The depressing reality that meets us.
1. Work experience is just as, if not more, important than grades
Here in Egypt, we have this understanding that studying and grades are the ultimate decider of who gets into what university, and maybe that’s true for universities inside Egypt. If you’ve applied to a university abroad, you know for a fact the popularity of teen employment has made a huge impact on what universities are now expecting of you.
2. Uni life is not nearly as wild as you expected
A big reason students apply abroad is that they want to experience independence and maybe let loose a little bit, which is sometimes difficult to when living with family. The reality is, way more students in university are concerned with their courses than they are with partying, knowing that it gets pretty boring after a while. Sorry, joke is on you.
3. Uni really is better than back home
So you got to admit, maybe the academic level really is a little bit better than back home, at least in some disciplines. The independence and self-reliance is enough to make you 110% better in your future career field. Living without family means you force yourself to take your work seriously without your parents having to push you. That doesn’t mean it’s any fun, though.
4. Your professors don’t know who you are, and truly do not care
Unlike high school, at big universities abroad, your educators do not know who you are and will not chase you to get your work done. If you don’t care, nobody else will.
5. There is no such thing as relying on your friend to help you cheat
The concept of slacking off and depending on your classmate to help you pass does NOT exist. Everyone in university is there to achieve something, they will not put themselves at risk to help you and won’t tolerate your codependency.
6. There will be times when you feel like an outsider
Simply because you are. The Egyptian culture is a warm, conservative and rowdy one. Not everyone will relate to your mentality or your character, and more often than not you will feel you have to omit a part of your personality in order to get on with those around you.
7. There will be people who try to make you conform to their lifestyle
“Here in [city or country abroad] we do things differently,” is something you will hear often. Don’t be surprised if others assume you have no idea how things in the rest of the world function, or that you have a very limited understanding of the civilized world. Yes, you will be seen as different and not always in a good way.
8. The “new foreign student” almost always translates as “the idiot.”
Expect that you will regularly be perceived as a blank slate, at least at first. Students and professors will almost immediately take you under their wing and try to teach you the ropes, almost as if you could not function without them. State your abilities and don’t allow others to make you feel vulnerable or inferior.
9. You were wrong
Yes, there are a lot of things we hate about Egypt. We thought we couldn’t wait to get out and do things on our own. Maybe wherever you are the traffic isn’t as bad, there isn’t any garbage in the street and you can dress whichever way you please. But that’s really all overrated, anyway. Home is where the heart is, no matter how crappy home seems to be right now. That is one thing you have to learn the hard way.
WE SAID THIS: Don’t miss 10 Things You Go Through With Arab Parents When You Study Abroad.
