The budget of your language study trip depends on your lifestyle and the lifestyle you wish to have during your language study trip. Several costs come into play when preparing your language study trip.
Journey:
- Airport or train station transfer to your home
- Cancellation insurance (other insurance)
The further you are travelling, the more expensive your trip will be! However, if you book in advance, you can take advantage of very good prices on flights or train journeys. Depending on your destination, the costs of the journex will be high but the cost of living will be relatively low on-site. Find out as much as possible before travelling abroad about the basic prices in the country of your destination in order to evaluate your budget.
School/course:
- Course material (books, sheets, etc.)
- Placement fees for internship if carrying out internship
The price of courses in language schools varies considerably according to the number of hours of classes which you have chosen to take during your language study trip. The reputation of the school also plays a role in the cost of courses and, of course, the duration of your language study trip will somewhat determine your budget for your course. It you decide to stay for longer in the same place, you may be able to take advantage of a special offer.
Exam:
- Courses with officially recognised exams are more expensive than a simple course
If you decide to sit an internationally recognised exam, you will need to pay the price! Generally, institutions which propose exams enjoy the unique status of supplier of recognised titles and are able to tax them at very high prices.
Accommodation:
The most inexpensive form of accommodation remains the host family. Depending on your age, this type of accommodation may not seem suitable. However, it is one of the most common types. On the other hand, if you decide to stay in a hotel or an apartment, you will have to pay more.
Food:
- Half board or full board or no board
- 3 meals per day if no board
It all depends on the country you decide to travel to for your language study trip. In addition, you can choose to have half board or not when you are choosing your accommodation. Some countries are expensive for eating out, whilst others offer inexpensive dishes compared with your home country. You often get caught out at the beginning of your stay but then you find inexpensive places to eat at lunchtime and in the evening. Your food budget is linked with your board and also your lifestyle (picnic or restaurant). In addition, depending on your choice of accommodation, it may be possible for you to prepare your own meals in the kitchen of the apartment or residence.
Going out:
If you are in a city, you are probably going to go out a lot because cities have a wide range of cultural activities. Be prepared to spend quite a bit of money every week if you are curious to discover this new culture.
Communication :
Whatever your type of accommodation, you will be asked to pay for any calls, etc. made to your family or friends, even if they are local calls. The most simple and economic thing to do is to buy a prepaid phonecard for international or local use in order to pay less. The host family will most likely ask you to make your phonecalls from a phonebox or from the school. If you have a mobile phone and you are staying for more than a month, we advise you to buy a prepaid card of a telephone company in order to be able to make phonecalls on-site without any extra costs. Generally, you have free Internet access from teh school and sometimes even from your accommodation.
