If you are thinking about going on Erasmus, watch out: this experience is truly life-changing. Here are the scariest consequences of becoming a mobility ambassador.
You get used to almost never seeing your friends
You first experience this during Erasmus, when you are a thousand miles away from your loved ones: video chats become a part of your everyday life. Then you make friends with other international students and ESNers during your exchange, but you are destined to say goodbye to them and go back home. Long-distance friendships are not easy, and some of them will fail sooner or later. Yet the lifelong international friendships that remain will turn out to be the best part of your Erasmus.
You have difficulty speaking your native language
While on Erasmus, you get used to speaking English and the language of your Erasmus country all the time. When you come back home, you realise that sometimes you just can’t express an idea or feeling in your mother tongue. This results in integrating foreign words and grammar structures into your native language as well as simply speaking it really slowly, trying to remember the most suitable ways to convey your thoughts. The good thing is, though, that this happens because you know other languages too well.
You constantly reflect on your values and beliefs
Erasmus gives you endless opportunities to meet new people – all from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and various experiences. Some of them will have beliefs different from your own. Talking to them will broaden your horizons and will help you see a lot of things from a new angle. This will inevitably make you think critically about your perspective on life and even some of your major life choices. But the worst (or the best?) part of it is that it does not end with Erasmus: you will have to live with the new open-minded self for the rest of your life.
You become addicted to the international atmosphere
The very minute you come home, you are welcomed by post-Erasmus depression: you feel as if you were a stranger in your own city, and you miss being surrounded by your international friends. In order to get over it, you do everything to feel the international atmosphere again. You start by befriending your local Erasmus students and taking short trips to neighbouring countries, but soon you find yourself joining ESN and applying for the second long-term exchange programme… And even after you’ve graduated from university, you can’t help but lead an international lifestyle. Once Erasmus, always Erasmus!
You never settle for an ordinary, comfy life
Erasmus pulls you out of your comfort zone. You are far away from your friends, family – everything familiar. This stepping-into-the-unknown part of the exchange is particularly scary. Yet, after you’ve done it, you become a completely different person. You go for crazy things, like parachuting while being afraid of heights or joining a 200-people party even though you are an introvert. And – what’s even more surprising – you might actually like it! Going back to the calm, comfortable life that you once had become your worst nightmare. Routines will never suit you again.
Are you brave enough to face the self-transformation that is bound to happen during Erasmus? What are you waiting for, then? Visit the Erasmus+ official website and send in your application!
