As cliché as it sounds, by studying abroad you will become a much worldlier person, and become more marketable to grad schools and employers because of the intangible life skills you’re going to pick up along the way. Think of it as gaining a sort of cultural capital. The fact that you’ve studied abroad will answer many people’s questions about what type of person you are even before they have to ask.

You want culture? Perhaps one of the best ways to experience culture is to live it, which is exactly what you’ll be doing as a study abroad student. Aside from gaining an understanding for cultures other than your own, you will also gain intangible skills (another great selling point for Mom and Dad). Independence, time management, organization, social skills and self-confidence, just to name a few, will all develop exponentially while you’re abroad.

There will be a moment while abroad when you’ll realize that you’ve made the right decision: Treasure that moment. Mine was on a beach in Spain during a one-week vacation in November. There I was, shirt and shoes off, staring into the 75 degree Mediterranean Sea thinking about how all my friends were in class, possibly bored out of their minds and probably freezing in the cold New England weather.

That moment will come when all the stress from the first few weeks of getting acclimated is finally over, and it’s at that point that you will fully grasp what you’re doing, the magnitude of your decision to go abroad and your new found drive to take advantage of every opportunity that lay ahead of you.