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You might be the first one to have mooted the idea of sending your son/daughter for overseas studies. Browsing dozens of university websites, talking to friends, relatives, colleagues, to scanning every   bit of information available on the web and visiting the best overseas education consultants in town and what not, before finalizing on a particular study abroad destination and institution that is best for your child, and now he / she is about to fly in a matter of days. Though happy with the outcome, anxiousness takes precedence over excitement. This is a situation most of the parents go through when their kids embark on studies abroad.  Some common worries go like this

Will my son/ daughter be safe there?

Safety is a genuine worry in the current world scenario. Though no country can be 100% safe, considering the high priority given by governments of popular study abroad destinations for security, you can be rest assured   about the safety of your loved ones.  As a matter of fact, most universities / institutions abroad provide accommodation within their campus or facilitate safe accommodation, so that worry can be laid to rest .Travelling also should not be a major cause of concern as most of these countries have excellent transportation systems including, bus, taxis, trams etc.   Exercising a little bit  of caution  like safe keeping of one’s wallet , credit cards ,avoiding  travelling at unearthly hours  through isolated locations  etc  there is remote possibility of anything untoward happening.

How can we be in constant touch with them?

This is a very common worry, most parents of students embarking on overseas studies have, but in this age of advanced technology with endless options like Skype, Google hangout, viber, whatsapp etc, getting in touch with your child should not be a problem. Apart from phones at hostels and accommodations, calling cards are also easily available from international desks of the concerned institutions.   All you have to do is to fix a time slot, probably after class hours. Sunday would be ideal as you can hear from him / her all the interesting developments of the week.

Will my child properly utilize the time for studies while he / she is abroad?

Whether my  child would  wisely utilize  the time  spend abroad  and concentrate  on  his/her  studies  rather than  on partying , sigh seeing   etc ?,  is a common  concern of many parents, though they may not admit it openly.  However it is heartening to find that majority of students take their studies seriously.   As a parent one must also understand apart from studies, a little bit of mingling with students and spending time outside, exploring the country side, its culture, food etc is equally important in getting exposure, which would come handy in their professional life abroad.

What will be the food like?  will my child get food to his/her liking?

A typical worry of most parents especially mothers whether their child would get food to his /her liking however it is very interesting to note that most students love food, offering a bit of variety in taste and ingredients, at least for the first few days, before craving for Indian food. Even the most introvert student gets a feel of the locality near to accommodation or university/ college and locates restaurants serving Indian food which is very common irrespective of the country you are in.  Students studying abroad are usually seen to enjoy cooking and try out some home recipes to great effect.  So relax your loved one is not going to starve any way.

How much money is enough for my child for his comfortable stay abroad?

This is something that every parent have on the back of his/her mind but unfortunately there can be no tailor made answer for it as it depends on many things including the life style your child is accustomed to, accommodation taken, food choices etc but it is generally seen that Indian students usually don’t ring up their parents for extra money and find out ways to earn their pocket money by doing part time jobs.  Scholarships also to a large extend comes handy in reducing the financial burden.  Considering the hard working and high adaptability nature it is generally seen that Indian student do not trouble their parents for extra money unless it is beyond their control.

Still have concerns regarding overseas study phase of your child, contact Santa Monica study abroad, your trusted overseas education consultant with over 13 years of experience with association across 10+ countries and over 200 universities/institutions of repute with services ranging from Colleges short listing to application submission, liaising with Universities, visa guidance, scholarship assistance, financial aid, education loan assistance to pre departure and post landing assistance.  please feel free to reach us on o484 -4140999