One of the main reasons to study abroad is to be able to work perfectly in a language. And it is that knowing English is no longer just a matter ofstudy, but has become a way of life.
It is increasingly necessary and knowing it is very important for personal growth. Therefore, it is very important to learn it. The best way to do this is to go to an English-speaking country. It never goes without going to academies, attending courses or even spending a couple of weeks abroad… but study at least a year in an Anglo-Saxon country allows for a complete linguistic immersion.
If you are thinking of starting this adventure abroad, from Ynsitu, we bring you 5 tips to make the most of your stay:
1. Live with natives
The best thing for a complete linguistic immersion is to live with natives. If you are a High School student, the best option is to live in a host family (host family). If on the contrary you are a college student, avoid living in a flat with other Spanish or South American students so as not to fall into the temptation to turn to Spanish at home, which on the other hand, is a place where we spend many hours a day.
2. Make friends of all nationalities
I’m sure you have teammates (or classmates) who are Asian or European. Ideally, there’s a little bit of everything in your group of friends. At first you’ll find it difficult to relate to them because as soon as you arrive you may not understand everything they say, but in the long run, that will help you perform much better and learn many colloquial expressions.
3. Visit typical places
Take excursions to visit the most interesting places in the area. Try reading information about them in English to learn new words you don’t know yet. The more you read, the more you’ll improve your vocabulary.
4. Avoid Spanish
Obviously when you talk to your Spanish family and friends, you’ll do it in Spanish, but when you watch movies or series and read articles or magazines, do it in English. This will help make your language immersion complete. In case you live with Spaniards or South Americans, try speaking English from the outing. Do not fall into the temptation to speak Spanish because then it will be very difficult to change that custom.
5. Talk, talk and talk!
At first it’s hard and there will even be times when you don’t understand everything they tell you, but if you try to speak and express yourself in English as much as possible, you’ll learn much faster and adapt to the new language first. Don’t be ashamed to make mistakes grammatical or not knowing how to pronounce a word correctly. You learn by making mistakes and you’re sure that all the people around you will be happy to help you in your learning process. Bring out your accent when you speak English. I’m sure people like your accent… and it can even help you flirt!
We hope we helped you and… Get in the pool! The worst thing that can happen to you is that you spend an unforgettable year and that you better your level of English than you have ever imagined before.
Check out all our English courses!
If before your experience abroad you want to take a language course from Spain to reinforce your basic knowledge and feel more confident, we recommend the magnificent professionals of Innova languages!