where I'm going and  I feel like I can impart some easy advice from my experience of planning to move abroad. Disclaimer: I’m not an expert.

1. Research First things first, before you decide anything you need to research the heck out of the place. There are so many books, magazines, leaflets and websites out there about holidays and travelling abroad. If you have no idea where to go, hit the internet and search the countries where you are interested in one or two are likely to stand out. Research the cities in that country and find out about the culture, food, language, activities and places to see. I also like to look at other countries near, as I like to explore as much as I can so taking a quick weekend trip to another country that is close is a great way to see more of the world at a fraction of the price. You might as well do it while you are living over there. 

2. Read blogs. People are always blogging about there about their travel experiences. Now, if you Google expat and the place you are looking to travel to you’re bound to find a blog or two! I have discovered that reading blogs is a million times more beneficial for me when trying to get a feel for a place. It never hurts to check for Facebook groups as well! You’d be surprised how many expat groups you can find!

3. Talk to people. This is one of the most important things to do when looking to move. Try and talk to someone that has been overseas or lived there, find out why they loved that country? Would they do it again? If not, why not? Everybody has their opinions about places but getting to see excitement on people’s faces when they talk about their experiences is the one thing I take on board when I'm looking to travel.

4. Open days for exchange programmes. I do suggest going to look at organisations that do exchange programmes. Find out when they have their open days, here you will be able to have a look at all of their exchange programmes. The one I went to was IEP they have all the information about travel, how much it will cost you (flight, visa, accommodation ext.). They also have stories from people that have done that some of the programmes. It can give you some valuable information about the place and how much your tip can cost.

5. Jobs The economy in most places are in a recession so looking for a specified job will be hard to find. If you looking to go overseas primarily to get a job in the area you studied please look on websites (seek.co.uk for example) for the amount of jobs, If there is one or two this isn't the country you should be travelling to. You do not want to pay all this money to get there and then having to come back again because you couldn't find a job. Also another tip is to be open to work anywhere. Employees love a positive attitude and willing to hire anyone that is willing to learn and do anything. At least if you get a job quickly it can tie you over till you can get a specified job.


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