<p>What types of items, information, paperwork, etc. should a student bring when they will be studying abroad for an extended period of 6 months? We’ve already run into issues before d. even left. She is packed, has her passport and visa, a bank account that does not charge ATM fees, medical insurance, and a new camera ;-). Any other important items to bring with her? She tried to open an credit account that charges no foreign transaction fee, and despite her good credit history, the paperwork got totally screwed up at the bank end (separate topic). In trying to clean up the mess at the last minute, d. asked for our assistance. They will not talk to anyone but her, of course, which will be difficult for her to do abroad because you are put on hold forever. They will take no written correspondence from her. I’m going to ask for assistance on that topic on another thread, but in the mean time, it became apparent, that she won’t be able to ask us to help her with too much from this end due to hippa regulations, so we were wondering what other items or paperwork she should consider bringing with her.</p>
<p>Copies of her passport and you should keep one too. I know she is having problems with the credit card company and I have no advise there but I do know that my dd was saved a lot of problems because she left her cc at her host house when she went traveling around the country. She had her backpack stolen with her passport in it. Thankfully, that homebound cc could be used to pay for a temporary one (she was flying home the next day). The paper copies of the passport were also a great help. The other things she needs are a sense of adventure and a sense of humor. Hope the cc snafu is the last problem.</p>
<p>If she has a phone she should take out the sim card and leave it with you to avoid often astronomical charges (assessed even if she does not actually answer, which is why she should not take her sim card with her). She can buy a sim card wherever she is going that will enable her to call and text other students abroad. If she is on your family plan you can have her number suspended while she is out of the country.</p>
<p>Definitely, a photocopy of her passport. My S has unexpectedly needed a copy of his undergraduate diploma and a copy of his birth certificate (which he had to get translated by an official translator). We ended up scanning both and emailing them to him. She might want to just take a copy with her. (I wouldn’t take originals.) If there are official letters authorizing the study abroad through either her home institution or a foreign one, she may have to produce those at some point. She should probably take the originals and leave copies with you. Is it safe to assume that she is taking a tablet or laptop? In that case, make sure both you and she know how to skype. :)</p>
<p>It is astonishing how much bureaucracy there is in S’s country, and how many documents they demand and how many fees he has had to pay. He has had to have two separate physicals, one of which must be done in the host nation by an approved physician. This is required of anyone who intends to stay over, I think, three months, and is associated with registering at the police department, paying more fees, etc, etc.</p>
<p>I hope your D has an easier time of it. :)</p>
<p>Copies of medical records, medications in original containers. Check with CDC for any health updates, any shots required or warnings on water, bugs, etc. Check with State Dept. for any tourist warnings.</p>
<p>Yes, you need to check whether her phone can take a Euro sim card and what charges are for calling in-country vs back to the US- or whether it’s cheaper to buy a phone there, for local. (Tripadvisor is also a good source for info.) Get ready to skype- things change fast in the telecom world, but it was free for D1, a year ago.</p>
<p>Be sure to let any bank or cc accounts know she will be abroad and which country- so their fraud detectors don’t clang. And, if/when she travels to another country. See if she can authorize the banks or cc co’s to speak with a parent, in her absence. (We’ve done this with some of DH’s cards, so I can handle things.) DH was on her bank account, which makes adding $ easier. But when we tried to notify them of her travel to a different country, it was her card in question, and they gave us a headache. Ask your bank how you would get that authorization.</p>
<p>Hipa is medical- she shouldbe able to sign permission for them to speak with you. Eg, we could speak with her doc, while she was away. </p>
<p>Make sure, for any cards, she does have the intl toll-free number from the country she’ll be in. </p>
<p>I am a big advocate of at least some travellers checks- because they can be replaced nearly immediately. The process is easier than (imo) having to report a lost card (incl the police report,) wait for a replacement - and have access to money, in the interim. </p>
<p>How exciting.</p>
<p>The banker who set up D’s account gave D her email so D could contact her if she ran into any trouble. Also D gave me her password so I could access her account - she wanted me to!</p>
<p>Agree - copy all important docs and records</p>
<p>In addition to the photo copies of passport, medical, etc. have her email copies to herself. That way she can access the info if she is ‘traveling’</p>
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<p>Excellent point. S did this. He also had to renew the information after a few months, so your D may well have to do so due to her length of stay. I’m 99% certain he was able to do this online.</p>
<p>Definitely prescriptions. Getting her to sign something so that medical information is available to you could be helpful, should she need records sent, because scanning and emailing is by far the quickest and cheapest method.</p>
<p>Excellent idea, Kajon.</p>
<p>I also agreed with getting access to her account. It helps if you need to jump in and do things.</p>
<p>All great suggestions! EC Mother, timely note. One of her classes at her host school is organizing a trip to a North African country that the US recently asked all US citizens to leave!!! She wrote the organizer and pointed out the dilemma, and he basically responded that it is deemed safe for them, but that she is on her own! We called the state dept. for updates, who told us to write the consulate in that country, who in turn wrote us to call the state department ;-0 Needless to say, she decided to NOT go on that field trip with the class. (her mother sighs with relief). At the same time, it is sad to miss such a great opportunity as well.
This is turning into an interesting trip, and she hasn’t even left!</p>
<p>In most other countries (except Japan and the Republic of Korea), a cell phone that is usable with a local SIM card will be a quad-band unlocked GSM phone. Two of the GSM bands are used in most of the Americas, but the other two are the ones most commonly used in the rest of the world (Japan and the Republic of Korea use their own CDMA).</p>
<p>Phones used with Verizon or Sprint in the US are CDMA.</p>
<p>Phones sold through AT&T or T-Mobile are GSM, but are usually locked to the carrier. Lower end phones may not have all four GSM bands. She may be able to get her phone unlocked before leaving.</p>
<p>Or she can just buy a phone when she gets there. In most other countries, most phones are sold without subsidy, and most plans are prepaid pay-as-you-go without lock-in for two years.</p>
<p>Check for any available vaccines that may be relevant to the country she travels to.</p>
<p>We added DS to one of our credit cards to be used in case of emergency–just in case he ran into a pick-pocket or lost his wallet. He was to leave it in his dorm room in a safe, hidden place to ensure it didn’t get lost. When traveling, he kept the two cards in separate places. That way, he wouldn’t be totally stranded abroad without money. Fortunately, it wasn’t necessary, but you never know…LOVE the idea of emailing the documents so there is ready access…I’m sure she’ll have a great experience!</p>
<p>It might be easier to have a joint credit card linked to a joint account. Make sure the health care is covered and that it includes evacuation if you don’t trust the local hospitals. Make sure everyone has Skype - it’s by far the easiest way to keep in touch. We had a regular time arranged and then got emails if that time wasn’t going to be convenient. Make sure you have at least one dress up outfit just in case. Usually getting a local phone is the way to go. My son kept his phone with him, but turned it off until he arrived in our country.</p>
<p>Don’t take too much. Dragging around multiple suitcases is no fun. My son spent four months in Jordan with one big backpack and one knapsack.</p>
<p>My daughter emailed copies of ccards and visa and numbers for international help if needed. We got a joint acct with BOA since in England they had lower fees with Barclays ATM’s, being affiliated. It made it much easier to put in money and keep track of expenses.
She was a “designated user” on my Sapphire card so I already could keep track of that. It was easier than trying to get her one of her own and the interest was lower.
My daughter’s first trip abroad her school said she could get a sim card from “goabroad” and she used that until she got home in her non-smart phone. That was also available to both of us in case I had to add minutes and she could keep track of her calls, etc.</p>
<p>She was also told to register with the Embassy there when traveling.</p>
<p>Even if she is a designated user, you still have to inform the cc co- especially if you also use the card here. </p>
<p>You can find State Dept travel advisories here: [Welcome</a> to Travel.State.Gov](<a href=“404 - Page Not Found”>http://travel.state.gov/)
Read it carefully - some warnings won’t appply as much in regular tourist areas. Some protests are limited to effective locations, etc. (Btw, if you want an example of how stern and frank they can be, look at Haiti.)</p>
<p>Look into registering with the consulate or empbassy-- see if it is valid for the country she’ll live in. My understanding is not all do it. (I’m not sure.)</p>
<p>And, make sure she has a light overnight/daypack sort of bag for quick trips. Something easy to carry, over many hours.</p>
<p>I’ve been looking at study abroad progams, and I see that some provide a local cellphone. Does that work well?</p>
<p>Both of mine were given local cells and then added minutes as needed. For both, this was a simple matter- minutes are sold all over the place. It worked well for calling friends there, checking a hotel reservation, etc. (And, in any emergency.)</p>
<p>My son was given a local cell phone at the last program and was taken to buy an inexpensive one at the program before that. Both phones were inexpensive to use in country and would take calls from us at no cost to him. (It was nice to know we could call him if we needed to, but in fact we used Skype since it cost nothing to us.)</p>
<p>Generally the study abroad programs will give you good advice about bank accounts, cell phones, what to wear and the like.</p>
<p>Odessagirl spent last spring in England. She said to take an adapter and a converter. She also ended up purchasing a smaller carry-on bag while over there. Went on many smaller planes and sometimes they charge extra for larger size luggage.</p>
<p>Tell your kids to ship souvenirs home rather than pay to fly them from the Indian sub continent to the UK.
It will also reduce the amount of stuff to keep track of.
Bring more t-shirts with regional interest,( to giveaway) other kids will love them!</p>