During study abroad, one of the places where you will spend a considerable amount of time is at your homestay’s home.  In order for your experience to be as amazing as possible, it is also important that your homestay experience is an amazing one too.  Living abroad can be difficult at first, but making a positive connection to your homestay can impact your experience for the better.

Our immersion programs are an intensive, authentic look into another country, language and culture which make it extra important for students of all ages to go into their trip abroad with an open mind and ready to take on each activity. However, this collective challenge of jumping into an unknown place gives each student an amazing opportunity to embrace new experiences.

When you first arrive in a new country, you may initially feel overwhelmed being in a new environment.  When I first arrived in Lima, I did not know what to expect, but I knew that I was not alone. EdOdyssey’s one month orientation program served as an amazing starting point to get adjusted to the city, gain more knowledge about Peru, and improve my level of Spanish.  

If you are currently a senior in high school, you are going through the stressful college application process. What was something that never crossed my mind during the beginning of my senior year of high school? A gap year.  

The intense nature of jam-packed schedules for all you 9th-12th graders can make it hard to see beyond your immediate routine. As you run between classes, extracurriculars, and sports, you probably have a limited amount of time to consider the immense value of opportunities like a trip abroad and travel.

My name is Liam Grady and I as I prepare to graduate from Saint Rose in New York this May, I’d like to give you an idea about how my summer immersion trip to Peru changed my perspective, challenged beliefs/possible biases, and just opened my mind to the beauty that is present throughout the world.