II. ERASMUS. MAIN MOTIVATIONS

19 Oct 2011, 01:43

Several years before starting to study at university, I was thinking of participating in an international exchange program, but I knew it was necessary to wait for the right time.

Prior to the Erasmus program, I had the opportunity to live a few months in England working and studying English and I also took a summer course in Germany for a month. So, I already had an idea of what to expect from an Erasmus program and this had increased considerably my motivation when I had to decide to apply for international exchange. However, I did not imagine that the Erasmus program would become a completely different experience to the above.

One of the main motivations for thinking about the international exchange was the idea of visiting new countries.

I have always had a special interest in learning about customs and lifestyles different from those I already know and it increased my desire to spend some time living and studying in another country, but I also needed to decide to which country I wanted to go and it is there where languages became a factor that played an important and decisive role.

After the experiences in England and Germany, I realized that the best way to learn a language was to force yourself to listen and talk in that language and there is no place more appropriate than a country where that language is spoken. When it was time to submit the application for the Erasmus program, I was satisfied with my English but my level of German was weak. So I decided that for the international exchange I would choose as possible destinations, countries where German were spoken, and my first choices were Austria and Germany.

Another aspect that kept alive the dream of my Erasmus experience was the idea of meeting new people, and not only from the host country, but I would also know people from other countries, students who, in the same way as me, would live the adventure of an international exchange willing to meet new colleagues and introducing themselves. Nevertheless, I never imagined that the currently popular "networking" would be a daily activity.

It is also true that in the professional field, an Erasmus experience adds high value to the curricular profile of an individual. Especially in careers like the one I am studying, Tourism, where internationalization is a mainstay. Prior to the start of my international exchange, I read several articles in different means of communication related to tourism which suggested that, at the time of finding and selecting new staff, companies fairly valued in a positive way those candidates who had obtained an Erasmus scholarship. Therefore, it was very motivating for me to know that this experience would help me get a better profile.

Living alone and being able to enjoy of greater autonomy, were aspects that became a stimulating factor to start an international exchange. I knew I would have to assume many responsibilities but I wanted to show myself that I was able to control the situation.
It is also true that many of us found that living alone is not as easy or fun as we had thought.

Many and varied were the factors that positively influenced and motivated me to start my Erasmus adventure. Fortunately, I was not wrong and to start this new phase of my life was one of the best achievements I have made.

Views: 1299